It was a lovely morning for a hike. I got to the meet up site, and waited.
Jake, being only 6 months old, is going through a fear phase at the moment. He sees metal objects and it frightens him. No coddling from me... During our wait for others, we work on his coping skills. We stand just at the edge of where he feels is a comfortable distance to the object. Today's object...a yellow fire hydrant. As he calms down, we move closer. I think we got within 10 feet. And then cars started to roll in...and Jake, in all him mighty puppydog-ness, got distracted - for the rest of the hike.
The hike up Blue Mountain is only 2 miles, one-way, but it is a hike UP. There was really no flat part of the trail that would provide a hiatus from the upward climb. At times, especially in the latter third of the trail, the climb up got pretty steep. I tried to latch on to Jake's backpack, and have him pull me up. But Jake, being trained in a proper heel, did not know what to do. He just looked at me with those hazel eyes...saying "What...I'm not supposed to be out front". So much for canine help.
Jake was tired. We went to 5-Guys Burger joint afterwards before our training session. He's so well behaved after hikes!
DIRECTIONS:
If you're interested in hiking Blue Mountain, here are directions:
Either coming from 215 north or 215 south, exit Washington Street Exit. Turn EAST and go to Reche Canyon Road. Turn RIGHT (it's a T-intersection, so it's the only way to go), to Westwood Ave. Turn RIGHT (again, T-intersection). Street ends where trail begins.
Our next hike: Ernie Maxwell in Idyllwild.
If you want to rsvp for this one, click here: RSVP here for Ernie Maxwell Hike in Idyllwild
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