October 17th 2006 12:32 pm
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Dad and I recently arrived home from our month long trip to the Grand Canyon and California. It was a really fun trip that lasted about a month. We began by driving down to Florida to visit with Dad`s sister and my cousin Julie in Lake City. Then we headed west via interstates 10 and 40 to reach the Grand Canyon. Dad spent a week backpacking down inside the Canyon with 2 friends from Flagstaff,AZ. I had to stay in the Grand Canyon kennels for that week as dogs are not allowed below the rim. Dad did give me a nice day hike to the summit of 12,000 ft Humphries Peak ( highest point in AZ located just outside Flagstaff) on Sept 23, the day before starting his week long Canyon hike. Thus I had a nice bit of exercise before being boarded. The nice kennel staff did walk me a few times each day though.

Dad and I headed west from Flagstaff to San Francisco and we explored the beautiful pacific coast of California north of San Francisco. I even got to swim in the Pacific Ocean! While in San Francisco, Dad took me to visit Dogster Headquarters. The nice folks at Dogster were really glad to see me and even gave Dad and me some nice treats!

We explored the Nevada desert on the way back home and even paid a visit to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon where Dad and I hiked some rim trails there.

We even had some snow and high winds as we hiked in the Colorado Rockies at Loveland Pass near Denver.

Day 1 Sat Sept 16--Sun Sept 17

We left home around 10 pm and headed south on Interstate 95 enroute to Florida. Dad`s sister lives in Lake City near jacksonville with her german shepherd,Julie. We intended to visit with them for a few days and enjoy some Florida beaches before heading west to the Grand Canyon.

As day broke on Sunday morning, we encountered some dense fog in North Carolina. this soon cleared and we ahd a sunny,warm trip the rest of the day. In South Carolina, Dad stopped to give me a nine walk along an abandoned section of US 301 that crosses Lake Marion. This is a large lake and some boats were sailing in the waters below us as we walked across the 301 bridge.

We arrived in Floridat Lake city in late afternoon and I was overjoyed to see my cousin,julie! We were treated to a nice sunset on the farm there where Julie lives with several cainine buddies and a few horses.

Day 2 Monday Sept 18

Today, Dad and I visited Vilano Beach near St Augustine with Julie and her Mom. This is a really neat beach as the pebbly sand here is a vivid red in color. We hiked along the shoreline here as waves from the rough surf crashed over the sand and wetted us from time to time. I`ve posted a video taken at Vilano Beach on my page. We also did another shore stroll at Fernandina Beach north of Jacksonville. All in all, a nice day at some Florida beaches!