Dec 29th Summit Park and Daly adventures.

Aloha,
Rain? Are you kidding me?? Don't get me wrong, I like rain, but in December?? Not too happy about it but we made the best of it and tried to stay high and in the snow. On our way up the trail in Summit Park we ran into the evil mud, it's not supposed to be the mud season!! What is going on Mother?? We all need to do some serious snow dancing and praying for that white magic to fall so we can get this winter started.
Daly was still ok with mostly snow covered trails but that won't last long if this keeps up!
A friend posted on Face book that the bike riding is better than the skiing and I believe it so my family is headed south for the winter to do just that, and maybe jump on the SUP board for a few strokes.
HAPPY NEW YEARS TO EVERYONE!! LET US ALL DO SOME GOOD THIS NEXT YEAR FOR OUR FAMILIES, FRIENDS, NEIGHBORS, THOSE IN NEED AND MOTHER EARTH.
PEACE AND LOVE
Schwaby

Dec 28th Guard road T&G stroll

Aloha,
Taking a walk up the Guard Road is a nice way to finish the day so Roxy, Dryfus and I did just that. Good place to clear ones head.
Peace
Schwaby

Dec 28th adventure into the Colony

Aloha,
Wednesdays adventure was in the Colony where you have to know someone to go there, mahalo to Roxy. You could go if you book trips through Red Pine Adventures and maybe All Seasons Adventures. It is a snowmobilers paradise and not a bad place to take a ski or snowshoe adventure and run the heck out of your dogs. Roxy, Ikar and Ivan were jazzed to be there and so was I! As you can see, Ikar and Ivan were makin" tracks and even getting face shots. What skis up, must ski down, and we hauled ass on the way down. What a blast!!
Tip of the day. When skiing or doing an activity like this use the words "out, watch out or move" when you are flying down the hill. This will make the dogs aware of where you are so as not to jump in front or tackle you. Been there done that, not a pretty sight. Get in front of them if you can, dogs love speed!!

Dec 27th adventures

Aloha,
A lost dog with a happy ending today. I was listening to KPCW like I do everyday and heard that a friends six month old Vizsla was lost the day before in Round Valley. I called Wriggly's owner and offered to take my pack and look for him. With a silent prayer to god and help from my dogs we found him 20 minutes into our hike, it was an amazing feeling and brought a smile to my dogs and my face and tears to the owners. I am happy to say that Wriggly is doing well and 2011 came to a happy close.
If you happen to lose your dog, here are a couple tips. First, do not panic, remember your energy feeds into the dog. Secondly, stay where you are and calmly call your dog then back track to where you lost him. Third, go back to the starting point of your hike, many dogs will return to your vehicle or the beginning point of the hike. Lastly, call KPCW or go on their website kpcw.org lost and found. Also, having a little faith can go a long way:)
Peace and good karma
Schwaby

Dec 26th adventures

Aloha,
Two great places to go right now are Pinebrook and Daly Canyon for hiking. Most of the trails are snow covered and beautiful.
Tip of the day. If you are out with your dogs or just by yourself on the trails and a pack of dogs or even one dogs is charging towards you, a good thing to do is stand tall and be calm. Say "out" or "Stop" with one or both hands in a stop signal just like a traffic cop. Try to use a calm assertive voice. Now, if you are on the other side of things-your dogs are the ones charging, simply say my dogs are nice or friendly. This is not only telling the other person and their dogs, but also your dogs that everything is cool and that we just want to say hello. The worst thing you can do is yell at your dogs and be stressed or fearful, dogs are very in tuned with our energy.
Peace. Schwaby

Dec 23rd Grandeur Peak adventure

Aloha Friday
Some good friends of mine in SLC hike to Grandeur peak regularly with their dogs and suggested it to me. I was down town on this beautiful sunny day doing some Christmas shopping and decided to give it a go not knowing how steep and long this hike really was to the top. Roxy, Dryfus and my good friends dog Cooper and me began the journey of this dog friendly mile and a half adventure with a vertical gain of about 2500 feet. We were planning on a loop and not going to the peak due to time but as we got closer we just kept climbing and the dogs were feeling good, especially Cooper who kept urging us to keep going, for he had been there numerous times. Stopping for a snack, looking at the peak across a snowy field, I contemplated the bid for the summit. I figured we would go another ten minutes, something I said a time or two on the way up this tough ascent, yet this time I was right and we made it! 8,000 feet according to my watch, and it felt soooo good!! We met some locals and their dogs who had come up from Millcreek, a much easier and shorter climb I was told. They advised us to go back the way we came which was the harder part of the climb but twice as fast, one hour. All said and triumphed, 3 BIG hours of fun and adventure. I am still a bit sore today and still smiling. Life is good:)
Merry Christmas everyone. Peace and love...
Schwaby

Dec 22nd adventures

Aloha
PC hill was really nice with Roxy, D-bear, Ikar and Reo. We hiked up to the huge PC on this beautiful day then ran down to the soccer field for some serious running and playing. That Reo is a fast one with Ikar right on his tail.
Our second hike was up Iron Mountain where we saw another moose, they are all over Park City lately and always a welcome sight and the views up top aren't bad either. This hike is a popular one and the trail has decent coverage and feels like winter.
Peace. Schwaby

Dec 21st Winter Solstice Adventure

Aloha,
Happy Winter Solstice to everyone! It just gets brighter and brighter from her on out!! Today in Summit park we saw two moose, lots of squirrels with Roxy thinking she was a cat walking on logs hoping her little friends would come out to play and slippery trails. We call it dust on crust-icey base with a thin layer of new snow on top, I could of used my hiking crampons because I almost fell on my bum bum many times. It was still beautiful and always great to be in the forest with all the wildlife and huge trees, one of our favorite places in PC to play in. Roxy, Bodi Ikar and Ivan were diggin' it too ,frolicking through the new snow for two fun filled hours. Summit Park is another sweet spot for hiking right now and I recommend bringing your cat tracks for traction but leave the skis and boards home, there is just not enough of the white stuff yet, it will be here my friends, patients!
Peace. Schwaby

Dec 20 Empire Pass adventure

Aloha,
Empire pass is always a good time and so many ways to venture out once you get to the first saddle. We were on our second hike with Dryfus and Delila Bear joining us so we decided to take it easy and stay on the road. The locals keep snow on the road for snowmobiles, hikers & snow riders through most of the season. A big MAHALO to you all that live in Brighton Estates for letting us play in your back yard. And to all of us that play here- please respect those people that live here so we can continue to use this amazing place. The road is covered for the most part considering the lack of snow fall so far this year so the hiking is sweet but the turns for all you snow riders is thin and just not worth it yet, COME ON SNOW!!
Peace. Schwaby

Dec 20 Silver Creek adventure

Aloha,
We had not been to the Silver Creek trail in quite some time and for most of these dogs I'm guessing their first time. This is a great trail in town with lots of water in the summer with many beaver ponds, all of them were frozen on this day though and the dogs had a blast. A new pack member joined us today and his name is Brooks. He is a handsome Yellow Lab and as you can see loves to play and run with everybody and fit right in. Welcome Brooks and his family to Schwaby Dogs Adventure Academy! We worked on recall, leave it-when play got too rowdy, walk behind, stop, let's go and load up with Brooks. Oh, and go around-when passing me instead of running into me. Lots of words folks. Give every action your dog does a word.
Peace. Schwaby

Dec 19th King Road, Town Loop trails

Aloha,
The Second adventure of this cold sunny day took us on the Town loop, up the old King road mine trail and through the woods of Grave Digger. This is bitchin' trail to hike and ride, and is still good right now for hiking with regular boots as there is only an inch or two of snow on it. Jasper Roxy and Reo were racing through smelling moose elk deer and I'm sure many others. We linked up to the official King road that leads up to the PCMR maintenance shop and the RACE was on! A tight start with some jostling at the starting line and a close finish with Jasper victorious!! The face says it all...
Life is good:) S-

Dec 19th Round Valley & Lost Prospector adventures

Aloha,
Another BEAUTIFUL day in PC with soaring hawks and fantastic and fun dogs! Round valley was still frozen and great for bike riding, unfortunately you skiers just have to wait. Riding in December? That's just CRAZY!! It actually looked super fun and I'm itching to saddle up, yeehaa!! We ran into only two dogs and my pack was awesome, our rookies are coming along nicely and improving everyday. Way to go Ikar and Ivan, Good Job!
Skipping over to the third hike of the day, we started on Gamble Oaks trail (last two pics with Dryfus Roxy & Reo) and linked up to the LP trail (lost Prospector). Some dirt some snow and still good hiking with Reo and Roxy going for a hat trick of hikes and Dryfus with fresh legs and fired up to be out! These three play so well together and always have a blast. This last pick was taken just before the sun set over the hill. Nice color! Good Dogs!
Check out the second hike next.
Be merry..Michael

Dec 16th Adventure

Aloha Friday,
This tundra of man made snow was a site to see in Daly Canyon. It really was very cool, Roxy and Dryfus agreed. They were rolling sprinting and laughing only like dogs can do....It was like happy children playing from the heart. Life is good.
Peace. Schwaby