Monday Mischief #33 - Hiking with the Cascadian Nomads and Sage (aka Canine Caravan)

One, two... five dogs? No, I didn't forget how to count. Mr. N and Sage are good hiking buddies but last Saturday, we had some very special guests join us. Cascadian Nomads stopped in Portland on their last leg of their epic trip to join us for a hike in Forest Park. With all five dogs (Mr. N, Sage, Wilhelm, Brychwyn and Huxley), it was quite the canine caravan.

We took them over to a nearby school yard to introduce them off-leash before the hike. Out of four potential playmates, who does Mr. N pick? The biggest dog of course. He and Huxley chased each other around.


After their meet and greet, we headed over to the Maple Trail in Forest Park which is one of the nation's largest urban forests and the "crown jewel" of Portland's park system.

I don't know what was here but it must have smelled really good to the dogs. They were all crowding to get a sniff.


The trail was a little overgrown in places but Mr. N forged ahead.


We reached the summit which gave us a peek at Portland's cityscape.


We took a break for water and pictures. Notice how everyone has their tongues sticking out except for Mr. N. Not having a thick (and dark) coat helps in the summer! Come winter though, he's going to want some of Huxley's fluff.




The trail was nice and secluded. We didn't run into anyone else except for one biker and a couple of people at the entrance.


Good thing too because between the eight of us, there was hardly any room left on the trail.


Mr. N is ready to lead the way back. He always wants to walk in the lead position and will tell Sage (or other dogs) off if he thinks they're about to usurp his position.




He's very bossy. Especially for someone who looks like a stuffed animal. Or an anime character. Ginormous round eyes, button nose and soft face.


Mr. N surveying his kingdom from his "throne." I didn't get a picture of it but the other bloggers took some photos of him with his "subjects."


Mr. N wondering why everyone else is being a slowpoke. He wants to go, go, go!


After the hike, the dogs got to meet Leo, the Nomads' cockatoo. I was a little nervous about it because Mr. N has considerable prey drive and I wasn't sure how he would react. Thankfully, he did not try anything! He got up on his hind legs to sniff Leo and then lost interest.

But when Sage met Leo and tried to jump towards him, Mr. N was not pleased. He saw Leo first therefore Leo was his and paws off! 

Leo entertaining the non-canine population with his tricks. 

We parted ways after that. The Cascadian Nomads were anxious to get back to their abode before dark and I had to brush all the grass seeds out of Mr. N. Sage was also ornamented with various pieces of greenery. 

It was lovely seeing the Nomads again and meeting Leo (I'd met Bethany and the dogs before but Mr. N wasn't there) and we hope to see them again soon! And we'll be seeing Sage very soon...