"Brandy The Brave"

 
Mommy was wandering what the hell I was doing way over on the other side taking these pictures. I uh...welll...I was tr...we got seperat....no excuses!!!

"Good Posers"

 
Riley and Brandy at FlatRock Point.

"Now Don't Tell Mommy..."

 
I am sure if Mommy knew they were out this close to the edge at Flat Rock Point we'd be in a little hot water which would have felt a lot warmer than the 7 degrees today with strong winds blowing right off the ocean. The winds must have been gusting to 50-60 km or more today for sure. Gale warnings were in effect. This didn't hinder our little stroll but if Mommy new they were as close to the edge today as they got...as I got...we'd be in a little bit of hot water.

"More Than Ocean"

 
Riley sniffing more than the ocean in Flatrock Newfoundland.

"Not So Wild Life"

Riley and Brandy and I went on a hiking trip in Flatrock Newfoundland yesterday. The winds were high and the wave action on the waters was intense. The girls loved the trek. We also went out to Cape Spear and had a bit of a hike there as well. The winds there were even more intense and the spray from the crashing waves on the shore could be felt all along the trail. The dogs loved it......so did I.

"Gull Cannibal"

 
This Gull brought new meaning to the term scavenger. As we were paddling the shore line Wayne noticed lots of feathers in the water. I thought it was nothing. It may have been a gull scrap and if so, this was ones' fate. The gull floating nearby was digging at the not so lucky gull's chest as we paddled near and he wasn't willing to fly away none too soon either.

While swimming in Fox Island the Atlantic this time home wasn't so cold and when you ducked under water, we use to call it "getting your ducking", you could see these little minnows.


At first I was alarmed when Wayne yelled that there was a black cloud moving in to shore and that it was moving around quickly. Well, exposed up to my waist I wasn't too happy about any black cloud moving uder water that I couldn't see. So I ducked under again and saw the huge school of fish swimming around our legs. Very cool!

"Glasgow Pond, Aug 10th, Canso Day 2"

Matt getting ready for his first rolling lesson. What a day, what a friggin day!!

"Brandy & Riley:The East Coast Trail"

"The Girls Today"

 'Brandy and Riley'

"Girls To The Park..."

I took the girls on a little hike today and then we went to the park. They played in the playground and even took a break and sat on the bench for a bit. The -21 degrees celsius didn't seem to bother them.They were happy to be out as it has been a few days since they had a decent walk. Along the trail Riley, the Australian Sheppard went into the water of a nearby stream and got wet so she was constantly chewing the frozen water of her paws and was anxious to be home. She is the oldest. Brandy the Snoodle, well she is just dumber than a bag of hammers, very loving and playful though and she knows how to make her own bed.

"Dog-Gone-It"

Well I haven't been paddling lately as I've been getting physio on my left shoulder and preparing to go home to Nova Scotia, where regardless of shoulder I will be paddling. Feeling much better than it did a week ago though. I took the girls for a short walk tonight and enjoyed watching them frolic in the grass and dandelion spores. Little do they know but soon they will be at Nanny and Papa's cursing us for leaving.

"Paddle Dog"

 
Riley is an Australian Sheppard and she loves the water. At least one of us made it there today. I took the dogs on an early walk this am along a trail across the street from us and on the way back Riley chased a few ducks in the little pond and of course indulged herself. No bergs from Signal Hill just small bits.

"The Girls"

 
Originally I had a post today of just one of our dogs, the little one, called Brandy. I felt kind of guilty for not including our other one who we love as much and who is more likely to accompany me on my hikes. Brandy is not a good listener which I am sure stems from my inability to properly control her. Riley the Australian Sheppard with the one blue eye in this picture, is very obedient or at the very least, has me trained well into thinking she is very obedient, either way I accept her behavior. She is quite smart and I can trust her in many circumstances. She loves to eat so that is a trait we share. This photo was after one of our hikes this past summer. It is very difficult taking them out in the winter but they have been snowshoeing on a couple occaisons.

I look forward to some new adventures in the coming months but I am getting very impatient for spring. Our retreat is coming in may. We have Bryan Smith of Pacific Horizons fame coming for that, something to look forward to. As a kayaking club we are looking at tweeking our logo. I will post the old and new eventually and see what ya all think. We have hired someone professional to help us with this. So that is exciting. As a club board member and on our safety committee we are planning some water outings and safety days so that is becoming interesting. I am also helping to put a calendar together for next year so we have a whole year to collect some neat shots, so that should be fun. I'm just about talked out of the winter blues. Oh yes we have started a Newfoundland Kayaking Club Ambassador Program whereby we hope to be able to provide kayakers new to our area, visitors, tourists or newbies a kayaking companion/contact(s) to make them aware of our focus on safety, good spots to paddle, kayakers to paddle with, access to skills training, boat rentals, boat selection, paddle selection, and whatever other info they may require, no costs involved just a sharing of a passion. Alex McGruger one of our more seasoned paddlers (I mean this in the kindest of ways Alex) will be heading the program but already we have numerous volunteers to assist. This is a very exciting project we hope to get going in the spring. We are also hoping to make available club SWAG for purchase so we can get our new logo out there and club visibility on the Island. Our central and western chapter are also planning a retreat later in the year so that is something new we are all hoping to attend and now I have talked myself out of the winter blues into a fruitful paddling season ahead.

"Dog Paddle"

Here and gone, yet the passage of another season, lest I shall forget!

"Lookout"

I believe Riley was as captivated by the scenery on this hike as I was. Just Riley and I went on the hike from Cape Spear to North Head, which is about 9 km return. We had a snack at the North Head Point and watched waves crash aginst the rocks and the seas were pretty heavy.

"Sophi"

Sophi you are a charmer! I know you are having a bad hair day and I'm sorry I took this picture. Paul she is the greatest and I guess in dog years she rates with us.

"Boson"

A familiar face on the Scademia. He love sthe water and is always staring at it.

"Side By Each"

Together all the time these two. Brandy and Riley.

"Brandy and Riley"

First time I saw them so still outside.