From The Dog’s Perspective

A former camp cook, Pat also writes poetry. When asked to write a poem about camp by the camp director Lori, here is what she came up with:


From The Dog’s Perspective

To the forest - away! To the lake! Let me play!

I must chase a squirrel up a tree!

Enough urban strife! I want more out of life!

Take me to where I can run free!

Leave my leash at home! I’m longing to roam!

Fetching sticks in the cool mountain air!

Let me lie in the shade in some piney glade -

Have the breezes to ruffle my hair!

Hear the coyotes at night! What an eery delight!

Stirs primitive instincts awake -

Part of me longs to be so wild and so free,

And howl at the moon by the lake!

But the city’s my home and ‘tho I long to roam

I must be good and obey.

In dog parks we play - which I guess is OK,

But I dream of Camp W. all day.

When the pavement gets hot, my owner gives thought

To head for the place I adore.

With a car full of gear we drive out of here

And go straight to the Lake Tahoe shore.

My dog friends can’t wait for our annual date!

We swim and we hike and we run!

We read the “pee mail” and smile with our tail!

Dog camp is the ultimate fun!

Now you know how we feel when we’re walking at heel,

And obeying your wish and command.

While your slippers we’re fetching, we’d rather be catching

Frisbees with our pals in the sand!

Pat King, September 2011

Round Hill

Jan on our hike up Round Hill.

Ever since I saw this “hill” from a hike to Castle Rock in 2010 I have wanted to hike to the top of Round Hill. In other years I never noticed it, and it is very close to camp. When there was a hike change from Trout Creek because of news of some aggressive coyotes, to Zephyr Cove where we’d already been last week I made up my mind to do this climb.

Jan said that if I would go slow uphill and rest often, he would do it with me. He wanted to see the view also. So after a short 5 minute drive over to the hill from camp, we spent a few minutes looking for the trailhead and then deciding where to park the van.

Because of the steepness of the climb we left Glitter back at the cabin, so only Chip and Tinkerbell were with us. They didn’t look all that thrilled to be hiking again. Since just just about 3 hours earlier they had hiked Castle Rock, another hike with a good climb. But they were good sports and came along. I mean if you had a slip leash around your neck you’d start walking too. Our starting elevation for this hike was 6, 374 feet.

After a little searching we found the well worn trail to the top. On this hill were lots of downed trees, very dry and old. Our dogs stay on the path quite nicely. For dogs that think they have to jump and run around off the path it is quite dangerous. Sometimes our dogs get the zoomies while hiking, but after two weeks of hiking, they were just trotting along, no thoughts of chasing each other while hiking.

Resting on the trail to Round Hill.

The trail was steep, with switchbacks. Mostly shaded. We rested quite often after Jan’s episode the day before where we spent the whole afternoon at the emergency room trying to stop his bloody nose. There were lots of chipmunks, lizards and Jan said he saw a snake too. On our breaks we took pictures of the views. The path was pretty dusty in some areas. The dogs many times laid down on the trail when we stopped, I think I finally wore them out if that is possible.

We only saw one other hiker on the hill and he was coming down. I think he surprised Tinkerbell, she gave loud warning barks - scared me because I hadn’t seen the hiker, I was busy watching the trail. We had beautiful views of Lake Tahoe and and Round Hill Marina. Also we had a great view of Castle Rock along the Tahoe Rim that we had hiked just that morning. 

Jan holds up rock so I can get by. 

If you know where to look you can see the
4-H camp from here, in the center clearing. 

Camp W private beach.

Round rock on Round Hill.

Beautiful views.

After doing all the switchbacks to get us up the hill we finally arrived near the top where the trail circled around to the other side where we could see Camp Winnaribbun. Our climb took us up to an elevation of 6,689 feet. That was very cool. And of course we could also see beautiful Lake Tahoe. It was just a short distance to the top, which is not very wide so in just a few steps you can look at the view on either side. We took lots of picture. The dogs seemed to be tired of the picture drill and had to be coaxed with treats to pose yet again.

Tink and Chip pose for a picture to show they
made it to the top of Round Hill.

We enjoyed some time at the top, giving Chip and Tinkerbell some water and Power Bone treats. We drank some water also and then it was time for our careful but faster trip down the hill. We didn’t want to loose our footing, but the decent was fast and soon we were back at the van ready to head back to Camp W.

Jan and the green rock. 

View of Lake Tahoe. 

Top of Round Hill.

Stats for the hike: we hiked about a mile and a half. Had we taken a direct route and know the way it would have been a bit shorter.

Castle Rock

Castle Rock view from Round Hill.

Today was the scenic hike along the Tahoe Rim Trail and then up to Castle Rock. I really, really enjoyed this hike but I was disappointed that I forgot my camera. I am hoping some friends will send me pictures that they took.

We headed up Kingsbury Grade and had to deal with the lane closures. Just a part of vacationing in Lake Tahoe. They only have the late spring, summer and early fall months were they can work on the roads - we try to be patient. It will be done someday, right?

Because of the difficulty of the hike there are fewer hikers. The hike begins at a trailhead near where Sandy lives. There is a nice parking lot there.

The first part of the hike is a gradual but steady uphill climb. We started at an elevation of 7,789 feet and went to 7912 feet. Jan stayed behind with Glitter to have a little extra beach time. Chip, Tinkerbell and I were happy to be on a hike with our friends and especially our hike leader, Sandy. In the cool morning air the dogs were ready to hike. They are the smallest dogs hiking today so we try to give the faster, bigger dogs room to roam.

I have been giving the dogs treats every half hour or so as we hike, they seem to really like this. They’ve been following behind me and running ahead a bit. To find me again, instead of looking up they sniff hikers calves as they go by looking for the one that smells like me. It is fun to watch them do this.

After the gradual climb then we have a nice decent to the place where the trail branches off up to Castle Rock. Here is where the climb begins. We went from and elevation of 7611 to 7835 in a short distance. And at the top is a cool rock formation. You can see the lake, but their is no trail around the top, the other side is just sheer rock, so you can’t actually get an unobstructed view of the lake without some trees from here. But it is a beautiful place and well worth the climb.

With fellow camper Ellen’s camera Sandy took a picture of the dogs and I so I hope I get that soon to share in the blog. Yes, yet another picture of us. That’s what dog camp is all about. And we do love our photo memories to get us through the year until we return to beautiful Lake Tahoe and Camp W. I’ve come up with a new trick to get my dogs to drink water on the hike...drop some treats in the water, then they have to drink it down to get at them. So far it is working. It is always difficult to keep the dogs hydrated because drinking has to be their idea. I have to be creative and think of ways to make it seem like it is their idea.

After pictures it was time to hike back down. With Sandy’s permission I went ahead of the others, it was nice to walk down in the quiet by ourselves and just think. We waited at the bottom for the others to rejoin us and then we all headed on the Tahoe Rim Trail for a vista point name after Ross Kolomoos, son of the camp director Lori. He passed away three years ago and so camp friends purchased the rights to name the vista point for him. This information shows on an information board at the trailhead. Since this part of the trail was recently completed, all by volunteers, it was available for purchase.

After the vista point it was just a short hike to the pickup area on Maryanne where Sandy’s husband Ken picked half the group up and gave us a ride to our cars. The other half of the group went on to hike another hour, I felt like my dogs were happy and done with this hike.
Stats for hike: 2.96 miles

Change in Hike Plans - Emergency Room

Waiting for final discharge, nosebleed has stopped.

This afternoon I was so excited because for the first time Sandy's husband Ken was going to lead us on a new hike that we had never been on. Since I didn't go on the morning hike I was itching to go.
During lunch, as I was finishing my food I noticed that Jan was missing and his plate was sitting next to me unfinished. I thought he must be getting something inside because today it was so nice we were sitting outside at the picnic tables with our friends.
Well, a few minutes later I noticed he was still missing and I got concerned, he always picks up his plates and now I wondered what was wrong. Then I saw him just a short distance away, walking toward the cabin. I called to him, he turned around and signaled me to come with him. It was then that I learned he had a nosebleed, which is not uncommon for him, but this time he couldn't get it to stop.
I followed him to the cabin and got out my first aide book and looked up nosebleeds. It helped me to understand it a little better, but this was no help. It was really flowing and going down the back of his throat - the normal things he's always done weren't helping. Now he was scared. We decided to go to get help.
We ended up right close to camp at the Barton Instacare. We were seen pretty quickly. Jan's blood pressure was out of control, 180. This is probably a contributing factor in what was happening, besides the Plavex and aspirin a day that he takes thinning his blood out. First thing they did was give Jan a pincher thingy for his nose and a pill to get his blood pressure down. The doctor put a sponge in his nostril (ouch Jan said it felt like sandpaper). And guess what, this did not stop it. They wanted us to go to the emergency room. So we paid our $161 for this visit and headed to the hospital.
The Barton Hospital was about 6 miles away and their emergency room was at the back. We got triaged right away, but it took about and hour and a half to be seen by a doctor. People were stacked up. All kinds of problems and so they do the triage and people are not helped in the order they arrive. Well, what Jan ended up needing was Time. Time for it to stop on its own. Time for his blood pressure to come down, which it finally did.
The doctor in emergency took the other sponge out and was going to put in another but all of the sudden the bleeding finally stopped. So he moved us out of that emergency room into a smaller one where we waited one hour to see if it had really stopped for good. This room was colder than the last room, the nurse brought me a warm blanket to wrap up in while we waited.
We got a new nurse after we changed rooms, her name was Jan. So after the doctor visited us for a last check nurse Jan then brought patient Jan's discharge papers, cut off his hospital bracelets and we got the heck outta there after paying our $100 co-pay. The whole ordeal: 12:30 - 6:30 6 hours of fun. NOT. We were late for dinner but the staff at Camp W was nice to leave it out until we arrived at 7pm.

Photo Shoot with Sharon of S&E Photo

Shelties on the rocks.

Today we arranged to do a photo shoot with Sharon instead of going on the morning hike. We love Sharon's pictures and it is always fun to see her in action - the results are always breathtaking. She makes our dogs look beautiful, even if they are camp dirty! Go visit her on facebook. Give her a LIKE!
These pictures in the blog are mine, Sharon sends hers to us in a month. Hers will be awesome, even though we take the same ones mine never look the same. I have fun taking pictures of the dogs while she is taking pictures. Sometimes mine are not so great because I am also managing dogs and keeping mine in place.

At Camp W we had a total of 10 Shelties this year, 2 for Nancy (Aiden & Gizmo), 3 of ours (Glitter, Chip, & Tinkerbell), 1 of Karin's (Corey), Cindy's puppy (Ziva) and Shanna's 2 (Holly & Alaska). Yes, this only adds up to 9.... one other girl at camp brought her parents Sheltie which she was dog sitting, put she was more into her Cocker Spaniel and didn't join in our Sheltie fun much.

Ziva Wilkinson

Chip on a rock.

Corey Bruce

Ziva trying to open and eat the "photo treats."

We give the dogs a few minutes break from staying, and we take time to give them the promised treats for staying, but the dogs do get tired of this activity. We rotate the dogs on different rocks so each one doesn't do every pose. They get the drill. I'm sure if they could talk they might moan and groan.

Aiden Berry

Glitter Monson

Tinkerbell Monson

After the photo session it's off to the beach to bark and run! Now this is what Shelties really love to do. And most of ours also like to retrieve.

Aiden takes to the water for the retrieve. 

No one wants to get their paws wet. Aiden where are you?

Fun on the beach has now become quite a hit with the Sheltie crew. The one that really likes the water is Aiden, Tinkerbell is pretty good about getting her feet wet. Chip and Glitter and Gizmo, they have learned that if we set them in up to their tummies they stay cooler while they are barking and chasing huckum chicken. They don’t run for the hills when we go to get them a little wet. Wow, really that is amazing because these are not water dogs.

I could have used my ear plugs while the dogs were fetching the toy. They are loud and they continuously bark. You’d think they would go horse, but no, they can keep it up - seems like forever.

Go Ziva, Go!

After the play session Shanna Wilkinson came over and wanted to do a photo shoot of her own, standing in the water with the dogs lined up facing her. Since they were tired they let us have yet another photography session. LIne em’ up! Cookies! Look this way.

Fallen Leaf Lake

Group picture of our Camp W friends at Fallen Leaf Lake.

What a great hike today with Sandy. We got a bit of a late start hiking because of the traffic on Hwy 50 because of the construction. Things don't move well with one lane. Well, we finally arrived so we all parked and got out our dogs, leashed up and started the hike.

Once we were away from the road we were able to take our dogs off leash. Because of the lateness the pace of the hike was a little quicker. Jan was having a little pressure with his heart so we were hiking a bit slower than the others, but when there was a choice in directions during the hike the group waited for us. Sometimes Sandy marks direction by making an arrow on the ground and tying an empty poop bag to it so we know which way. Then it is removed on the way back.

Fallen Leaf Lake

Jan hiking at Fallen Leaf Lake.

This is one of our favorite hikes, mostly wooded, some hills, the lake is so beautiful. Over the years we have hiked different sides of the lake. Today we were going to the house in the woods that burned down a long time ago. You can still see the foundation of the cabin but only the fireplace remains standing.

Lining up a few of the dogs.

L-R: Greg, Sally and our hike leader Sandy.

Jan, Tinkerbell and Chip hiking.

Clouds over Fallen Leaf Lake.

Driving Directions: From Camp W take Hwy 50 to the “Y”, turn right on Hwy 89. Turn left at the “Snow Park” sign just past the bridge onto Cathedral Road. Proceed down the road to Green Forest Service Gate. To hike with the dogs off leash we try to be well away from the campground.

Hike Summary: Fallen Leaf Lake is a picturesque hike.

Special Features: Fallen Leaf Lake is about one mile south of the much larger Lake Tahoe. It is approximately aligned north to south in an oval shape about 3 miles long. It is the second largest alpine lake in the Tahoe Basin. The lake was created by at least two glaciers which traveled northward down the Glen Alpine Valley. If the glacier had continued instead of stopping, Fallen Leaf Lake would be a bay similar to nearby Emerald Bay

From the discovery of Fallen Leaf Lake by Col. John Calhoun Johnson and his Delaware Indian guide, Captain Falleaf sometime between 1850 and 1858, to the discovery of Glen Alpine Springs by Nathan Gilmore the history is nicely detailed and carefully researched.

There was a often-heated rivalry between Lucky Baldwin and Gilmore, a feud lasting until Gilmore’s death. One can only imagine Gilmore’s vast influence on the area as well as those of the colorful, if not always honorable, Baldwin and his legacy of wild exploits.

Lucky’s daughter Anita, and her impact on Fallen Leaf, including the rise and fall of her estate on the lake’s west shore. Under the provisions of the property’s transfer to the U.S. Forest Service, Anita’s home and most of the outbuildings compromising the estate were burned and demolished in 1953.

Anita Baldwin house at Fallen Leaf Lake.

The Anita Baldwin house, which she named Nid Ji Eh Wa Ri (a Hopi Indian word meaning “House on the Lake”), would have made a memorable museum. On the west side of the lake, not far from the dam at Taylor Creek, is the foundation of Anita’s home and one or two of the outbuildings. If you sit for awhile on the old foundation, you may find yourself imagining what life was like for a woman of privilege at Fallen Leaf Lake.