R & R Time!

Yesterday we did something outside the box – we took a break from the action! We slept in a little till 6:30ish instead of rising at 5am. We took our dogs for a quick walk and then got our Starbucks coffee after I gave the manager a picture of his birthday party. I gassed up the little van and checked the oil and Anne chopped up some apples and got some oranges ready.  We took some of the seats out of the van so the dogs could enjoy spreading out while we drive for a couple hours. The weather was picture perfect.

We invited our daughter to join us for our little trek to the North Country for the day. We detoured via the donut shop to indulge a little with some old fashion goodies. We enjoyed our sugar fix as we drove up the newly redesigned freeway to Payson and then onto the other Rim, not the Grand Canyon. The dogs were a little restless as we drove the 2 hours but eventually settled into a look out the window mindset to see the incredible sights as we drove from real desert to see real green.

We took a pit stop and got something cold to drink and fries for the last part of our drive to our trailhead destination on the Highline Trail. I was a total vegetable and made my Anne drive who talked nonstop to our Heather. We eventually found our turn off and made it to a small parking lot with only one other car parked. We slowly got all of our ‘stuff’ together and got out of the van and decided to keep the dogs on their leashes for the start up of the hike, recognizing that there was a sign that said dogs must be on leashes.

It was great being in Pine Trees with lots of interesting vegetation along the trail. We were hiking on a great path that was adjacent to a mountain trail that was a few miles above it on switch back trails. Our dogs so much enjoyed all of the unusual smells and sights. I love being out in the open with no distractions from the city. The sky was an awesome blue color without any clouds at all. What was a total surprise was seeing some evidence of snow run off on the trail. Our dogs loved being able to drink from fresh water.

We eventually made it to our usual spot for having a snack or eating lunch. There is an area that has many different rock formations that make great little pools for the dogs to enjoy and some trees that have fallen over in the last few years. So we find some great shade for our break and chance to munch on some apples and watch the dogs roam around. It was a treat not to have anyone on the trail at all.

As the dogs get their last bite of apple or drink from the spring water it is time to pack up and head back to the van. The dogs so much enjoy being out in the open with all of the different sights and sounds. I took the lead with Freckles, our Pit/Dalmatian mix puppy and then our little Peanut, the wild child Chihuahua, was just a few steps behind. Anne, Heather, Graham and Carly stayed in the background. It took us about an hour to return to our vehicle. Our quietness was about to be undone as another car pulled into the parking lot with a dog in the backseat.

I let out a little alert so we put all of the dogs back on their leashes and got ready to return to the reality of city life. It was great to have a day away from e-mails, texts or calls. I admit that it isn’t easy for me to totally turn off my phone and tune out in order to tune into having some R & R.