May 31, 2011

Back to Norm's Island

Chocolate, Blanca and I returned to Norm's Island today.  We were prepared for the worst, but it is not bad at all.  There is a lot of standing water, but only in a few places where it actually covers the path. This photo is right after you start, going right. See the garbage (poop) can in the distance. I wore old shoes and just walked through it. Not bad.  ChocoBlanca were very happy to be at the Island.

The flooding can be pretty.  This reflecting pool is seen from the cross path looking west.

There was a crew out removing downed trees from the paths. The greenery on the left is the top of a tree that fell inward. Its terrestrial footing was washed away.  There are some large pieces of real estate missing on the south side of the Island, washed away by a raging Yellowstone River.

This is on the cross path, and is the worst flooding there. Obviously a lot of water has receeded. There were indications that the water was everywhere at one point. I feel guilty for not having gotten out to document it. But, alas, I must remember that this weblog is about dogs, and I was not going to take my kids out while the water was rushing across the Island.
We had a very pleasant time today at the Island. We walked and talked to Mike, who had been out on Sunday to see for himself the situation.
We are happy that we will still be able to enjoy our favorite place.  The world has not come to an end after all.

May 29, 2011

Wet Dogs for a Wet Day

Well, they are not as wet as they would be if this picture had been taken today.  It was taken April 17.  Choco and Blanca usually do not like to get their bellies wet, so to get a wetter dog picture it would need to be raining. But, I really like this photo, it is like a watercolour - no, like a painted photograph from the 1940's. My mother had a bunch of them.  I am really surprised I have not used it before.
It rained all day today. It is supposed to rain all day again tomorrow, which is Memorial Day.  We are looking forward to Tuesday when we are going to go to the Island and see how it looks.
I want to make an effort to post daily, even if we are not able to go to Norm's Island. I certainly have a huge backlog of dog pictures to choose from. Thanks for checking in.

May 28, 2011

Remembering The Good Ole Days

From back when Norm's Island was dry, we remember the day we walked with our good friend Finney ( Finnegan ) Finney is a rather rambunctious little fella ( don't tell him I called him little) He takes nothing from any dog no matter the size. He keeps up. I like Finny.  His mother was a Sheltie, and his father was Schnauzer, a miniature, we assume. Smart, energetic dog. So much so that this is the only good picture I got of him. I hope to have other opportunities.

May 26, 2011

Looks Like I Will Need a New Subtitle

I understand Norm's is underwater, and is officially closed. Bummer. It probably will be awhile before it is usable again, what with the snow melt yet to come.  I had better think up a new tag line for my weblog. Bummer.
I will try to go out tomorrow and check it out.  Should have did it today, but I was mr. mopey pants.

May 25, 2011

But It Did Rain More

Not going that way . . .
or that way . . .
I guess we are going that way, says Blanca
Not everyone was put off by the flooding, Kelly braved the floods with Bella, Jake, Daisy and the lucky guy that got carried through the deep parts. Kelley said she froze, the water was knee deep in many places.
But the kids had fun anyway. I love the background in this photo. You think maybe these dogs are buddies?

May 24, 2011

. . . if it doesn't rain anymore

I said the cross path at Norm's may not flood.  Oh well.  Maybe we can go out today and check it out.  Maybe. Really, we do not mind walking in the rain. Chocolate loves it when I sing.

May 22, 2011

Rain Means Green (amongst other things)

Wet Dog on a Field of Green.  We walked in the rain this morning for the first half of our walk. It was marvelous. The Island is turning so green. Beautiful green. Several paths have flooded, so one must walk till an impassable spot is reached then either ford on or turn back. So far it is not bad, and the west end of the island is easy, no flooding yet. The cross path is on the verge of going under, but if it does not rain anymore it may not flood.

"Come On You Guys, This Is The Way We Usually Go" Choco really wanted us to take the inner path, but Blanca and I felt staying on the main path a better idea. Sorry Chocolate.
I carried my little compact Canon S90 today, when I left my house it was raining hard so I was not going to carry my big rig. It is "kinda" moisture proof, but nah, no way. The Canon takes great pictures, but it is SLOW, so no action photos today.  When a dog actually talks, you must capitalize the first letter of each word. It's special, ya know.

 Just more beautiful green.  I Love It.  Don't think about all the ticks crawling about out there. Joking. So far this season we have not had much trouble with ticks, just a couple off each dog. None on me, but of course I am soaked in Permethrin.

 We walked today with the World's Cutest Puppy. Snickers.

This is one wet and pooped troupe.  Everybody had a wonderful time. As we were nearing the end of our walk the weather got to be rather nice, the rain stopped and it was warm and the air was exhilarating. Cathy is leading the pack, then Penny and Snickers, then Ann, Blanca, Ms Mel, and Lucky brings up the rear. My faithful boy Chocolate is by my side.  Love Ya Choco.

Three Beautiful Girls. Nina Blanca, Holly-showing off her wet weather outfit- and Harley, are ready to cross the bridge and get somewhere dry. Forget it Blanca, we are going around again.
A delightful day at Norm's Island. Thank you Shannon, Cathy, Ann and all the dogs for sharing your walks with us. Blanca, Chocolate and I sure enjoy it.

May 19, 2011

Daisy & Esme

Today it is cool, overcast and rainy. A good stay at home and look at my backlog of photos day.
So I reach back for this picture of a two beautiful dogs we walked with on May 4th, along with their friend Susan.  Blanca and Daisy were great great friends the first time they met, but on this day they were cool to one another, maybe because Daisy had her friend Esme along with her.

 Is that a dog smile? Looks like one to me. Great tail too.
Daisy is a English Shepherd, only brown white I have ever seen, I thought they were all black and white, goes to show . . .  That is Esme's leg on the right.

Esmeralda I do believe is a Border Collie, but not sure. She was pretty energetic.  Nice dogs, both. We enjoyed walking with Daisy, Esme and Susan. Thanks.

May 18, 2011

Relaxing in Spring Wonderland.

I have no idea how this post got to this date. I originally posted it a week ago, probably on the 12th or so. But now it has moved. Well, no matter, except the weather is not like this today.  It originally was titled Spring Resumes. It was after several cold cloudy days, and the sun was wonderful, delicious. Delicious??

Took this very satisfactory picture today. The kids are looking happy, the sun is out, it is warm, in general a very beautiful day. I love youse guys. It is rare to get Choco in front, for some reason Blanca is usually in front, for some reason.

 My beautiful Curious Girl. Wore them out today. This was a very pleasant day, and a very pleasant spot.

Rising Waters (off topic-no dogs)

This photo was taken on, uh, oh, geez, I think the beginning of April. Below I have tried as best I could to reproduce the location and the cropping. I came close.  It was April 8.  I needed a polarizer on this series, I spent several hours today looking for one, I have several, no luck. Too much Stuff!

May 17, 2011,  yesterday.  It feels like there is much more water flowing down the channel than the photo suggests. I do believe it will come close to going over the bank in a few days.  This comparison is fun.

August 31, 2010. Now This has become an obsession. Where is the fall foliage picture? Such a lush looking scene. Norm's Island is beautiful. Any time of year. Thanks Norm. And Friends.

Got it!  October 24, 2010. Different camera, different cropping, I wanted to keep my dogs in the picture, plus are those not cool reflections?, but the same spot.

February 8.  Hey! Lets get carried away. I was looking for a fall foliage photo when I found this. Back to looking for the fall foliage picture.  Found it, see above.  There, got that out of my system. 
Winter is actually my favorite time at Norms.  It is quiet, fewer people and fewer bugs. It is easier to explore uncharted areas, my dogs love the cold ( not me ) I love the monotone colors, the greys and grey browns and the very muted tones of everything ( except Mikes Yellow Jacket ).
I know, I know, this series is too symmetrical,  too balanced, too boring, but hey! I like it. So there!

May 17, 2011

Copper

I have not been posting for several days because I hurt my back last week and I cannot get down, down to a dogs level. But today I got some great takes of this wonderful Corgi Copper.  Great dog. I will post more as the day goes on. I got several good photos today, despite my back which I hurt again by slipping on a wet log.
It was wonderful today at the Island.

I love this.  The tree in the middle is what is in focus, but the good looking boy still comes out looking pretty good.  The Island is getting so wonderfully green.

 Add a bushy tail and I could say I got a good photo of one of our foxy friends. Almost.

Copper meets Chocolate.

May 9, 2011

A Beautiful Grey Overcast Sunday

Sunday was a delightful grey day. It was cool. We met these beautiful boys by the Sandy Spot. This is Lucky on the left and Roper on the right. They were both lucky to be rescued by their friend Kale, who of course they were walking with.

Roper is a 2 year old Blue Healer. He is the nicest Healer I have ever met.  He was very relaxed and laid back. Nice dog. This is the best photo I was able to get of his wonderful white tail.

We met Ranger, who had spent the last few days in the mountains and had an adventure with a Grizzly Bear. This is the first photo of Ranger in his summer cut. I always have a difficult time getting Rangers eyes, they are coal black, and are set deep, so do not catch reflections much.

Yes, another picture of Marne. I like Marne, she is a great poser, and a beautiful and wonderful dog.

There were not many people at the Island today so we mostly saw our regular friends.  We met our big friend Max, who just got his summer haircut. It made him look quite a bit younger, and smaller. Max is always very happy to see me, which makes me feel good. Thanks Max.

This boy is a new one to us, we met him for the first time today. He is a Labrador Husky mix. This must be a good mix as he was a beauty with a very nice way about him. Unfortunately I forgot his name. Must remember to use the notepad.

We stayed at the Island today, Sunday, for almost three hours. We walked with our friends Debbie and Goofball, and then Rick, Marne, Maggie and Spice Girl.  Most of the time it was simply too dark for pictures, but we still got some good ones. Thanks to everyone we met for sharing their day with us. It was an enjoyable day.

May 4, 2011

Rimrock Rover Ramble

Saturday, April 30 my kids and I went to the 9th annual Rimrock Humane Society's Rimrock  Rover Ramble.  Fun was had by all.  The 2011 Rimrock Rover Ramble brought in a total of $11,830 - WHAT A SUCCESS! This event is a fundraiser for Spay and Neuter Clinics. This is great. The weather was chilly and very windy.  I took a few pictures.

The beginning of the Serious Ramble, the 5 kilometer run.

If I am to trust my memory and my cameras file number sequence, these are the top three 5K winners, left to right one two three. Nice run, runners. Notice that they are in the lead in the first photo. Consistency.

 At this point I get confused about who is running and who is walking and who is finishing when, but my visual sense is still working and this is a great photo. Thanks runners number 513 and 524.

There were two finish lines, one for the 5K racers and walkers and one for the 3K racers and walkers. They were coming across both finish lines at the same time so I was running back and forth between the two places, so I may have missed finishers, but I do believe these are the first dogs to finish the 5K run. Order of finish left to right. Great run 481 and 494 and Rambling Rovers.

 Now with all that race stuff out of the way I get to post some fun photos. This is my favorite. Is that not the cutest dog and friend. I did not do a very good job with names this day. Too much action.

Are these dogs related?

These guys are all ready to Ramble. The dog on the right has something to say. 

Here is a pair of happy Ramblers. On the fence are outfits from ClassiClips, one of the sponsors of the Rimrock Rover Ramble.

What a couple of cuties this pair are. Cuties, can I use that?

 Aawww. If I did not already have my hands full with my wild bunch of kids I would have wanted to take this beautiful boy home with me.  This is Zorro, and he is the Rimrock Humane Societies newest boy looking for a forever home. He is absolutely gorgeous. Great, happy energy. He really liked this big brown long eared dog with the sneakers on.

May 1, 2011

May Day

I was looking for green today.  I photographed a bunch of it, but this is my favorite. Happy May Day.

We met this beautiful girl today, walking with her friends Dennis, Karen and Atti.  I learned about the baby owl from Dennis and Karen, it was they that found it, actually it was Atti, and Dennis and Karen took responsibility for it.  The little guy went to the zoo.  We are very happy to have confirmation that he will still have a chance in life. Apparently when he is older he will be brought back to Norm Schoenthal Island. Great.

This is a good photo of Atti, Attitude.  Atti was very photogenic, but I made technical mistakes and most of my takes were too dark. Me, make mistakes? Never! Well there is always a first time. Unlike in many life situations, maybe someday I will get a second chance. The light today kept changing rapidly, which makes photographing a bit more challenging. As an excuse; I was absorbed in talking about the baby owl. Pay attention Ken. But we got this cool photo of a very energetic spaniel.

Beautiful clouds today. I like this tree. Green below. I sure wish I had brought my polarizer, this is the perfect situation for one. c’est la vie