CDT: The Sad News and the Good News

Our 12-year-old chocolate lab, Kerbie, passed away in early October from lung cancer. Never smoked a day in her life, go figure.

She was our hiking, training and camping partner for many years and will be sorely missed. What a full life this good old dog had in her 12 years! And the critters she had the opportunity to chase or be chased by – deer, rabbits, squirrels. chipmunks, coyotes, porcupines, cows, horses, lizards, other dogs, bobcats, kitty cats, quail, kangaroos, possums and butterflies just to name a few. She even survived a rattlesnake bite while I was on the PCT in 2013.

Although still grieving, we started thinking about another dog. So meet Ellie, our new 7-month-old black lab! It’s a joy to have this sweet puppy but all that dog training begins again!

Speaking of training, I’m starting to step up the distance and will start hitting the pool and weight room soon. We are heading to Death Valley in January and have several hikes planned.

Happy Holidays!