Friday, December 26, 2008

Our much awaited hiking trip..

The Coonster, exhausted but happy!
Michelle and the Coonster leading the pack
Sir Naughty, totally zonked out
Michelle giving the Coonster a treat
At the beginning of the ascend...

Okay, here's the continuation of my Xmas Day story. I woke up at 7:45am feeling like shit. My mouth was
tasting rather funny and the tummy wasn't feeling that great too.The kidz are lying on the living room, waiting. It's Christmas morning and the weather outside was rather
cloudy.So, I tought with the sleep I can salvage, I could restore my energy from last night's wine overdose. Rule of
thumb, if you drink on an empty stomach, your tend to absorb the alcohol faster.In my case, I made it home and hit the sack around midnight. At about 10am, I went to shower and started
packing for the hike I promised my wife.Our destination was Gasing Hill in Section 5, Petaling Jaya. We haven't been here for nearly two years.
Our last hike was a medium-difficulty trip to the watershed in this hilly area.After packing breakfast from McDonals at SS14, we drove straight to the hill. At 11:00am, it was easy to
find parking space.We saw a few dog lovers who are already there with their pedigree dogs. Sir Naughty was rather edgy
when a mongrel came to inspect the scene.Our kidz were outfitted with the Ruffwear Approach (Queenie) and Palisades (Sir Naughty) dog backpacks
- which are two of the best outdoor dog luggage around.My wife paid a hefty sum to get these doggy goodies from Melbourne, Australia and after taking a closer
look at the pack system, it was money well-spent.I found a slight defect on Naughty's pack. It's hydration bladder was leaking and on a full load, each
bladder weights nearly one kilogramme.Sir Naughty had the ardous task of hauling drinking water in his pack while Queenie had the lighter chore
of transporting poo bags, a trowel, their drinking bowl and some doggie treats.The trek from Jalan Tanjong 5./4 entrance took about 10-minutes to reach the half-way mark which is an
ascend to the hill's observation tower.I call this the ball-buster climb because there are no even ground. Its slope all the way with clay ladders.
Queenie, which is the larger of the Siberian Husky we had, manouvered the trail with ease while Sir
Naughty struggled with his load.He was overexerting by dragging me up the slopes. Michelle and I found the ascend rather tough as the
dogs pulled all the way.About 20-minutes into our hike, we reached a cleared path leading to the observation tower. The towering
structure that eclipsed our view came in plain sight.I can see Queenie barely panting. Michelle anchored her at the base of a platform, while I removed
Naughty's backpack.He seem zonked out and after emptying the hydration bladder, my boy licked up the bowl like a thirsty
camel. Within seconds, he puked out the water. Queenie on the other hand, turned out the be stronger dog. We
chilled out at the peak for about 20-minutes before hitting the route out.Again, this was a descend down the hill. Over the years, the weather had caused erosion on parts of this
trail. The final descent was a steep drop. Most of the staircases are gone. Lucky for us, we brought our hiking
staff which helped.Our dogs managed their packs very well. Even with the faulty hydration bladder, Naughty made it down
safe. At the entrance of the hill, we came across some middle-aged men. They paused when our dogs made
their way out and one of them was telling the other that this was the first time he saw Siberian Huskies with
backpacks on the trail.On the whole, we manage pretty well despite being late. The dogs need to adjust to their new packs and I
think that some day trips to the nearest trail and I think next year, we will see more action!

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