Tag Archives: Big Adventure

The Final Adventure

June 9, 2020 Odee 39 Comments

Woof, as you read this I have probably already crossed over the Rainbow Bridge. I wrote this last night and this morning to post after the event and I am keeping it pretty short. Things have really slowed down for me several weeks ago when I got so sick I could barely move but I got a little better. I really had a hard time eating food until Matt started cooking hamburger and eggs chopping them up real fine so I can swallow them and that tasted so good, but now even that really isn’t satisfying me and I don’t want to eat all my food. All the swelling I had is almost gone but I have small bumps all over and that had Matt very worried. I really didn’t feel like doing much other than going down the stairs to go out for a few minutes, use the bathroom, look around at what was happening, and then go back up to our home. Most of the time I sleep and Matt is by my side a lot when I wake up he is right by me a lot of the time. Years ago Matt was sick with the cancer and I stayed by him and Matt says now I have it but with mine it is too bad to fix. Matt has been doing his best not to cry, I hate to see him so sad, I don’t know what to do about that. He tried his best not to do it around me but I know he was and is hurting inside.

Matt said I will be seeing Maverick soon, it’s been a long time since I have seen him and I still miss him. I’m looking forward to seeing him and all the dogs that have been in Matt’s life. I was hoping to have some more time to have adventures with Matt but that isn’t possible. I have really enjoyed sharing my life and adventures with everyone and I hope you won’t be too sad, it’s time for me to say farewell…

PS – I want to end this on a happier note, These photographs below are the fist Matt ever took of me and of our first adventure. All of these were taken in August 2010. We started out having adventures right after I adopted Matt.

This was the first day I met Matt after I adopted him at the shelter. He was visiting his sister in the NC mountains. She went to the shelter looking for a puppy and I got Matt (she didn’t have a dog adopt her.)

Only a week later we got to go on our first camping trip together in the Virginia mountains. We got to go hiking and romping in open fields of flowers and were our all day.

Of course there were creeks and water involved we had a blast!

Even Maverick had a great time, he was still young enough to run around and chase sticks and I wish I had told you some stories about how he liked to swim. He was crazy about it, crazier than I was about my ball and toys.

Well now I must say goodbye!

On Our Way to the Tetons

September 25, 2019 Odee 1 Comment

Woof, when we left on our trip it was warm and when we returned it was warm again so I didn’t mind the wet. After leaving early in the morning we stopped at a place along the way in central Oregon called Crack-in-the-Ground and what a big crack it was. We hiked a little way but there were some spots Matt thought was too steep for us so we turned around but it was a neat place. It was in a community called Christmas Valley, but it didn’t look like Christmas to me but it was still nice. I like the Oregon desert, woof!

Woof, me in the big crack in the ground!

After our hike we decided to drive on to Ontario (Oregon) instead of camping in the area to visit another place in eastern Oregon. Matt said if couldn’t find a campsite close to Ontario he would get a room, which he did. I was ready to go the next morning because we knew where we would be camping the next night it’s an unusual place. Matt doesn’t like to drive on the Interstates so we took a slightly longer but less stressful drive following the Snake River for at least 40 miles. Matt said we would get to see that river again when we got to the Grand Tetons.

We had visited Craters of the Moon National Monument two years ago. It’s out in the middle of Idaho and looks real strange. The ground is mostly covered in rocks and gravel, and the rocks have lots of holes in them. I usually have to wear my boots there because the rocks can hurt my feet, woof! Matt got there early enough to choose a nice campsite and we had plenty of time to explore, even with the added time Matt had to go back to the campground to get his forgotten camera bag. We are lucky most campers are honest and leave other people’s stuff alone, though Matt was nervous until get got the camera bag!

Our camp set-up at Craters of the Moon National Monument.

We got up the next morning, Matt cooked breakfast, and we left for the Grand Tetons right after eating. It was still a long drive, we don’t like to drive more than four hours a day and Matt said it was going to be about a half hour longer than that and of course that doesn’t count for the stops for Matt to take photos, or just regular breaks. Sometime on our trips we are out where there isn’t much of anything but land, or mountains, or things like that. Matt always tells me we know we are in real remote places when you don’t see power lines next to the road for miles and miles. We went through a lot places like that in eastern Oregon and in Idaho, you can drive for hours and not see any signs of people. Now animals are a different thing, on these trips sometimes we see animals you wouldn’t see where a lot of people live, though we didn’t any on this trip unless you count squirrels.

Driving through these big open areas, we both love being able to see from what seems to be from the edge of the Earth to the other edge of the Earth. The most fun part of the drive for me was going over Teton Pass. The road winds back and forth and goes up and up. When you get to the top you feel like you are on top of the world, I made Matt stop at the top so we could look out over all the land below us. Woof, what a view!

I’m going to stop here; my next post will be about what we did and our return to Eugene.

Jackson at Jackson Lake, WOOF!

August 31, 2018 Odee 1 Comment

Woof, what a trip we have been on so far. At first it seemed like we have been next to a campfire the whole time. Everywhere we went there was smoke, sometimes a little, sometimes a lot. It was hard to see very far a lot of places we drove through and stayed. We finally got to Glacier National Park, but only on the east side. When we drove through West Glacier the smoke was so bad Matt said we were going to cancel our camping reservations but it ended up he didn’t have to, they were canceled because of the fire. We spent a lot of our time in the camper there but it did clear up a couple of days. When it was windy and smoky outside Matt said we needed to take it easy.

The first day was smoky but the next day it rained and cleared the air. We went hiking on a trail high up in the mountains at a place Matt called Logan’s Pass. Some of the trail was pretty exposed. We only hiked a little ways and we saw a bighorn sheep. I had to stay a little ways back when Matt was taking pictures, sometimes a lot of wildlife look at me as a predator like a wolf or coyote and will get defensive. The next day was clear so we explored around the campground more and the other day we drove to a different area of the park even though the smoke was getting bad again. Then Matt did his laundry so I took a long nap. We had more than one day just in camp mostly in the truck; the air was too bad to go hiking so we just stayed in the camper most of the time. Our last day there I rode on the shuttle bus all the way up to Logan Pass and the smoke was real bad. That is when Matt decided it was time to leave the smoke was too bad for either one of us. We left after Matt and I got something to eat because we had to drive an hour to get to a motel room a good friend got for us to get out of the bad air.

Me at Yellowstone, why is the continent divided anyway?

Matt has changed our plans because if we headed back home it is just as bad as it is was at Glacier park. We ended up going to Yellowstone National Park where it looked like the air might be better so we started that way the next day. We stopped in a campground on the way last night. We could see blue sky, white clouds and it wasn’t a funny hazy yellow color all over anymore and it rained a little. Then we got to Yellowstone and it rained a lot that night and began to clear the next day. We were going to another campground in Yellowstone when Matt said.

“Jackson, we are going on to the Grand Tetons!”

Woof, I think Matt was frustrated at all the people there and was hoping to find a less crowded place. I don’t know how he does these things but he told me he was listening to his inner voice. Well that voice was right because we found a campground on a lake named after me, Jackson Lake, and it is beautiful. Matt has promised me a swim there today. I think I just might forgive him for forgetting my birthday. Although he has promised me a big celebration this weekend and something special in the town of Jackson, WY.

Well, I promise I’ll write before we leave Monday, that’s Labor Day. Matt said we were lucky to have such a nice camping spot for the holiday!

My New Home in Eugene

April 24, 2018 Odee 7 Comments

Woof, we arrived at our new home a few weeks ago and it has been a busy time unpacking and running around with Matt. It seems people have to do a lot when they move. I had no idea it would take so long and really don’t understand, dogs have things so much easier. While he is doing some of those things I go along and keep him company, I do like going in the stores and meeting his new doctors. After traveling so much it is nice to have one place to come home every day, or even just stay home plus its dry in the house when it rains. Sometimes it gets a little messy when we are camping in the rain. Eugene is a nice place with a lot of parks and places to walk and run. It really doesn’t seem like a city until we get in the truck and have to go somewhere. Even then there are no tall or really big buildings and right now everything is so bright green I can even see it.

Matt takes me to the park right next to where we live where I can run and play Frisbee. Sometimes I have to remind him when it is time to go though he does get busy and forgets. I like walking around the neighborhood to get to know where we live. My doctor isn’t far, we can walk there and also we sometimes stop in the local shops. Most of those have or serve food and smell so good. There is a hill with trails close to the other side of the house. It has all these grey stones with names on them. Matt says it is an old cemetery. We saw pretty wildflowers blooming there the first time we walked there.

This is where we go walking up the hill in the cemetery.

We have gone on a couple of day trips exploring the mountains close to us. On one trip we were hiking and got to the river and saw another person with their dog but the man was not wearing any clothes. I asked Matt why he never did that and he muttered something about modesty. Woof, I need to google that word. Matt explained there was a hot spring there and people got in the water at those without any clothes. Later we hiked in the snow to a waterfall then found a place later to watch trains roll by in the forest and went to a covered bridge. Matt said the man should have been covered instead of the bridge, I think he was trying to be funny saying that. After our day exploring we came home and rested.

Me at Salt Creek Waterfall in the Willamette National Forest.

So far I like being here in Oregon though I do miss my friends back in North Carolina. I told Matt I do want to go back and visit sometime and it would be great if some of our friends would visit here. We have room for them, woof; I have to go for now Matt says we have to go run some errands. I think I’ll take my Frisbee along and hopefully we will get to play too!

Camping is Fun!

February 5, 2018 Odee 4 Comments

Woof, right now home has an entire different meaning. I guess home is our truck. Sometimes we stay in the same place sometimes we drive a longs was and then we are home. I had to get used to this different meaning of home a long time ago when we first started traveling. Sometime home is with a friend of ours or one of Matt’s relatives. I do like exploring new places and I love when Matt decides to stay longer than planned at one place. I have stayed in motels, campgrounds, and people’s houses since we left our regular home. Sometimes I miss my regular home and my friends there but I meet new and old friends along the way.

Matt always packs all my toys when we go camping.

We do a lot of camping in all kinds of weather. On rainy days we spend time in the camper on the back of the truck. I remember on our last trip we were in the back of the truck during wind storms, thunderstorms, and snow! When it gets cold I burrow under Matt’s warm sleeping bag and get right next to him to stay warm. Other nights it stays real warm. The weather has been changing from hot to cold quite often on this trip. Just when I am getting used to the temperature it changes. I am glad Matt got a sweater for me but if it stays cold I just might need another.

Woof, I like my sweater and I have my own down sleeping bag!

We usually walk around the campground and I see other dogs and people there. Sometimes we stop and Matt talks with the people and introduces me. I also get to talk with the friendly dogs but some are grumpy and not happy or friendly. I do not know why some dogs are that way; Matt tells me people can be the same. He says sometimes it is best to avoid people or dogs like that.

Sometimes I get to sleep in the puppy tent instead of the truck.

I like campgrounds where there are a lot of trails. We usually take long hikes and take pictures but the best part is just getting out and smelling and seeing nature. I smell so many new strange things, different animals and plants, Matt tells me we have to be careful because there are many things we are not used to that can hurt us. He told me we have to stay on guard because there are bigger and more aggressive wild animals were we go a lot. Back home I could run loose sometimes but when we are traveling we stay close together.

Well we are going to have a lot more camping adventures to go on this trip before we get to our new home in Oregon and I am excited about that. Right now we are in Austin visiting Matt’s cousins. Like coming here to Austin to see Matt’s cousins I love them all.

I am going to sign off for now; I will be writing again soon,

Wrapping It Up (and more to come!)

August 17, 2017 Odee Leave a comment

Woof, I have been one busy dog! We have been back for a while, but I never did a wrap up of our trip. After we left St Paul we were super busy. We went to visit my friend Nate in a town with a funny name like Wetcorney or Corneywetter or something like that in Wisconsin. Our friends, Nate and his humans Bob ad Paulette used to live in North Carolina but moved to that Croneey place. We had a great time visiting with them.

Our next part of stop wasn’t really a stop, we met up with another of Matt’s friends and we drove and hiked all over this place called Up somewhere in Michigan the only problem I could not figure where up was! I got to see some new places though. I liked the Great Lakes, they are big as oceans, woof! The waves are a lot nicer there, not as scary as the big ones at the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. We went to waterfalls too there is a lot of water in Michigan (and mosquitoes too!).

This is me at Pichured Rocks rocking it in a boat, woof! — This is me at Pictured Rocks rocking it in a boat, woof!

I am swimming in a Great Lake and woof, was it great!

Next we went to Ohio to see my friend Lisa, I had not seen her for a long time and was sad to learn my friends Pugly and Lucky had gone over the Rainbow Bridge I miss them. I was so glad to see Lisa and meet her new furry owners. All of us had fun at her place.

Woof, Matt has so many cousins I cannot keep up with them all and I wonder how he does. When we left my friend Lisa’s house we visited another of Matt’s cousins in West Virginia. I saw some big birds when we were there, Matt said they were turkeys. I have never seen such large birds like that before. The next couple of days we did a lot of driving, Matt went to the place where he was born where he went to a bunch of places and took pictures.

I am glad we came back to Marlene’s place in Welcome Valley. It’s always nice there even though Hobo, her cat does not like me much. We stayed there for a week sleeping and resting and relaxing, woof it was nice not driving, well riding in the truck for a change. After Welcome Valley we left for the Smokey Mountains in the rain. I was looking for Smokey the Bear the two days we spent there but I did not see him

Our campsite at the Great Smoky Mountains.

Then we stopped at Matt’s friend in Asheville. I get to meet Ziva while we were there. She is the boss of Rodney and Valerie, her humans and Matt’s friends. After we left Ziva’s house we were back on the Blue Ridge Parkway and camped at a place called Crabtree Falls. I wanted to ask Matt why the trees are crabby but I was afraid he would laugh at me. We hiked down to the falls while we were there and enjoyed our last hike of our long trip.

Spending the night at my friend Lucy’s place where her human works at Betsey’s at Wilson Creek in Mortimer was next. We stayed for two lazy days so we would not be too tired by the time we got home.

After we got home I still needed to rest and Matt had to do a lot of catching up, after all we had been gone for five months. Now we are both editing our photographs and videos plus writing about our trip so expect to see more soon, woof!

We are off to Tennessee this weekend to see the eclipse (it’s my birthday present from Matt!)

Woof, woof,

Oceans and Big Mountains

May 30, 2017 Odee 7 Comments

Woof, I was so glad we left Eugene. I know it was restful for Matt but it was a bit stressful for me. Where we slept was not as bad, but during the day Ginger the dog just would not leave me alone. Woof! I like attention and getting to know each other but this was way over the top! It did make me a bit happier our last day in Eugene Matt took me on an extra long walk and we played some Frisbee before we got on the road again. Then drove all the way to the ocean, I could tell we were getting close because I could smell it. Matt told me this one is call the Pacific, at first I thought he said Specific. He laughed a long time and corrected me but you should hear some of the mistake he makes. Even I know they are wrong, ruff! I laugh to myself when other humans correct him sometimes. When we got to the beach we were the only ones there so I ran and played on the dunes and I got swim in the ocean. We camped at different places as we traveled up the coastline and honestly I think it was prettier than Nova Scotia, I think I called that place New Scooty last year when I did not know better.

At Cape Outlook State Park we got to see this man building a sandcastle.

He let me ham it up in front of the finished sandcastle. He was a real nice man.

After the desert we sure have been around a lot of water. We went to a big tall waterfall, I can’t remember the name but I do remember it was in the Columbia River Gorge. I will have to ask Matt to name it on the photo when he uploads this blog. We rested some in our campsite at the river; Matt liked listening to the trains. He told me he was going to take me on a train trip sometime. I think that would be fun, woof, woof!

Trying to keep cool on a hot afternoon at Ainsworth State Park.

Photo Dog Jackson at Multnomah Falls, Columbia River Gorge. (Caption by Matt.)

Next we went to some tall mountains where the tops were all covered in snow. Matt said they were volcanoes and they could be very surprising things. Matt said the first one we visited he actually watched explode, well not in person, he saw it on TV. Another one was the tallest mountain and it was covered up by clouds when we first got there, but while we were on a hike it cleared off enough for us to see, and oh, all that snow, woof!

After seeing all these wonderful places we came to Port Townsend to visit and stay with some friends. I have even met one of them before a long time ago. The best part is I made a new best friend, Sophie, who plays with me all the time. I do not even mind when Matt leaves because I can play and not work. There is a big yard and it is pretty far from busy roads so I can run and roam and not worry about watching out for traffic. I really like Sophie and I think she likes me a lot. I think sometimes I wear her out throwing the ball so much but it is so much fun. The only bad thing is after Matt washed his truck he told me it was time for a bath. You know I do not mind water, I just do not like smelly baths, ruff!

We have just left for Olympic National Park; this will make number 23 for me. Matt has one more because he visited a small national park in Seattle. I do not mind because I got to play with Sophie. Of course we have visited more places than that. Those are just the national parks and monuments we have seen. More adventures, WOOF!

At the Canal Bridge before Port Townsend.

Yellow Stones and More Snow!

May 17, 2017 Odee 2 Comments

Woof, woof! We are resting in Eugene, Oregon right now and it is nice. It has been a little while since I have updated everyone. After my last blog posting a big storm with wind, rain, and snow made us go stay at a motel in a town called Grand Junction. We were camped close to Arches and Canyonlands parks and when we left it started getting windy, then cold and rainy. After that big storm passed we went to a place called Colorado National monument. We stayed there two nights waiting for it to get warmer because Matt said where we were going was up higher in the mountains and colder too. That was another big canyon called Black Canyon of the Gunnison. I liked it there, deer came right into our campsite and we hiked down into the canyon. It was windy and cold there like Matt said and it rained that night, when we woke up the next morning everything was frozen, woof! I stayed under the warm sleeping bag with Matt for a long time before we got up that morning. Matt waited until the sun had been up a while before we got out.

Just when I thought I had seen everything, then we see something else strange and new. We went on a long drive after the black canyon and went to a place with water shooting out of the ground. The whole place smelled funny. At first I thought my human was being impolite until he explained the stuff called sulfur which was in the air. We went to a place where the ground bubbles, shoots up water way in the sky and makes all kind of strange noises. Some places had steam all over the place and those strange smells. The place is called Yellowstone and some places do have yellow stones, and white, and red, and a whole lot of colors. We had to walk on boardwalks to stay safe. The water looks clear and fresh but Matt said some of it was very hot and some was dangerous because of stuff call acid and he explained what toxic meant. I really enjoyed watching the water spurt up way in the air. Some went all the time and some only now and then. We stayed at Yellowstone for three days.

After Yellowstone we went to another strange looking place, it was called Craters of the Moon, the name is longer than that, but that is all I can remember now. A lot of the land has no plants and it is very rocky. The strange thing is the rocks have holes in them and they are not as heavy as you would think. We went on several hikes there. That place was in a state called Idaho. Woof, talking about states I have been to four new ones for me. Oklahoma was my first new state a long while ago on the trip. Now I can add Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, and Oregon!

When we got to Oregon there was more rain and snow, we sure have seen a lot of that. The weather has been strange; when we first got in Oregon it was hot, 80 degrees, woof! Then the next day it was 50 and the next day is when it rained and snowed.

Well I have things almost completely updated in this report and I am holding up my paw in a promise to start my next blog tonight.

Two Months and Still Going

April 30, 2017 Odee 4 Comments

Woof, well really more than two months. I have been having a great time working as a service dog. We have been going on a lot of hikes everywhere we have been going. Sometimes it is hard to remember I am working so many people are kind and well meaning and they want to pet me. Sometimes Matt lets them if we are resting. This year has been more fun than last year. I hardly ever have to wait in the truck anymore. We were recently in Zion and Bryce national parks, at first I thought Matt said it was Rice Canyon. Can you imagine a canyon full of rice? Matt had a good laugh with that one.

We had a nice weekend not too long ago with Matt’s cousin and his family camping out. Woof, of course when are we not camping out right now? I spent the whole time off leash and not working, I got to roam and play all I wanted to until I just had to lie down to take a nap. We were not near a road and the best thing is there was a creek there, I got to play in it all I wanted and it was fun. I had kids to play with and they wore me out. We stayed there for two days and I got to eat real meat, Tim gave me so much and it was good, ruff! We spent almost the whole time in camp enjoying each other’s company. When we got ready to leave Theresa gave me a new toy and I love it.

After that we went back to the big lake called Powell and this time Matt let me go swimming. Then we went to see a big river called the Colorado. The river was big and the water was flowing too fast Matt said. The net place we went was Zion where we did a lot of hiking. Woof we have been to so many places it is hard to remember them all right now. Then we went to Bryce the rice canyon. I still like to think of it by that name.

We camped in Bryce Canyon park for several days. I think Matt was tired when we arrived. He just about pulled into the first place he saw. After trying to find camping places at pother crowded parks he said we were going to stay for a while to have fun plus get some rest. So far we have hiked down into Rice Canyon (woof, just making a funny) and then hiked at another canyon close by called Red Canyon. The next day we hiked at Kodak Park, at least I thought it was called that, Matt told me it really was Kodachrome Basin State Park.

It ws windy at Kodachrome park! — It was windy at Kodachrome park!.

The next places we went were Arches and Canyonlands parks then we went to Capitol Reef, I got excited because I thought we would see the ocean. Matt told me it was not that kind of reef. It was a beautiful place, we hiked on several trails and it even started snowing when we were on a trail so we had to go back to camp.

We are stayed more than one night in a motel in Grand Junction when the weather got bad, I learned about motels last year. There were a lot of dogs and humans there, woof and they are nice and warm. We are heading out this morning to start camping again and more adventures.

Woof, it Snowed Again, and Again

April 9, 2017 Odee 1 Comment

Woof, we have been doing a lot since I last wrote. We have been in Arizona a long time now. We hiked through a forest turned into stone. At first when Matt said we were going to the petrified forest, I thought he meant it was afraid of something but he explained the other meaning of the word. I liked it when we went to a big canyon Matt said it wasn’t the Grand Canyon, but it was so pretty green on the canyon floor. Woof, I even got to sit in four states at one time. How many dogs or even humans can say that? Then we stayed at a mountain cabin and then we went to the Grand Canyon and boy was it grand. It seemed grander than the last time we were there. I know I have left some things out. I’ll just have to write more often, ruff.

Woof, I'm trying to help! — Woof, I’m trying to help!

I really enjoyed staying at the cabin. We stayed there with Matt’s aunt Nancy and Janet. I got to lie down by the fire and it was so warm and cozy and I got to chase the big birds out of the yard. It snowed while we were there too, I have not seen this much snow in a long time. It was nice visiting with them; I like both of them so much. We left for the Grand Canyon after staying at the cabin.

When we got to the Grand Canyon I got to ride on a big thing called a bus. Matt laughed when I called it a big truck, he explained what it was to me.. I have only seen them from the outside and wondered why they were so big. A lot of humans ride on it all at one time and it has doors that open all by themselves. The doors have windows too, I liked looking out at the road and things passing by. The bus stopped a lot of times to let humans on and off. It was nice Matt did not have to drive. Woof, woof, it snowed again when we were camping at the Grand canyon, everything was white when we woke up one morning, but it melted all away.

While we were at the Grand Canyon we went on a hike down into it. Before we could go we had to go talk to a ranger three times. She was real nice. Matt had to explain what I did to help him on the trail. Then she had to tell all the rangers and something called a mule driver we would be on the trail. I really appreciate all the help we had from the Ranger Casey. We got to the trail and walked down, and down, and down. There were a lot of humans on the trail. A lot of them said hello and some wanted to pet me but Matt had to tell them I was working. On our way back up we had to step to the side of the trail because some horses were coming towards us. Well I thought they were horses but Matt said they were mules, so I guess the humans riding them were the mule drivers, woof!

Woof, on the Bright Angel Trail in the Grand Canyon!

Well I had better start on my next blog because I left a lot out of this one!

Later,

The Adventures of Odee & Matt