Doggles!

We were hiking in the woods the other day and came upon a couple with two German Shepherds. The dogs wore goggles.

While we watched, one of the couple held the dogs while the other person hiked far into the woods and hid a blue "bone." When that person rejoined the spouse and dogs, they waited a bit, then gave the command "FIND."

The dogs raced off into the forest. A short time later, the dogs ran back. One of them had the blue bone in its mouth. A great game of course. The first time we'd seen it with dogs wearing goggles.

If your dog has a head injury you don't want it to scratch, you put a big cone collar on it. The dog will of course try to get that cone off.  I would have thought that once out of the observation of humans, the dogs would shake and paw-off those pesky dog goggles as well. Shows what I know.

The people explained that the dogs like the goggles because, as with people running through trees and brush, the dogs don't have the stress of branches poking at their eyes.

Wow, and I thought the dogs I've seen wearing sunglasses just did it to please their owners.

Another example of dog smarts.

Cool Tahoe Hiking Website

Local writer/artist/photographer Jared Manninen has a newish (at least to me) website about trails in the Tahoe area. It is called Tahoe Trail Guide dot com. Whether you're a hiker or skier or snowshoer or backpacker, or you just want to look at the gorgeous pictures, you will enjoy this site. Here's the link:

https://tahoetrailguide.com/

If you want to learn about its creator... Another link:

https://jaredmanninen.com/

Enjoy!

P.S. I've met Jared. In addition to his generosity - obvious from the effort he's put into making all of this info available to the world for nothing - I can also attest that he is a Nice Guy.

P.P.S The pic above is a Pixabay image, as I did not feel I should grab one of Jared's off his website. Better to go to the website and see Tahoe the way Jared presents it.

The Single Most Important Tip About Tahoe

Go early.

For driving, parking, hiking, boating, biking, eating.

In the first seven days of my new book launch, I've been around the lake twice. And I've seen what most locals avoid. Which is tourists trying to get someplace - anyplace - find parking, beach spots, hiking trails, dinner reservations etc. Many are frustrated and get turned away by the various gate-keepers.

But even at the busiest times of the year, Tahoe can be a great experience if you simply go early. For hiking, try to be at the trail head by 7 a.m. For the beaches and parks, show up at the entrance gate 15 or 20 minutes before they open. (Google your destination to see what the hours are.) For a deli sandwich or other groceries and picnic supplies, get to the supermarket by 8 a.m., or much earlier if possible. Again, look up the hours online. 

Locals have to get their daily supplies, too. But we know that during summer one should be done with all errands and be off the road by 9 a.m.

If you get to your destination early, you'll be much happier.

Tahoe Beach before the crowds arrive.

Enjoy Tahoe!

Red Flag Warning!

The last two days, Cal Fire and the National Weather Service issued a Red Flag Warning for extreme fire danger. Not just Tahoe, but most of Northern California and Northern Nevada.

The warning comes when humidity levels are very low and wind predictions are very high. Even the tiniest spark can start a fire that grows explosively into a blowup. (Oh yeah, I wrote a book about that.)

So no yard work (a shovel hitting a rock can cause a spark), no campfires or barbecues (a hot ash can drift into vegetation), no parking off paved roads (a vehicle's exhaust and catalytic converter can ignite vegetation) and no cigarettes smoked outdoors.

Please stay safe.