Holidays with sunshine

Back on holidays again, I'm such a lucky boy. This time we were in the north west of Scotland near Inveraray in Argyll. We hired a house that had everything a dog could wish for. Plenty of space, a gazillion couches to choose from, conservatory, huge garden, a river running next to the garden and a Loch at the end of the garden and to cap it all off a paddock at the front for playing Frisbee.

I had a great week except for the midges who bit me round my eyes which wasn't nice. I did some swimming in Loch Fyne which is a sea loch. Now normally I won't go near the sea because I'm scared of the waves that chase me up the beach but in this environment I showed no fear of the still calm water and jumped right in. It wasn't until I put my head under to grab a rock I realised that sea water tastes disgusting and made a quick retreat back to the shore.

Later in the week some friends came to stay with their dogs which made for healthy competition of the tennis ball.
We had great weather for the whole week and based on facilities, scenery, walking and sleeping I would rate this area four out of four paws and am looking forward to visiting again.

Below are some holiday snaps.

Best summer evening ever!

So it's 10pm at night and its still light outside and I'm snoozing on the living room carpet trying to ignore the heat that keeps making me wake up and pant. Then to my surprise Mum and Dad got up and went outside to the garden and I was called upon to accompany. To my surprise when we got outside a large green swimming pool had arrived and it was full of water. At first I wasn't sure and I tiptoed around the edge sniffing at the water and getting only my whiskers wet. Then Mum brought out the water ball, the one I only get when I'm down by the river. I couldn't contain my excitement. Mum tempted me by placing it right in the centre of the pool so I would have to go in and get it, but I out smarted her and I used my paw to move the water and bring the ball to the edge where I carefully picked it out and shook it dry. Finally they threw it in and I was so involved in the chase I dived right in and thought nothing of it. from then on it was fun and water all the way. After 20 minutes of jumping swimming and retrieving, Mum and Dad got a heavy rubber ball and threw it in,.The rubber ball sunk to the bottom which confused me greatly. I didn't like it but I had to put my face in the water and reach right to the bottom to get it. My face was soaking and dripping heavy with water. My eyes were tight shut as I shook off the excess water and returned the ball dutifully to try the experience again. Finally the night ended with a drying session with two towels, one to play with and one to get dried with. It couldn't have been a more perfect night. I just can't wait for tomorrow it's going to be so welcome to paddle when the sun is out.
Mum and Dad surprised me with a swimming pool for the garden and it's fantastic!

Boat Trip

This was a while ago now at the end of March but I haven’t been blogging as often as I used to. It’s difficult these days to find time to blog in between the sleeping and the walkies and the sleeping and the dinner and the sleeping. Anyway, as you do, it’s good to have a break now and again and take a wee holiday. This year mum and dad opted for a boat far far away down in the south of England.

The holiday was really good fun, I got to stick my head out of the boat window when it was driving and I got to sit out of the back and watch the bubbles too. I got my own double bed to sleep on and a new environment to explore every time the boat stopped. The only down sides were not getting to swim, I had to walk on the lead and there wasn’t anywhere suitable to play Frisbee. The weather was very very windy, when we were out my ears just couldn’t stay flat. Besides the weather we got to see a few sites including exploring a ruined Abbey. (I wee weed on the sign post for it on the way there and again on the way back)  

 I did make a few new friends whilst I was there. The ducks came right up onto the boat to get bread from the kitchen and I talked to them nose to nose through the glass. As with most British tourists that go on holiday I didn’t learn any of the lingo before we went, so conversations with the Ducks were limited to body language and eye contact.

Overall it was a good holiday.

Due to the long drive and the lack of run around facilities on shore I’m going to award it 2 out of 4 paws

Inside Abbey looking up

Below are some pics and a video from our trip

Abbey

 

Seasons Greetings

Well, I haven’t blogged in a while, mostly because the dark nights are here and I've been ‘packed in’ keeping warm on the sofa. So I woke today to see mum decorating the house for the human festival of Christmas. She’s decorated my basket and added a large red sock to the front, so I presume there is something nice going to be left in there as the big day comes around.

Apart from the giving and receiving of gifts during Christmas the humans have a strange ritual of bringing in an en-suite bathroom and placing it in the corner of the living room. A great prospect I would think since it is rather cold to go outside for a wee especially on these dark nights. As an added luxury they even illuminate
it so you can aim better. However much to my disappointment the ‘Christmas’ tree is not to be used for toileting purposes, so it’s out into the cold for me.

Dogs don’t really celebrate Christmas although no puppy at heart would ever turn down a squeaky toy, bone or bag of treats but to us canines this time of year is known as the winter food festival. In the doggy calendar this food festival is a period of two weeks when humans and canines alike stuff themselves like bears with good nutritious meaty food. To dogs this is the antidote to the long fruit and salad festival that takes place between the months of May and September when the long days and warm weather mean that humans eat more salads and fruit and canine tip bits are in short supply. So with only a few days to go until the feasting begins, I can’t wait to eat and snooze, eat and snooze, eat and sleep. Merry Christmas, and happy feasting everyone.

Best Dog Walks

So the aim of the week was camping, you may remember that I have tried camping before with little success but, mum loves a trier and I said I would give it another go. It wasn’t until mum started packing the rucksack (I was doing my usual of unpacking all my toys) that I suspected that camping might be off and I was right. The UK was a flood and our campsite was under water so instead it was a week with the grandparents we had to look forward to. I arrived to a very warm welcome as always, there’s always finest HAM on the menu from nana, and a Labrador doesn’t forget something like that. So as I slept under the dinner table the people started plotting what ever could they do with their week’s holiday….

DAY1

Run of the mill kind of day went for a local walk to the shops and back had a quick run around in a field. The people went out and I stayed home alone, (doesn’t bother me, get some down time , people always talk too much and if they are not talking, the TV box in the corner talks for them) so much to say I was very well behaved.

DAY2...... Hamsterley Forest

 Click here to see where it is on the map

Wow this was a great day out, a giant forest in County Durham, with walks a plenty. We had fantastic weather not a drop of rain in sight. We were there from about 10am till about 2pm and we walked, there is a river to paddle in and we stopped and had a picnic (more HAM supplied by nana) There was a tea room for the people to get a hot drink, I just prefer water which was supplied from a bottle in a bowl. I don’t question where such things come from; just glad it was there when I was thirsty. The bowl however was somewhat misleading it defiantly had a picture of Ice cream on it, but I checked it thoroughly and it only contained water.

So Hamsterley Forest as a day out I would rate 3 out of 4 paws, it has excellent facilities including onsite parking (very reasonably priced £3). It has a tea room, gift shop and toilets. There are Picnic areas and a play area for children in which dogs are not allowed. In contrast there are open areas where I can play with the tennis ball or Frisby. For the most part they have tried every effort to keep mountain bikers and walkers separate, so if you want a stroll with kids or dogs or both then you don’t have to worry about bikes speeding past. So why only 4 stars, well at times the walk came up to the road which I would have preferred it to be sign posted that the road was coming so my owner can safely put me on my lead. At times the road was concealed until the very last minute especially if you’re a dog like we that likes to run on ahead a bit. Second reason only 4 out of 5 was that the routes were not always sign posted that clearly, so if you want to follow a specific walk you still need a map of the walk. We just turned up and wandered and to be fair there was always a path to be found that was off road.

DAY3

Day 3 was meant o be torrential rain so nothing was planned for this day, nana and mum went shopping in the morning and came back with a new toy. At home you may have seen from earlier pictures I have a deflated football to play in the river with. I have never found a better dog toy for the water than this. It’s big, it’s tough , it floats above the water line unlike some more expensive dog toys that float with the top just showing above the surface which makes it hard for me to see. It's brightly coloured so I can see it, it’s cheap and with the right amount of air taken out, it’s incredibly easy for me to get hold of. So mum having left my ball at home, Nana bought me a new one to play in the river with and being an amazingly bright and sunny day (most unexpected) we had a great walk down to the local river and a long play with the new ball which I absolutely love.

DAY4 .... Keswick

Click here to see where it is on the map

Day 4 was a long road trip almost two hours it took to get to Keswick. Wow what a fantastic place. It has walks galore from gentle strolls through the park like we did, or you can go out into the Lake District National park and climb mountains if you wish.  Right at the edge of Keswick is Derwent Water a large Lake (I say large because by international standards it’s a puddle) but in the UK it’s a big lake. The water is calm, shallow and perfect for boats and water sports including fetch, which I played all day. In total we spent 5 hours there and I loved every minute, my paws were aching from all the running around when I got home. I don’t remember the journey home because I slept all the way. There are numerous tea rooms around Keswick where you can have food. We did the same as at Hamsterley we picnicked (with Nanas best ham)  but went to the tea room for cakes and hot drinks. The town its self is incredibly dog friendly, unlike everywhere else in the UK you can take your dog into the shops with you, so no waiting outside the door for me. There are also some good shops there for buying dog stuff and they sell books etc on the best walks for dogs around Keswick. The scenery is awesome and the town caters for all types of staying over night from dog friendly Bed and Breakfasts to hotels to camping and caravanning.

I would defiantly visit both Hamsterley and Keswick again , but I would give Keswick a 4 out of 4 paws except at Lambing season when Dogs have to be kept on leads, be aware though that parking in Keswick is pretty expensive, although if your willing to walk about 20-30 mins to reach the town there are little spots you can park for free.

So I have one more day here before I go home so I will post todays adventure in my next blog.