Climbing dog is not an East County martial art

I appreciate my hairy pals adapting to a new trail adventure today. We climbed a trail frequently used by rock climbers in Mission Trails park. Most of the time, my dog-walking time is spent on the easier trail down and along the San Diego River. ( In the picture background, the Visitor Center Loop trail left to right descends and goes southwest behind the Visitor Center.)

When a dog walk around the neighborhood seemed mundane for a Tuesday, Comet, Dexter and I were ready for a challenge. Take a more challenging path. Most challenging for this old goat? Following the leash law in the county park. The Climber’s Loop trail was steep but it was a quick ascent with Dexter bounding up the rocks and steps at the switchbacks.

The sign just off the road said there was no access to the summit of Kwaay Paay (one of our favorite, though more strenuous, hikes) from our route. Which was fine for Comet and me as I was not planning to hike to the north end of the park and then walk all the way back to our car. I figure that this adventure hour was enough to give all of us a decent cardio workout for the day.

As for getting back down the trail,  let’s just say I was not going to argue any finer point about dogs and leash ordinances, over skinned knees or worse.