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Cheechako Chinook

Touring the Yukon

Wow! Am I ever whacked! I just got back from a four-day truck-camping trip with my dear Boss and his visiting friend from Catalunya, Ramon! We drove up to Dawson City, and then to Tombstone Park on the Dempster Highway, and finally to Keno City and Keno Summit. It was all interesting, and Keno Summit was gorgeous. An awful lot of new experiences for me, though!

First I had to travel in the cab of the truck sitting with Tonya between Boss and Ramon -- and I wasn't sure about being that close to a guy I hardly know! But I had to get used to it. And when Ramon took my leech and Boss took Tonya, I wasn't too sure about that either. But really, he turned out to be a great guy. A good thing, when I had to go about twelve hunnerd kliks with him -- what a LONG trip!

Keno Summit was another world -- you could see for miles and miles from up there, and there were big snowbanks that weren't even melted at the end of June, and huge heaps of busted rock where I had to be real careful not to hurt my legs and feet. And little rock pikas like short-eared bunnies scolding at us and running real fast across the rocks. I got so tired that I finally crashed in the mosses and alpine flowers and had a nap.

We visited several places where I'm SURE our dear founder Arthur Walden must have gone, I could almost imagine I caught his scent at places like Dawson City, Montague Roadhouse, and Five Finger Rapids on the Yukon River. I hope Boss will put some of my pickers on here, 'coz he and Ramon took lotsa photos.

But I tell ya, I was never so happy as when we got down out of the truck in the parking lot at Seppala Kennels again, and I heard all my Seppala frien's barkin' at us! East, west, HOME's best!

Love wins, every time!

Guess what, I found out my FRIEN' LIZZY is really a paper tiger, after all! Boss has let me into the shack again the last coupla days so's I can have a cuddle on the bed with him. And while I was in, I tried lyin' down in front of Lizzie's nest. And I put my ears down, and I kissed her several times, even though she was liftin' her lip, and I said, "I LOVE you, Lizzy, and you're my FRIEN', and if you think you haveta bite me, well you jus' better go ahead and bite me, 'cause I'm here, an' I love you, an' I wouldn't hurt your puppies for nothin', 'cause I love them, too!"

And so then Lizzy said, "Okay, Janis, you asked for it!" an' she bit me -- but that little bite wouldn't even have hurt a flea, 'cause she didn't bite down at all!!! An' I kissed her a few more times, and she jus' rolled her eyes and said, "Oh, Janis. Nobody can do nothing with you. You dumb thing."

And NOW I UNNERSTAND. I've got my FRIEN' back! Lizzy don't hate me at all, she's just gotta sorta be SEEN to be defendin' her puppies, that's all.

LOVE wins every time! Boyoboyoboy, I can't wait till Lizzie's puppies are old enough for me to play with 'em!

Lizzie is NOT my frien' !

It all started almost a week ago. Suddenly Bossie wouldn't let me come in the shack, and there were funny smells on his hands. Lizzie came out of the shack with the same funny smells all over her. And I kept hearing tiny li'l squeaks from inside the shack.

Liz sez she has PUPPIES. Well, rooty-toot-too for her, I guess. Big deal. When I come up to her outside and ask how her puppies are, she just snarfs and tells me to buzz off. What a drag!

FINALLY yesterday Boss let me come inside, with his hand on my collar the whole time, and there was Lizzie in her cubby, and sure nuff, there were little black squirmy things in there with her. I tried to have a closer look but Boss hung onto my collar and Liz lifted her lip in the mos' awful kinda way. I haveta admit that I guess she's just not my frien' no more.

Oh well. At least Missy has been putting old JoJo into the exercise yard with me for the past few days. JoJo is not much taller than me but he must weigh twicet what I do, and he's almost the same color as me, but his head looks almost like "Old Chinook The Great" my mos' respecked antsester. But he keeps tryin' to do naughty things with me, and I haveta keep chewin' the side of his face to make him quit.

Why is life so compacated? Why can't we all just hunt squirrels and have fun?