San Rafael to Tahoe

 On May 4, we left Beluga in Verdi, Nevada and drove the jeep west, to San Rafael, California, to give Taos back to Guide Dogs for the Blind.    They'll check him out carefully, both physically and mentally, and then begin his formal Guide Dog training.    We look forward to updates regarding his training progress soon. 

  It was a hard thing to do, even though we've walked that path many times before.       

jumping out of our lives and into his destiny

Taos was such an integral part of our lives for 14 months; our days revolved around his care, his training, his happiness.      Not having him with us made a gaping hole in our routines and, to try and break those habits, we decided to stay away from Beluga for a few days and do some solo exploration.     No checking out restaurants to see if they had a table that would be large enough to fit a huge yellow dog, 

no hurrying back to Beluga so he wouldn't be alone very long, 

no finding pet stores for the right kind of food and treats, no filling pockets with kibble before we set off for the day, no thoughts of unique things and/or places to show/teach him, etc. 

shhhh, don't tell

Dave made it rain - Taos doesn't like rain.....

We stayed in San Raphael for two days and then moved to the sweet little town of Glenn Ellen, smack in California's wine country.    Drowning our sorrows perhaps?  

We took a tour of the beautiful Guide Dogs for the Blind campus the next day. 

oh Dave.....

 It was a very small tour, just us (puppy raisers), friends Rod and Lisa (people with no knowledge of guide dog life and training), and a young woman with her visually impaired 5 year old girl who was on the wait list for a released guide dog candidate a K-9 buddy.

To be honest, it wasn't the best tour.   We already knew most of what we'd see, the little girl's family did also, so our tour guide, while very sweet and informative, spent the majority of her time answering our very specific questions.   I'm afraid Rod and Lisa didn't get much out of it.   The little girl was precious and so excited to be able to actually walk with and touch a real dog.   The tour guide went out of her way to accommodate her enthusiasm, and sweet Blaine was so very patient with her.

After the tour we enjoyed a very good lunch at Sol Food (Puerto Rican cuisine) with Rod and Lisa before they returned to their home in Walnut Creek.     Before we parted company, however, they offered us the use of their lovely vacation home at Lake Tahoe!     Who could resist that?     So, after doing a bit of exploring the San Rafael area, and a few days of wine tasting in Glen Ellen, we took them up on their generous offer and spent a few days "bumming it" at the big lake!

tunnel of trees opening up to.....

this!

On the way to our next stop in wine country, we stopped at Sonoma Raceway and gave ourselves an unguided tour of the empty track.   Its huge and it's rolling hills were kept well-manicured by sheep!

Glen Ellen was a delightful little town with small, delicious restaurants, beautiful landscapes, flowers everywhere and great wineries.    We stayed at Olea Hotel, set in the quiet hills in town, ate and drank and read and slept. 

A French bakery run by the married couple, Chef Pascal and his wife Pascale!  Of course we stopped!

you know what he's thinking, don't you.....

 

oh Dave....

entrance to one of two "caves" at Kunde Winery

lunch at Salt and Stone

Feeling happy and rejuvenated, we left Glen Ellen, bound for Lake Tahoe.  Our son, Jesse, lived in Truckee years ago.   As a result, we got to spend some time there and in the Tahoe area, but it's been a while.

Rod and Lisa's home was on a quiet, hilly street.   Huge windows, stone fireplace, and all the amenities we didn't even know we'd need.     Even a private hot tub on the main bedroom's porch!    What did we do to deserve this!  

second cup seats

the flower filcher arrives with daffodils

We drove around the lake one day, went up to Truckee and Donner Lake another, second cup and happy hour outside under the fragrant pines,  ate great meals lakeside and just enjoyed our beautiful surroundings and talked about how lucky and grateful we were.      Just exactly what we needed.   How did you know, Rod?

Cave Rock

Donner Lake

Donner Summit

Our break in routine was a lovely, quiet, recentering.    We left Tahoe City and returned to Verdi, NV and Beluga.    After a day of  laundry and getting Beluga ready to go, we left to continue our northward trek.      I'll tell you about that later, this blog has gotten way too long!    Stay tuned.

But.....here's Annie!