The Pacific Ocean is about a mile behind me.

Yesterday was a special day that I really enjoyed.  It was my guardians’ (should I call them parents?) 25th anniversary, and they celebrated by taking me for a hike!  What made it extra special is that we hiked for several hours and miles and I was off-leash almost all the way!  (Don’t tell the park ranger!)

It was a really foggy day near the Golden Gate and especially the Marin Headlands, which is where we hiked.  Parking in the Rodeo Beach lot, we went up the Coastal Trail to Wolf Ridge, across, and then back down on the Miwok  Trail.  5 miles and around 1000 feet of elevation.

It was a bit mysterious because visibility was very low, often just a hundred yards or so.  (I’m glad it was cool – warm weather can slow me down.)  The dense fog blocked out the horizon, and the normally beautiful views of the nearby hills and ocean were greyed out.  But we could see the path and I was an exemplary leader, showing the way and scouting for any critters and interesting smells (found no critters and only a few good smells).  I looked back often, was welcomed by the people we met, and didn’t disturb the  environment.  (We crossed paths with 10-12 school groups of 12-15 including instructors, from the Headlands Institute.)

After our hike we drove to the nearby The Marine Mammal Center, an outstanding resource for humans and marine mammals.  I stayed in the car while my guardians checked out the exhibit of large sculptures of sea creatures made from plastic found along the Oregon coast.   The exhibit is closing soon and the coordinating artist, Angela Haseltine Pozzi, was out front by Henry (sculpture of a large fish), making sure it was in good shape for traveling to its next stop.  I’m told it was really nice to visit with her.  In all, a remarkable show and we hope it travels to a location near you.  Check out http://washedashore.org.

Artist Angela Pozzi with plastic fish, Henry.