Whew! Out there and around...summer trip

It's been way too long since our last post.  Hope you are enjoying August...

 My humans and I have just returned from a 3-week trip... Glad to be home!

 Late July, we camped for a week at our usual summer spot - Hume Lake in Sequoia National Forest.  We always visit the big trees and salute the General... 

 And, paddle every day in our kayak.....  and play lots of ball.  I LOVE Hume Lake.

 We had friends visit... as per every year, dad and friend cycle in to Kings Canyon and back out... 3,000+ feet of climbing... I was happy to be riding in the 'sag' vehicle with the gals.

 After a week of enjoying Hume Lake....my humans and I piled in to our camper and went off on the next leg of our adventure.

 Geez, there was a LOT of camper driving.... But, we ventured through some beautiful places.

 After a few hours sleep and a quick drive through 100+ heat in Zion, Utah...we hit amazing, Bryce Canyon National Park....

 I got to stretch my legs a bit....  I was not allowed on any of the trails, but we had just been through one big thunderstorm and there were not a lot of folks around...

 Bryce was stunning and the late day post-storm light made for wonderful color contrasts.

 We debated staying a night in Bryce...but we had more parks to visit... Off we went for a late night roll in to Moab, UT...and then a quick drive through Arches National Park the next day.

 The end-of-the-road in Arches.... The campground here is named Devil's Garden.  Hmmm.  I will say it was about a million degrees out, and my little paw pads weren't up for it. So, my humans snapped a few pix, and off we went before the temps soared.....

 More driving!  And, we found ourselves, after many hours on the road at Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park...they describe this park as 'deep, steep and narrow'.  It was! And, it was incredible!

 With even more driving... we hit our most Eastern destination..and wow!
Mt. Crested Butte, CO..... the mountain top is 12,162 feet.

 The town of Crested Butte is at 8,885ft and is just lovely!  We enjoyed the area so much, we stayed 9 days :) 

 I met Sophia (above) and she kindly showed me a few great places to swim!  Of course in the lake above - Copley Lake - I tried to make my way around the entire lake...trolling for lake fun...but after almost an hour, my humans lured me back and we hiked on home.

 A wonderful mountain town.  We had many nice walks on Elk Ave...

 Kept tabs on the bear who had scurried up a tree for an entire day on a local neighborhood street. 

 Enjoyed the expansive trails and views at every turn.... Hu-dad was at his delight on his mountain bike.... 

 Our last night in the area was camped at Lake Irwin.... We were lucky enough to get the LAST CAMPSITE!!  I was SO happy to have a lake again...  We were quite high, at 10,015 feet.

 Swimming time!  And, views!

 We drove the Kebler Pass Road out towards the West as we started our drive home.  Kebler Pass is an old railroad grade and is mostly dirt/gravel. A unique road.... with folks and pups heading out on a pack trip...

And, ranchers herding their cattle.....

 And, mom clutching the wheel really really tight as we navigated the 30+ miles of beautiful, yet sometimes bumpy and steep road...  Good job mom!  I had to coach her a lot of the time...I could tell she was SUPER NERVOUS!

 And, off we went...drive drive drive... we hit beautiful Utah and then Nevada...lots of CROSS WINDS... rocking the camper and making hu-mom NERVOUS!

 Dad was always ready to take over at the wheel.... Navigating carefully, we finally made it to our last stop.... (not quite home) to Alder Creek in Truckee, California... I was so happy to refresh myself in the cool waters....

Ahhhh....we've had a really nice adventure....

Hope you are enjoying August! Would love to hear from you!
Hugs from me!