Took some time to hike a neighborhood park: John McLaren Park!

Joey and I have never made if very far into the park, because Joey would tire out before we even crossed the bridge. Today we started with Joey in the backpack and didn’t let him out until we started the trail.

Here is where we started the Philosopher’s Way trail.

Here he is posing on a stone. There are trail markers throughout the trail with little arrows so you know which way to go. These were charming and placed in highly visible places.

We’d set him down and he would wander slowly and reluctantly. Sometimes we would get distracted and lose sight of Joey. We all thought about the seen in The Proposal when their dog was snatched by a hawk. We had to make an effort to remember he was on the ground!

When we needed to move quickly, we would pick him up and carry him.

We came upon this DOG LAKE! 5 dogs were playing in the lake, chasing a stick across the water. We HAD NO IDEA there was a dog lake in this park! It was such a pleasant surprise!

An owner with a new Husky was teaching her the water is safe to go into. The dog was so timid the tennis ball was almost caught out in the water!

It was such a pleasant surprise, we hung out here by the dogs, ducks, and sun for a break. We had to drag ourselves away.

One of the few times Joey was down and keeping up with my friends and I. Part of John McLaren park allows you to walk your dog off-leash. There are signs warning owners to leash aggressive dogs. The result is a bunch of friendly dogs running around greeting people and each other!

Almost to the blue water tower. This is how Joey would hang in his backpack.

I LOVE carrying Joey in this backpack! We run errands like this and go on hikes. We found it on Amazon less than $20!

When Joey is tired of people and sights, he’ll duck into the backpack and curl up.  He gets to decide when he’s had enough.

Only down side is not being able to carry anything else. NOTHING ELSE will fit in this backpack!

Here we are! Joey surprisingly enjoys the strong winds.

The hike was gorgeous and such a hideaway from the rest of the world. At certain points of the hike we would be engulfed in redwoods, then the next turn we are in someone’s backyard and can see cars on the street through the trees.

It was such a joy! So happy to be exploring the neighborhood park finally.