Walk with confidence

Eeka is what we like to call a Bull Kelp. Kelpies are a hyper, workaholic breed. If you know Eeka, it is obvious that she inherited this part of the breed characteristics. Like a Staffordshire Terrier she is stubborn and not the best at obedience. And of course intelligent which makes it that much harder to undo her behavioral habits. She is a puller on leashed walks, so we let her run in the forest instead of wrestling with her constantly. She was losing respect for us as the leaders of the pack and was slowly beginning to get more testy. We were loosing it.

But we have turned a page in dog training this week, literally. At our ends wits, we purchased Cesar's Way, The Natural, Everyday guide to understanding and correcting common dog problems. I have only read the preface and part of chapter one, and already understand more about relating to my dog than I got out of obeidence class or cable tv ever.

Today Eeka and I had the best walk ever!!! We started our walk to the trail with the best product EVER!!! The No- Pull Trainer, by Four Paws. Eeka has now had three walks with this device and the difference in walking her is night and day. It truley does give you a no-pull walk with your dog. She heels now, which I thought may take months to achieve. Walking this way has totally changed our relationship with eachother. Even when she is taken of the lead she continues to be more responsive. Today, while playing fetch with a fellow K-9's ball, she listened when it was time to go, droped the ball on cue and continued walking with me in the opposite direction. Two words: blown away!! I was so proud of her responsiveness, I have never felt like such a capable dog owner. So with a new attitude and a new tool we are on the road to super responsible dog owning and a more confident dog.

hooray for sun!

Yesterday we were blessed with another lovely January day, sunny and almost warm! After our leisurely breakfast of crepes we headed off for a walk. I have been interested in finding more local trails to explore, so I was excited to learn of some logging roads off of Jacoby Creek that we could roam without any problems.
First we went down to the creek along the road and found a secret garden of lushness.
Beautiful moss fans, ferns growing out of a fallen tree, and a tarp.....
is it too much to ask that people clean up their camps?

After the trail became too overgrown, we headed across the street for an uphill climb. It was a steep incline, boarded by the ferns that look like hands, that I had only really seen in fern canyon. We could hear the creek along the side of the road, but did not see it until we reached a long stretch of level road at least a 1/2 mile up. It was so lush with moss covered archways and that pesky grass with razor sharp edges.
All and all another beautiful January day in Humboldt County. Hopefully the weather will stay with us. As I look out the window now, all I see is a moist gray, oh well there is always tomorrow.

Meet Moss

Where does a week go... ?!
Eeka and I enjoyed leisurely stroll in the forest after a difficult start. We decided to do the usual loop from a different starting point in the forest and I think it threw the eeka brain off a little.

I brought my camera to take photos. I recently purchased the super "Ultimate Lithium Energizer" battery in hopes that it would extend the life of my camera, as the packaging suggested. They don't live up to it or I must have taken more pictures than I realized, because the batteries died before I could really get a look at any of them to publish here; until now.

I am obsessed with moss at the moment. And who could blame me, right? Look at this stuff,
so velvety, so soft, and looks so inviting. I just want a couch made out of it, is that too much to ask for? It's such a graceful organism. Content to grow where ever it ends up, only trying to be the best moss it can be.

Maybe we should all be a bit more moss like, cha know?

lovely loop

We love our walks. Everyday it is a new experience in both familiar and new locations. Today we went on our favorite loop in the arcata forest. eeka was a pounce-aholic today due to her uncontrollable urges to exude joy. Hopefully the saplings will be strong enough to survive her hyperactive figure eights. Thank goodness there is a place where she can run free instead of all over us. It was a damp gray day but it filtered through the redwoods in such a beautiful way. The greens are so vibrant this time of year. i love to take pictures contrasting the bright greens of new growth next to the beautiful browns of decay. My favorite mushroom patch on the side of a cut log is long gone, but I found a new beautiful yellow mushroom on the forrest floor to admire instead. We love the forest!