Typist: Bethany
When I was setting up camp (for the second time) at  Lake Mead, Nevada, a woman walked by and joked "wow, can I camp with you? That's quite a tent." In Moab, a neighboring camper, watched me set up camp and queried "are you expecting ten more people?" As I unloaded the van in Mt. Shasta, California, a woman walked by and said "who are you with all this stuff?" My answer to all of them was that I am traveling with three dogs and a parrot. We need a lot of space, hence my "ten more people" tent and, yes, a lot of "stuff."

Whenever we return from any of our pet friendly road trips or camping adventures, I always get a ton of e-mails asking what I bring for the pets and how I do it. In answer to how I do it, I am very organized. Very. Obsessively so, to be honest. There is a place for everything and everything in it's place. Why? If I am running behind schedule or something doesn't go as planned on a road trip, I have to care for the pets. Immediately. I cannot wonder where a dish is or dig for the food scoop. (Packing in as many clear bins as possible helps.) I want our perfect first aid kit faultlessly packed and ready to use! Long road trips and camping with pets is more like a vacation and less stressful when the pets can be easily made happy. I can make them (and myself and everyone for miles around) contented faster if I can quickly find the stuff they need. And that brings me back to all the stuff. What do I bring?

I proudly admit that I am a glamper (glamour camper.) I have pillows and an air mattress. I have never used the tent heater but it is nice to have it along just in case. I always bring a small folding table for use at camp but also to ease van unloading or rest stop pet feedings. The rechargeable battery powered fans have come in handy more times than I can count. We wouldn't have slept a wink in our small tent in Iowa or Nebraska last spring if I hadn't hung a fan from the ceiling.

I don't as proudly admit that I constantly over pack for the dogs. I barely opened the dogs spare stuff bin on our cross country or southwest road trips. However, I would rather have too many extra leashes than none. And when traveling with pets, there is no way to bring too many paper towels, rags and blankets. If there is room in a bin or under a seat, stuff another rag in!

The dogs rode in their soft crates on last years cross country trip but with a bird along on our road trip to the Southwest, I couldn't also fit three dog crates into the van. So I buckled the dogs in with their harnesses and Leo cruised in his seat belted Popemobile. The last of the important stuff, like my purse, Umbilical Belt, PoopPac and the dogs bug repellent, fit up front. Jason insisted that I leave the kitchen sink at home with him and cat Amelia. And without that, I just don't think I had all that much stuff. Do you?

So besides not bringing the kitchen sink, how did I do on packing? Did I remember everything? What do you bring on camping trips with pets? What essentials do you take on long road trips?

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Typist: Bethany
It was a beautiful, sunny first day of spring in Seattle yesterday. But I packed up the car and the dogs and drove to snowy Snoqualmie Pass. Celebrating the Spring equinox snowshoeing with the dogs seemed like a perfect way to bid farewell to an odd winter and welcome a new season. We had such a strange winter in the mountains of our part of the Pacific Northwest. There was unseasonably early snow that washed away with a mass of warm rain. Then we had a long cold but extremely dry spell. And eventually we had so much snow in such a short period of time that avalanches were dangerously prevalent. So now that the avalanche and road closure risks have lessened, it seemed time for Wilhelm, Brychwyn, Huxley and I to spend some time in the mountains. Even if it was the first day of spring.

Having been over a year since I had last packed up to take the dogs snowshoeing, I was surprised how quickly I was able to gather up our gear. Most of what we brought on our spring snowshoe is similar to what we'd bring on any car adventure, so it was almost all ready to roll. Here's what I brought:

Since this was our first snowshoe trip of the year, we went to a trail we know fairly well. I parked at the base of the Silver Fir chairlift at Snoqualmie Pass and followed the snowshoe trail upward. The trail winds along the east side of Hyak Creek, east of the Silver Fir chairlift. On the weekends, these woods are filled with alpine and Nordic skiers as well as snowshoers but yesterday we had the whole forest to ourselves. When we arrived at the parking lot and started our trek it was peacefully snowing. By the time we reluctantly left, the sun was shining and the sky was sapphire blue. This was truly a perfect spring day in the mountains of Cascadia.

Happy Spring!