24 July 2014

Visiting Three Festivals in One Day

During Portland's glorious summers, there's something going on every weekend. Sometimes there's several things all at once and you have to try to cram in everything. On Saturday, Mr. N and I were out and about the entire day running from one event to another.

After his training class, we went to the Oregon Berry Festival. I've gone to the festival every year since we moved to Portland because I could happily live off berries. After tasting various berry liqueurs, jellies, and other berry products, I bought a berry galette from Bakeshop to take home.

Mr. N is not berry-inclined but he accepted a sample of goat cheese. And then he met the biggest berry of them all!


Our next stop was Furever Pets which was hosting a pet fair with various rescues and vendors. Mr. N got a ridiculous amount of treats (I saved some for later) and petting from the booths we visited.

Ruffwear had a booth and I talked to them about their sizing for small dogs and how Mr. N's xxs harness is still a little too big. My treat bag that I had because of class that morning is a Ruffwear product (they don't make it anymore) and they took a picture of it with Mr. N to show their co-workers.

There was also this company that instead of traditional daycare will take your dog on off-leash hikes. Mr. N might like it if he weren't such a velcro dog. Seems like it would be a good option for high energy dogs though. And the staff are all certified trainers.

Someone at the store asked if Mr. N was also on sale for five dollars to which I replied his upkeep is a lot more than that monthly!



We were home just long enough for me to shower and eat a belated lunch and then we were off to our third festival of the day, The Cathedral Park Jazz Festival. It is the oldest continuous free jazz festival west of the Mississippi River.

Mr. N is not a jazz connoisseur and wanted to wander about saying hello to the neighboring blanket people but he eventually settled down. I took him for a walk around the park during a break between sets and we ran into a cat on a leash. Mr. N was very excited but I thought it best not to let him meet the cat.





When we got home, he didn't want to go in and wanted to go for a walk. Crazy boy. It's like I did nothing with him all day!

28 comments:

  1. That is a busy PDX day! Those off-leash adventure companies scare me... I know two people who permanently lost their dogs on hikes with companies like that. What is wrong with on-leash adventures? Even high energy dogs like Mr. N (and Wilhelm) don't get worn out whether the leash is on or off so I say stay on the safe side!

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    1. It's horrible that those people lost their dogs. I most likely wouldn't send Mr. N because I don't know if he would enjoy himself without me plus he doesn't always think he has to listen to people who are not me.
      I do take Mr. N off leash hiking occasionally though. It tires him out "more" than leash hikes. He enjoys getting to explore and he's velcro enough so that he will check in if he goes more than a certain distance. I would not take a husky off-leash hiking though!

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  2. That's a lot of festivals Mr. N! Looks like you had a fantastic time.

    Lots of Woofs from Earl and I at Earl's World!

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  3. Busy day! That would have wiped Rita out! That "off-leash" hiking thing is a bit disturbing. Since I would never hike w/ Rita off leash, I'd hate to come upon a group of off-leash dogs. And aren't there leash laws there? Seems kinda odd. I wouldn't trust my dog with a place that was going to let him/her off leash.

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    1. They take them either to the dog parks in the city or to another park that is off-leash outside the city that is huge (a thousand acres).

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  4. The picture with the berry made me smile. :)

    I am not sure I would like someone to take my dog on off leash hikes. I think that would make me a bit nervous. I guess if the person knew the dog and had trained the dog, then maybe. I know we have left our dogs with retriever trainers so it should not be that different, but with retriever training they are also boarded.

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  5. What a great day! Sounds like something we'd love to do!

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  6. What a fun day! I imagine you were more tired than Mr. N. What does it take to wear him out? :)
    Jan, Wag 'n Woof Pets

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    1. I think it generally takes an hour or so of doing things for him to settle. As for wearing him out? No idea. We went hiking for five hours once and he wanted to keep walking.

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  7. Looks like it was a great day out. Love the sound of the doggy daycare but out yonder into the wild....wonder how they manage to do it offleash - must be awesome trainers :)
    Thanks for sharing your day

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  8. Wow! That sounds like a busy day. Barley and I don't get to enjoy festivals together since she doesn't do well with kids or other dogs, but the Geneva Grape Jamboree is in our neighborhood every September, so we usually take a really early morning walk both days it's going on so that she can enjoy the smells of all the fair food cooking and get some love from the vendors who are setting up. Then I go back and enjoy the festival with my friends while she naps :) Glad Mr. N got to have such fun adventures!

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  9. Wow! Lots to do! We have lots of events in NYC that I would love to bring Henry to, but his reactivity just makes me too nervous. I'm impressed with how well Mr. N does!

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  10. Oh what a brilliant day! I love the idea of a berry festival and yeah I am with you on berry diet YUM!!!

    I can't believe Mr N STILL wanted a walk after three festivals in ONE DAY *eyeroll* that guy has massive energy!!!

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  11. Three festivals in one day - that's just greedy. I'm joking, they sound like great events and you look like you had wonderful time. That's what it's all about.

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  12. Sounds like the perfect (though busy) summer day. I could live off berries, too.

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  13. Mr. N, you sure do get around! You're so lucky to live in an area that has so much going on.

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  14. This makes me excited for summer! LOL. Sounds like you had a blast that day!

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  15. Wow! What a really fun day! I love having dog days like Mr. N had. I'd be curious about that off-leash hike...I know my dog training insurance clearly states a dog must be confined at all times. Just a little FYI. ;)

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  16. We will have to meet up in Portland - we would love to snuggle Mr. N!! Summper is the best in the PNW!

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  17. What fun! Mr. N looks very happy in that last photo. The goat cheese must have been really tasty. :) I'm sure he was spoiled throughout the whole day.
    -Purrs from your friends at www.PlayfulKitty.net

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  18. Mr. N certainly gets around! I'm glad he enjoyed meeting his public at the festival. He really has boundless energy doesn't he? Adorable photos!
    Love & Biscuits,
    Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them

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  19. Wow. Summer feels like such a long time ago - and the berry festival looks awesome. And I have not been to the jazz festival but it looks like so much FUN. I'll add to the list for this summer! Please let it come soon!

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  20. Wow what a great day, I love those pet fairs as it is great to see what new treats are on the market plus the samples makes it easier to see what she will like and not like and thus be not stuck with packages of treats.
    I have Jazz going on a lot of the time in the house as I love it and its soothing so I think LOL likes it too, she sleeps and as for blanket hopping well welcome to Layla's world as many times when we are in the park and people have blankets she blanket hops all happy and thank goodness everyone is great about it. I have seen cats on leashes but like you keep her away

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  21. Mr. N must have enjoyed every moment of his busy day! I bet dogs love going on a hike instead of traditional doggy day care.

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  22. Wow! What a busy day! I'm sure my dogs would be tired after all that activity.

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