Man's Best Friend (The Dog or the Fishing Pole?)

Man's Best Friend  (The Dog or the Fishing Pole?)
The perfect way to spend a day, fishing the South Platte with my loyal friend Tailer. We both feel like we are a part of nature for a while.

Search This Blog

Welcome!!!

This blog is both an attempt to journal all of our fishing, hiking, and camping adventures as well as a way of sharing them with people who we know or people who might be interested in the same type of trip. We are just amateur outdoorsmen and fly fishermen but we love to be in the mountains and need a better way of keeping track of the small details of our trips in order to learn from past experiences and mistakes. We appreciate that you have come this far and are looking at the home page. If you are still interested, please have a look around!

Monday, September 6, 2010

Farewell To My Friend Tailer



A dog named Tailer trotted into my life 
As a way to bring comfort to me and my wife.
We went to the pound looking for a small pet,
But what we came home with we won’t soon forget.
The only requirement I had that day, was to find a dog that would chase a ball,
And as I enticed a beagle with one, I happened to take a glance down the hall.
There stood a pale face, which bounced up and down
Every time the ball bounced on the ground.
It was love at first sight.
We took him home that night,
The silly retriever with eyes outlined in white.

He would spend the next 6 years,
Adding life to our years.
It didn’t take long to come to the realization,
That God had taken his blessings for us to a new elevation,
For Tailer quickly exceeded all expectation.
And if God had let us build a dog to specification,
Tailer would have been better than our imagination.
Perfect manners when off leash,
And very easy to teach,
He always drew a crowd, and made his mom and daddy proud.

If hiking a mountain trail,
He would always wag his tail.
Happy and eager to dress up,
He was a funny pup.
My camping buddy kept me safe from harm,
And at night he kept me warm.
Spending time with him fishing, I will never forget.
The times I didn’t take him with me, I will always regret.
I would sometimes get upset with him when he would tangle up my fishing pole,
But what a sight to see him with his head under water, blowing bubbles in an ice fishing hole.

He taught me that a dog can be more than an animal you feed.
He made me a lifetime lover of his breed.
He brought smiles to our faces everyday
He amazed me with his ability to make a trout his prey.
Everywhere he went, people couldn’t help but love him.
Many people told me, they had never seen another dog above him.
To all dog lovers, my sincere hope for you,
Is that you may one day have a dog that all others will be compared to. 
Always willing to defend,
He would rarely offend.
My outdoor companion to the end,
I will always miss my friend.




High Five Buddy!

He always was a snuggler.

I'm going to miss this smile.





He would put up with just about anything and just love the attention.


I mean ANYTHING!



It was hard to keep him out of the water.

This was his last trip to the 11 Mile Canyon which was his favorite place.

He even inspired my pumpkin carvings!

Always let his hair blow in the breeze.

And then there was ice fishing.

He would watch those ice fishing holes more intensely than me.

We Love You Tailer.


Sunday, August 22, 2010

A Short Trip To Estes Park


A Short Trip To Estes Park
I had not been to Estes Park in about 14 years and Tonya made plans to go with her parents for a few days.  I thought about not going because I had to be back in town for work but it was just too hard to resist.  I spent about 24 hours in Estes and  I would love to go back when I can stay longer.  I forgot how pretty it is.  This quick trip proved to be Tailer's final camping trip so I am very glad that I decided to take him and Melody up for the night.  Ryver won candy bar bingo as he usually does when we go to Jellystone campground and he got to see some elk which he has liked since he was just about 1 and a half.

This kid made out like a bandit!




Rocky Mountain National Park












































Ryver had fun making faces at himself.
















Tailer's last camping picture.  













The Stanley Hotel.  Red Rum Red Rum