My Three Peaks Challenge

Last June, I joined a group of hiking enthusiasts for a three day climb of Britain's three tallest peaks, Snowdon, Scafell Pike, and Ben Nevis, as part of the Three Peaks Challenge.

The gruelling trip left me with a sore knee and a limp in one leg, as well as a stack of amazing photos, money rose for a friends charity, and a bunch of new friends promising future hiking adventures.

I've written an article on Yuppee that explains more.

http://www.yuppee.com/2012/12/16/three-peaks-challenge-a-scenic-pace/

An Amesbury Adventure

The river Avon at same height as footpath

I passed the pub later than I expected. Smoke poured into the spittle of rain that encouraged me to stop and rest my feet, and I might have listened, had I not wasted 40 minutes getting lost. I soldiered on into the ever darkening sky to reach my car before dark, my better judgement howling in my ear. That's when the heavens opened...

After rattling on about wolves in the by gone days of Wild Spirit, I decided it was time for a new adventure, a challenge, something I could sink my teeth into, and rested on...

...hiking in England.

That's not to say it's not been a challenge. I completed Three Peaks in June after plenty of warm up walks in the Peak District and often like to stop en-route to try local ales and take pictures. My latest walk, however, did not offer much time to stop and smell the roses.

I started in Amesbury, a small town off the A303 on the way to Stonehenge. I over-shot the tiny lane to the recreation center but eventually found the car-park as indicated in my Wiltshire walker's guide. I often use such books to explore new areas as the routes are clearly laid out and easy to follow. Or so I thought.

I took the books advice to follow a sign to the near by village of Durnford, not realizing it led in a completely different direction to the provided map. After encountering a rather bemused farmer, I turned back to discover the correct sign hidden in the bushes. Ah. What's worse, on following the sign, I discovered my detour led within a-stones-throw of the right path, and I needn't of gone back.

A picturesque farmhouse near Durnford

Despite the false start, the walk led past Normanton Down House and up to views over Stonehenge. It was completely flooded in sections. One area of marshland was at the same level as the adjoining river Avon, and later, a brave Horse Rider attempted to lead her companion over a waterlogged bridle path. How glad I chose my trusty Wild Spirit work-boots over my old leaky ones.

I made good time in the end, completing the six and a half miles in the advised three hours, which, if we include the 40 minute detour isn't half bad. I do wish I'd taken it a bit slower and popped in to explore the local ales on offer at the quaint looking Black Horse in Durnford, and taken a few more snaps. It wasn't bad for a wet November walk, though next time checking both map and weather reports might make it slightly more enjoyable.

Reservation Dogs - Pilot

Although it's been two days and eight months since I got on a plane to Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary, I thought it made sense to post this video. The brief was to produce Leyton (the director of the sanctuary) the first episode of a show called 'Reservation Dogs' and I was glad to be able to finish it during my time as a volunteer. It's become a reminder of all the things I got up to whilst a volunteer at the sanctuary, and is far from perfect, but I hope to get back out there after I've finished my course and make some more. So here it is, the pilot of Reservation Dogs...

In the blink of an eye...

On the road to Rosemount

...I was back in my step dad's car, with the steering wheel on what now seemed to be the wrong side. Hearing lots of Brits complain about the security line confirmed it. I was back in sunny England. New Mexico seemed like a distance memory. A vivid dream. But unlike a dream, I felt different on awakening. Changed. I was dropped of at my sister's house in Farnborough, just outside of London, and enjoyed the home comforts of a flushing toilet and a powerful warm shower. I listened to Alan Jackson and Rascal Flatts as I did so. The country lyrics reminded me of home, and that's when I realised that my adventure had come back with me. New Mexico and Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary will always feel like a home away from home. I've learnt so much about wolves and wolf dogs, and a lot about myself. Reviewing my mission statement, I can safely say it was all I hoped for, and more. I hope to return to America for a further exploration, and possibly another stint at Wild Spirit.

So what next? That's a good question. I'm going back to study for a year, but what do I do for the next six months? I guess a job would be a good start, but I feel that any job would disappoint. I'd be working in a kitchen thinking, "where's the rotting elk meat?" Or cleaning a courtyard and wondering where all the dog poo is. Even worse, taking my bosses dog for a walk, and ending up rough and tumbling in the mud whilst the general public walk by and give me snobbish looks. I'd like to keep working with wolves, or other animals in similar need of help. To be honest, I don't know where I'll end up, but I've learnt to have faith and trust in things working out. It's exciting to think that I've learnt many new skills, especially my editing abilities (keep an eye out on WSWS YouTube videos, Res Dogs Episode 1 should be uploaded soon) and wood working skills, which I'm set to start using on my parent's new sanctuary in Salisbury.Would I do this again? In a heart beat. I never knew I liked working with animals so much, and hope to continue having involvement with animals for the rest of my life.

Well it's back to my tea and cake. Seriously, there is tea, and I bet there must be some cake lying around... 

Luna the lusting wolf

Oscar (front) and Luna (back) - She's madly in love

Once again, I was summoned by Leyton for a film project. As usual, I didn't complain. I dashed over to his office, picked up camera 1 (camera 2 was currently out of action), a fresh tape and new battery. I followed Katie and Leyton up the hill. We stopped to take a head shot before moving up to Junior's enclosure. Today, he was getting a girlfriend. Selena. He was really scared of us, so much so that we had to stop filming to let him calm down. I couldn't actually go in with Selena so had to let Leyton take the camera. We were all hoping for fireworks, but sadly, Selena got bored of him in five minutes and Junior was happy just marking his territory. There was only one hope left for romance. A lady by the name of Luna, whose been in love with her neighbor for a few years. The man she's lusting for just lost his partner and could use the company in his mourning. His name was Oscar. I was elected to go into his enclosure and leash him (as I'm one of the volunteers who walks him most often) and he might of become scared of Angel or Leyton, mainly as he may associate them with vaccinations and such like. Oscar assumed we were going for a walk and I had to actually take him down to the fence and convince him to come back around. Angel radio me to take me Oscar into Luna's pen. As Luna's is right next door to his, he almost thought he was going back to his own pen! He just walked inside, no problems at all. Leyton, Angel and Katie then came over to see if love was in the air. It was one of the most fascinating animal interactions I had ever seen. Oscar wandered around, taking in the surroundings, whilst Luna tried to illicit play. She stooped down in front of him and pounced lightly. Once, she jumped on his back and he growled at her. He probably thought she was trying to dominate him, or else he just didn't like the affection! Oscar eventually settled down and Luna left him be. Hopefully, Oscar will warm up to her, and a new romance will blossom.

My final week has been amazing. I've been doing lots of editing, and have finished the Angel ed video and am almost finished with Res Dogs, episode 1. Once they're finished and I'm home, I may have to get them up online for all to see. I went to Albuquerque on Monday with Katie and had lots of fun visiting an American Mall, going to the movies and having a nice drink in the evening. I had a spontaneous visit on Thursday, when Katie had to drive Angel in to get her car, and I went with and ended up at Applebees for lunch. We've been to Pinehill a few times, first for laundry, second for groceries. The sanctuary usually supplies them, but at the moment, we're broke. Wild Spirit Wolf Sanctuary is in need of donations to continue caring for it's wolves and wolf dogs. Ed has also brought his puppies in an attempt to get them adopted. They're so cute, one was adopted on the first tour on the first day he arrived! I took Peanut home one night too, I so wish I could adopt one of these dogs!

Tomorrow we're having a fire outside the volunteer kitchen and then on Monday, a farewell meal at Ancient Way. It's going to be sad leaving all of this behind, but I feel I will be back, and know that the things I've learnt will stay with me forever. I'm all for supporting wild wolf populations and against the breeding of captive bred wolves. I hope that in my next adventure, in six months time, that I can have some involvement with wolves. Education is our only tool. I hope that all who have been following this blog can at least understand why breding these animals for pets is such bad news. If you have any interest in supporting this course, visit the Wild Spirit website (posted at the top of this page) and see if there is anyway you can help. Also, the website for the pod casts is finally finished. If you've enjoyed this blog, follow, thepawedcast.com for ramblings from Wolf Daddy, Leyton J Cougar (see sidebar for the link).

Loss of a loved one

I was in the wolf kitchen when it happened. I'd been awaiting Leyton's arrival so I could go up the hill and see her, but he hadn't arrived. Her death was announced on the radio. I felt a sudden sadness for Gaia, she was a lovely animal. Leyton arrived with the video camera and sent me up to get some footage. I followed Alex up to her enclosure and met Angie, who was sitting with her. I walked into the enclosure and saw Gaia lying there by the tree. She was wrapped up in a blanket, silent and motionless. It was sad to see her this way, but she'd had a long and happy life and I was happy she was now at rest after her illness. Oscar seemed to be coping fine, until he saw Leyton arriving with a group of volunteers, and started his mourning howl. Realisation had finally arrived. Leyton said a few words for Gaia, then the volunteers got ready to carry her away. Alex, Robin, Jane and Mikel gripped the four corners of the blanket and lifted her. They tucked her head inside and brought her down to the wolf kitchen. Quite typically, a tour group had decided to venture outside the courtyard and were in eye shot of us. They had three small children. We dispatched Robin to take them back. Seeing a dead animal is probably not the best way to start a tour. Once we'd gently put Gaia on the wolf kitchen floor, we had to put her into black sacks. We then froze her body. As we're so far away from civilisation, Leyton can't take Gaia to town for a few days. It was a sad experience, but I'm glad I was there to see her pass.

This has been an eventful week. The new volunteers arrived on Tuesday. They're a Swedish couple called Jane and Mikel and are really nice. We had to clean out the kitchen to prepare for their arrival. My duty was the fridge. Never again! They came along on one of my tours, which was odd, and made me think about when I was a new volunteer. My tours have been quite epic recently. I made my record $23 the other day, $70 in two weeks! It's paying my way after Vegas and will allow me to buy some nice souvenirs from the gift shop!

I really feel like the animals are warming up to me. Romeo gets really excitable when I go in and lets me rough and trouble with him. He then just sits there, calmly, right in front of me. Robin actually called me in to entice Romeo out of hiding when he was giving a tour today. I was kneeling down, and he seemed really calm and sociable, so I pushed my luck and pushed my face towards his. He actually let me rub noses with him! It was amazing, and hopefully looked impressive to the tour guests.

I was really fond of Gaia. She used to howl as I approached the fence line, and would push herself up against the chain link so I could pet her. She is definitely one of the many wolves who will stay fondly in my mind.

RIP Gaia - You will be missed

Signs of the end

I was enjoying my day off, writing my latest story and enjoying the hot desert sun. Little did I know, Gaia was in trouble. I heard something on Alex's radio when he came in to find his missing cup. Angie had noticed that Gaia was lying down and not responding to her name when called. She also had a lot of gunge leaking from her eyes. I grew tired of writing so went to use the outhouse. I bumped into Katie on the way and she confirmed what I had heard. Gaia wasn't doing very well. It could be her last day. I bumped into Leyton who was just driving off in his truck. He called me over and asked if I could meet him in five minutes to film a special video on Gaia, as she might not be alive much longer. We reenacted the conversation between Leyton and Angie on the radio, then walked up to Gaia's enclosure. Angie was inside when we got there. Gaia came down to meet us at the gate, curious about the extra company. She had a lot of gunge leaking from her eyes and walked very slowly as if she had a limp. I caught it all on camera. Gaia's boyfriend, a wolf dog by the name of Oscar, was really upset about Gaia's condition, and let out a short, low mourning howl. It was really sad to see, but fascinating to see an animals reaction to the loss of a loved one. Gaia is still with us, but we don't know for how much longer.

Junior on his first day at Wild Spirit

As wolves in captivity live well beyond their years, around 17 to 19 yrs old, it's expected that they're going to have seizures and other conditions that lead to their eventual death. But as one animal leaves, another arrives. Our new wolf at the sanctuary, Junior, is 11 years old, so already past the expected life span in the wild and has hearing difficulties. He scared me the other day when doing guard duty. I called his name from outside his enclosure but he wouldn't move. He was curled up at the back of the pen and looked motionless. George came up and had to go inside and Junior didn't respond until he was about a foot away from him. We thought the worst may of happened, but thankfully he's ok.

I've had a lot of fun with the animals this week. I had my first walk with Cheyenne, and how different she is to walking Oscar and Gaia! Cheyenne pulls so hard on the leash that you have to dig your heels in to stop her pulling you along. She also has a feud with Contessa and tries as hard as possible to get up to her fence to get her. I also had a magical experience with Romeo. I was in cleaning him and knelt down to pick something up. He came over and seemed to be unafraid so I got on all fours. He jumped towards me so I jumped towards him and he started playing with me like a proper fox! We rough and tumbled. He bit my arm. But it was all playful and when I stood up he just trotted off as normal. It felt good to be interacting with a wild animal in this way. It's not just me he does it to. Foxes are known to be really friendly around humans, but it was a great experience.

It's been a busy week and I've mostly been recovering from Vegas! Mostly I've been moving furniture in and out of the office as it's being renovated. It looks lovely now and only took them a few days to replace the floor, paint the walls and put in nice wood features around the walls and window frames. I also had a massive tour of about 20 people. I was intimidated at first, but as we got going and I got into the swing of it, I found I was able to talk about the enclosures and then allow questions and talking amongst the group. I also got a 19 dollar tip, excellent news after I spent all my money in Vegas! Me and Jason were also on Leyton's podcast. He has a recording studio set up in his office and we gathered round the mic and answered questions on why we came out to the sanctuary. It was like being on a radio show! The site isn't finished yet, but as soon as it is, I shall post the link on this page.

Two weeks tomorrow and I shall be going home. It's sad to think it's coming to the end, but with the cycle of the wolf, with the old dying and the new coming, I can see the end of one stage, and the beginning of the next.