Just when I thought I knew about all the terrific things in this big, wide world, along came—drum roll please—camping!
I had no clue where we were headed when we set out on the Trans Canada Highway heading east. (As it turned out, neither did T and N!) All I had was camping, a word I didn’t know, and Cypress Hills, a place I’d never been. And then a word came into the conversation that I did know… SNOW. Yup. There was a bunch of it, about six inches, in the Cypress Hills. That bit of news resulted in a near-immediate U-turn and a new destination, Dinosaur Provincial Park.
Dinosaurs are cool—saw some of those when we went to Drumheller—and I also like parks, so it seemed a good plan to me. Definitely better than snow. I was with my peeps on that one. I’ll play fetch in any conditions, anywhere, but when it comes to walking and just hanging in the outdoors, I’m a bit of a fair weather guy.
Anyway, back to this thing called camping. I looked it up on Wikipedia (my go-to for understanding the big, wide world) and it said this, “Camping is a form of outdoor recreation or outdoor education involving overnight stays with a basic temporary shelter such as a tent.” And then I had to look up tent. “A tent is a shelter consisting of sheets of fabric or other material draped over, attached to a frame of poles or a supporting rope.” Um…sheets like on the bed? It was all very confusing…and concerning. I like a bit of structure around me overnight, like my crate, and the walls of the house.
Much to my relief and delight, this is where the little house in a box came in, the one that sits in our yard that I was introduced to back in December. We’d pulled it behind us all the way to the provincial park. Since I travel in a crate inside the truck, I didn’t realize it was there until we stopped. There was also a chair for me outside plus a big mat to lie on, and inside, a human bed to nap on, and a smaller, very cozy bed for me under the table, like a den.
And that was only the beginning of the surprises. There were people all around us with their little boxes and what I assumed were the tents I’d read about. It was like a village but with no houses and everyone outdoors. How fantastic! I couldn’t get enough of watching it, not wanting to miss a thing.
We went walking that first night after dinner, and climbed up onto a hill overlooking the campground. I was so excited I think I was pulling on my leash a bunch, so T handed me off to N for the climbing parts, concerned I might take her right off her feet. Holy wow! I could see forever! The big, wide world grew even bigger that night.
The next morning, I could hardly wait to get outside, and I wasn’t disappointed. The little village of campers had come to life with the sounds and smells of everyone starting their day. T took me for a short loop to do my business, we had our breakfast outdoors (cool, right?), and set off exploring the trails in the middle of the park. We didn’t see any dinosaurs, but there were bones, very old ones that had no scent, and all kinds of weird land features that were fun to climb on.
Even a young dog like me gets tired after such a full morning, so I was only too happy to accommodate the humans and nap with them. They call the little box Simon, and Simon is the awesomest place to nap. A comfy bed snuggled in with my favourite peeps, and the great outdoors just beyond. Doggy heaven.
After two days of hiking, napping, eating, and watching campground life carry on around us, just when it didn’t seem the adventure could get any better, we had surprise company. :o) I don’t know how she found us so far from home, but my Auntie Sus stopped in to have dinner with us and join us for our evening walk. So cool. I’d have given up my bed if she’d wanted to stay, but she said she’d be more comfortable down the road in a hotel room.
We sat by the campfire after Sus headed off, and then the coolest thing happened. These animals I’ve seen running through the fields at home (T says they’re deer) were hanging out and grazing right behind our camp. They weren’t even scared! A campground full of humans and dogs and they wandered around like they owned the place. Maybe they do? I confess I would have given chase if I’d been off my cable, but it was pretty amazing just to sit and watch them.
I slept like the dead that night, totally cozy in my doggy den. I started off with T and N in their bed, but I ultimately prefer my own space where I can stretch out and not bother anyone. The next morning, we’d just finished breakfast and were getting set to go walk some more trails when who should show up and surprise us again … Sus! I think it was that she missed me and just had to come back.
We were supposed to stay a fourth night, but windy, wet weather was on its way so we packed up and headed home, house-in-a-box in tow. I was having so much fun I hated to go, but I was also a pretty pooped pup. It was quite the big adventure for a newbie.
So, now that I know what camping is, I only have one question. When can we go again?
the Fur-iday Files 