My Best Friends Memorial

Shortly after my arrival at the Rainbow Bridge,Dad had a memorial stone placed for me at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Kanab,Utah. This animal sanctuary is the largest no kill shelter in the US. Dad has visited Best Friends several times over the years and sometimes he would leave a memento on my stone. This past fall he found a very nice polished rock at a Utah rock shop and thought that it would look nice at my memorial so he placed it there. Some photos of it have been posted to my page.

Love from across the Bridge,
Butch

Montana Rainbow Bridge Crossing

I crossed over the Rainbow Bridge on Oct 6 2000. My Dad and I were coming home from a trip to Alaska that year(it was our 5th trip up there together)and he stopped to give me a walk at a rest area along Interstate 15. We walked for a bit,then my Dad went in to use the rest room and left me outside. This was northern Montana,a very deserted place,and traffic on the interstate was sparse so he felt safe in leaving me outside for the few minutes that he was in there. The Angels must have been calling me,however,and for reasons still unknown to my Dad,I decided to cross the interstate. I was struck and killed by a car. As my spirit was departing the area,I witnessed Dad crying over my body by the roadside. It was ironically a beautiful,crisp fall day. The mountain scenery was spectacular,thus Dad decided to bury me there. In the following months it just so happened that Dad`s sister was traveling out to see a friend in Montana. Dad had thought that he shouldn`t have left my body there and asked his sister to retrieve it if possible and have it cremated. This was done in Feb 2001. My urn now sits in Dad`s house thus my spirit feels closer to him. Dad just scanned the pix that his sister took at the rest area accident site when my body was recovered. They are displayed here on my page. I`ve had a great life here across the Rainbow Bridge since that fateful day at the Craig,MT rest area.
Butch

100th Anniversary Bucks County SPCA---Lahaska PA

Today was a very special day for my alma mater---the Bucks County SPCA. They were founded on Dec 18 1912 making today their 100th anniversary! It was on an early summer evening---June 6,1995---that my Dad drove to the Bucks SPCA to adopt me. His old dog,Lady,(also an alumni of this shelter)had arthritus and wasn`t up to long hikes anymore. Dad had an Alaska trip coming up in just a few months and needed a hiking companion. He adopted me and over the next 5 years we shared many adventures together,trips along the Appalachian Trail,one trip out to the Grand Canyon,and 5 trips to Alaska. Sadly I had to leave my Dad due to an unfortunate accident on our 2000 Alaska trip when I was struck by a car in Montana as we were coming home. I am forever grateful to Dad for the wonderful years that we had together and also grateful to Bucks SPCA for making my adoption possible. I`ve posted some anniversary pix on my page.
Love from across the Bridge,
Butch

Nearly 10 years at the Rainbow Bridge

Paws to all. I have been here at the Rainbow Bridge for almost 10 years now. In that time,I have had many grand adventures and met lots of new Bridge pals,but the occasion of my upcoming 10th anniversary has caused me to reminisce a bit on my life back on Earth with my Dad. We would take a trip to Alaska each fall and hike the wonderful trails up there such as the historic Chilkoot Trail in Skagway used by the stampeders in the Klondike Gold Rush of 1898,and the Kesugi Ridge trail in Denali State Park which afforded majestic views of the Alaska Range and Denali (Mt Mckinley)itself. 10 years ago in August 2000,dad and I enjoyed what was to be our last rafting summer together on the Delaware river. We traveled to Alaska in the fall of that year---our 5th time there---and had another wonderful trip hiking in the majestic mountains all around that state. On the way back home,in Montana,dad and I stopped at a rest area near Craig and we took a short walk there as we had been driving for some time. Dad left me outside while he went in to use the restroom as I was a very calm dog and there was hardly any traffic on the Interstate in northern Montana. For reasons unknown to my Dad (and to this day,I`m still not completely sure why I did it) I walked across Interstate 15 while he was inside the restroom and was tragically hit by a car. My heart was aching with pity as my spirit watched Dad emerge from the restroom,call my name several times,and finally discover my body lifeless by the side of the interstate. I tried to comfort Dad as he cried over me and finally covered up my body with loose rocks creating a grave for me by the roadside. This was Oct 6,2000. My spirit then departed for the Rainbow Bridge as Dad drove away down the interstate. I barked a goodbye and Dad must have heard me because in the days and weeks following the accident,he had second thoughts about leaving my body in the roadside grave. It so happened that his sister was going out to Montana to visit a friend in Feb 2001 and by amazing coincidence this friend lived near the site of the accident. They drove out to the rest area near Craig,recovered my body,and had me cremated at the nearby Lewis and Clark Humane Society in Helena----the same shelter where Dad adopted my brother Smiley.

A few days ago,this friend drove by that same rest area and e mailed this to my Dad :
Just got checked in to the room in Great Falls and have to head over to the
> park for the show, but wanted to let you know that I went by where we picked
> Butch up at. I was going to stop and put some wildflowers on "his rocks" -
> but there is construction and the rest area is closed off. Actually, they
> have the rest area all torn up, tons of equipment parked there, and I'm not
> so sure "his rocks" are even still there!
>
> Anyways, was thinking of him, you & John and wanted to let you know! Feel
> free to share this with John - I don't have his e-mail addy handy!
>
> Hugs,
>
> Peg

So it has been nearly 10 years since that day in Oct 2000 and while I miss my Dad,I eagerly await our eventual reunion.
Love you Dad,
Butch ♥

1997 Alaska Trip part 2

After our little hike in the Carcross Desert,we drove across White Pass on the Klondike Highway and soon reached the Alaska border which is located at the summit of White Pass. From the summit of White Pass,the road descends crossing a suspension bridge spanning a rocky canyon then continues down to the Gold Rush town of Skagway. Dad and I spent 4 days hiking the Chilkoot Trail in Skagway and then toured the town itself after our hike. We walked down to the docks to view the cruise ships that sailed here from Seattle and Vancouver via the Inside Passage. I`ve posted 2 new pix of White Pass and the cruise ship on my page.
Butch

1997 Alaska trip Part 1

Greetings from across the Bridge!
In Sept 1997,Dad and I took our 2nd trip together to Alaska. We travelled there in dad`s 1994 Geo Metro which was still a fairly new car back then. We drove thru the US as far as North Dakota before entering Canada at the Saskatchewan border. Then it was west across the Canadian plains until we reached the town of Dawson Creek in British Columbia. This is where the Alaska Highway begins. We drove north on the Alaska Highway for about 500 miles before arriving in Canada`s Yukon territory which is adjacent to Alaska. Here we did a bit of hiking in the Carcross Desert. This is a small area of sand dunes surrounded by majestic peaks. It is actually the floor of an ancient lake.We then travelled on to Skagway,Alaska to hike the Chilkoot Trail,a famous trail from the 1897 Klondike Gold Rush. I`ve posted a few pix from this trip. More details later. Dad and I shared 5 Alaska trips together before I crossed the Bridge in 2000.
Paws,
Butch

Hiking in Rocky Mt National Park

Woofs to all!
As we travelled home from the Grand Canyon and California in 1996,Dad and I stopped off in Colorado to do some hiking in Rocky Mt National Park. We hiked the Twin Sisters Peaks trail that began in a lovely forest and then climbed above treeline onto a bare windswept rocky landscape. The views up here were spectacular,but the winds were quite strong! Photos 2 and 3 show the Twin Sisters Peaks.
Paws,
Butch

More pix from 1996 Grand Canyon trip

Woofs from across the Bridge!
Dad has scanned and posted 3 new photos to my page. They are from our 1996 trip to the Grand Canyon and California. They are at the top of my page and show me at the Golden Gate Bridge,San Francisco Bay and Lake Havasu. That was one fine trip that Dad and I went on that year. Although I`ve been to Alaska 5 times with my Dad,that was the one and only time that I travelled to the Grand Canyon and California.
Paws,
Butch

More photos from 1996 Grand Canyon trip

Woofs to all from across the Bridge,
Dad has posted a few more photos on my page from our trip to the Grand Canyon in 1996. They show us hiking the South Rim trail. Storm clouds are present in one photo. During this hike,we experienced thunderstorms and even some hail. It was an exciting hike with equally exciting views! When Dad joins me here across the Bridge,we`ll have many more great hikes together!
Paws,
Butch

Grand Canyon trip

Woofs from across the Rainbow Bridge!

In Sept 1996,Dad took me to the Grand Canyon and we hiked along the South Rim. From the Rim trail,it was possible to gaze far down into the depths of the Canyon. At times, we could even see the Colorado River far below. This was the only time that Dad took me to the Grand Canyon as most of our LONG trips together were done in Alaska. Nonetheless I had a fun time! The photos are posted on my page.
Paws,
Butch