Hike at Federation Forest State Park

Another gorgeous day meant we had to go hiking. This time we traveled east to Federation Forest State Park. Although we’ve been here before this was the first time for the puppies and they were so excited. In all we did almost 3 miles but with no one around we were able to let the puppies off leash for a while which they loved. They explored every nook and cranny and even tried to go down a cliff to the river—crazy pups! They had to get a bath when we got home. The price you have to pay for running around like crazy chickens!

They didn’t like the grates on a couple bridges but on the way back Harvey figured out he could walk on the side where it’s wood. Rosie refused to go over and had to be carried. Such a princess!

The puppies have some jumping skills and got up here easy peasy. 

Hike at Taylor Mountain

Fall has arrived and rainy days are just around the corner. Since it was forecast to be sunny and in the 70’s today Scott and I decided to take the day off work to take advantage of one of the last few nice days.  We took the puppies to hike at Taylor Mountain just north of Covington. We have never hiked here before, but found it to be a very nice area. We took the trail right past the parking lot and hiked to Holder Knob. In all we did 3 very hilly miles.  The only drawback is it’s a popular horse trail so we had to dodge a lot of horse poop. The puppies had a great time exploring! 

Rosie wouldn’t go through but Harvey did!

He wasn’t a fan. 

Bridle Trails State Park

We crossed another state park off our list (and Gabby’s) today by hiking at Bridle Trails in Kirkland.  It was still misting a bit when we got there but we didn’t get too wet once we got onto the trail. We hiked the 1.6 mile Trillium Interpretive trail and didn’t encounter too many folks which was nice. We did run into some mud and one horse and rider. The puppies didn’t much care for the horses but they weren’t opposed to checking out the piles they left behind. Luckily, we were able to keep them out of most of those. After the hike we had some yummy sandwiches at Sarducci’s and boba tea at DIY Tea Lab before heading home. It was a fun morning!

So many smells!!

Harvey hates the car.  His sad face. 

Harvey is not amused. 

Wilkeson Volksmarch #6

Today we completed our 6th volksmarch of the year.  It was also Harvey’s first ever volksmarch.  We started in the little town of Wilkeson and did 5k on the Foothills rails-to-trails system. Part of it was paved but most was unpaved in the woods which was unexpected; it was also quite hilly. The puppies were happy to explore a new area. We enjoyed the beautiful fall weather and were also super excited to get our photo with the volksmarching flag which has been a bit elusive this year! 

At the 5k turnaround. 

Bainbridge Island

Gabby and I had a great time today exploring Bainbridge Island.  We took the ferry over from Seattle and spent about 3 hours wandering around downtown through all the cute shops. We also enjoyed some yummy sandwiches for lunch and ice cream at Mora for dessert.  I also may have bought a ton of dog treats at a local pet shop. 

We took the Tacoma to Bainbridge. 

Landing in Bainbridge 

I got a very tart lemon sorbet and Gabby got blackberry ice cream. 

The Walla Walla carried us back to Seattle. 

Tacoma Defiance Soccer Game

Corey was able to score us some free tickets from her employer to the Tacoma Defiance game on Sunday.  They are the farm team for the Seattle Sounders and play at Cheney Stadium.  We hadn't been to a live sporting event since 2019 so we were super excited to go!  Also, the tickets were club level, so they included free food & drink which was awesome. Our seats were right behind what would be home plate when the Rainiers are playing.   It was a fun game, even though we ended up losing 3-1 to the Phoenix Rising.  

Our seats were cushioned, so that made it much more comfortable!

Enjoying our free popcorn & peanuts!

Portland and Hike at Beacon Rock

I had a free Marriott hotel night that needed to be used up, so the kids took it to stay one night in Portland on Saturday.  They drove down in the morning then did a few things in town including going to the farmer's market and Powell Books.  Then on Sunday morning they drove over to do the hike at Beacon Rock before heading home.  They had a great time!  Here are some pictures Gabby shared with me. 

Chinatown gate

Gabby got this sweatshirt at the farmer's market.

Mexican for dinner.

The infamous Gabby Grimace!