Lettuce Isn't Food

Getting ready to meet the people!

Fountain of Youth Spa (FOY)--what an awesome place to study human behaviour. I can lie in camp and watch people go by all day long and then meet half a dozen in one short trip to the bathroom. You’ve heard the Michael Bublé song “Haven’t Met You Yet”? My theme song. Anyway, the RV park has 1000 sites, more than 100 in the dry camping area alone! That’s where we camp, at the top of the park, in the dry lot. It’s not fancy but it’s close to the trails and the sunset views are fantastic. 

FOY sunset.

I’m learning to appreciate sunsets, even though my eyes can’t see the same spectrum of colours that human eyes can. Sunset watching is a daily ritual at FOY, as is morning walking, afternoon napping and evening pool time; although, pool time was for humans only. How I would have loved a swim after our morning walks in the desert. The rule is “no dogs within 20 feet of any building”, which just seems downright prejudiced to me. I’m much tidier and better behaved than many humans I’ve met, especially the small ones. Now don’t take that the wrong way, I have an inexplicable fondness for the little guys, and I don’t think it’s just because of the height at which they hold their food.

Exploring an abandoned cottage on one of our hikes.

Food, there was a ton of great food while we were at FOY. With the exception of the little on-site cantina, Freddy’s Fountain, it’s an hour to a restaurant so all eating was done at the trailer, which was perfect for me. You see, I’m doing my best to sample and develop a taste for all human food. I eat things Logan won’t even look at and, you know, most of it’s pretty good. Fruit, vegetables, bread, condiments, you name it, I’ll eat it.

Contemplating life.

How many times have I heard T or Nollind say, “He probably won’t like that because it’s all covered with...insert condiment name”? Admittedly, some of them are a bit odd, like pickled things, but not terrible. Now there is one human food item, and a common one, that I just can’t seem to develop a taste for. It doesn’t even taste like food, just sits there all cold and flat on my tongue. Lettuce. When it’s dripping with salad dressing or tucked inside a piece of burger it goes down more easily but I continue to try it undressed. My thought is, if I’ll eat anything they do and can sit in a chair, one of these days they’re going to set a place at the dinner table for me. One day…

Ready to go to work.

One of the other ways I get to try human foods, and help around the house at the same time, is to pre-clean the dishes. The instant I hear a plate or bowl or pot being scraped, I am there to assist. And I know they appreciate it, especially out here in the desert where we need to conserve water. They call me Pre-Wash. Not every dog has a work title, so I’m pretty proud of that. However, there is one kitchen tool that is hindering my work and competing for my job, the spatula! As soon as I get my paws on it, that thing is history.

On the job - pots are hard work.

After a week of hanging at FOY we headed to the city for a few days and stayed in another casino parking lot, Fantasy Springs in Indio. It was noisier than Quechan, right on the I10, but there was plenty of room and a nice open desert area to walk in next door. I assumed the city meant a bunch of trailer time for Logie and me but did I get a surprise. The second day T & Nollind took us along (all day!) and one of the stops was PetSmart. OMG–I was in heaven, getting to do my own shopping. Now they didn’t buy everything I picked out, but I understood, given our slightly small living space at present, and the fact that PetSmart has EVERYTHING a dog could want. For that half hour I felt like being a dog was maybe okay after all, and there were other dogs in there doing their shopping too, almost like we were equals for a moment. Sigh.

At PetSmart

T and Nollind had late lunch at a Mexican place and we were allowed there too, but it wasn’t going to be very comfortable on the hard, tile floor of the narrow patio, and the truck had a nice shady parking spot so they decided we’d be happier there. Probably true for Logan, he’s getting old and doesn’t like hard surfaces to lie on, but I would have sat on broken glass for a chance to get in on the ceviché and quesadilla. I’ve never had either and I love seafood. Logan doesn’t much like fish so he would have been grumpy all-round. I think I’d have even tried the margaritas...if they'd offered.

Top of the trail at Homme-Adams Park.

We ended the day with this great hike at Homme-Adams Park, where the trail took us up a hillside that looked out over Palm Desert below. Wow, what a day. When T and Nollind headed out dancing later that night I didn’t even mind. I was content to stay home and sleep. And okay, I admit, dancing kind of freaks me out a little. I never know what to do when they dance.

Play time at Anza-Borrego

We left the Coachella Valley yesterday and came here to the Anza-Borrego desert. We were already off leash for some play time last night and again today. Freedom! Nothing makes me feel less human than being leashed. I have a good feeling about this stop and I hear we’re staying awhile.

The Fountain of Youth

I was hoping for a third trip to the beach but, after a day of chores (people chores that is) we were packed and on the road again. I fell asleep as soon as we hit the freeway and stayed that way until our lunch stop along the road to Palm Springs. Riding in a vehicle is so relaxing; I can never stay awake for long.

Fountain of Youth entrance

We made a short stop along a body of water called the Salton Sea and I thought for sure we’d camp there. The water was calm and on such a hot day I could imagine myself wading out until my paws left the bottom, letting the water come up and over my back, cooling me off. I was shaken from my daydream by Nollind restarting the engine. We were driving toward the exit. What? T was reading from a piece of paper the camp host had given her and commenting about the dog unfriendliness of California State Parks. We’ve stayed in them before and are always limited to walking around the campsite, which isn’t much of a walk, or on roads where it isn’t safe. Fine by me then, let’s go find some unrestricted desert trails for walking!

Not sure how anyone pulled a trailer with one of these.

Fountain of Youth RV Park was just up the road and on a hillside overlooking the Salton Sea, far from the boundaries of the state park. It looked pretty deluxe as we drove in—not our usual kind of rustic, desert camping location—with palm trees and cactus lining the long entrance, a gate where they checked your pass before you could come in, and people driving around in tiny cars. It seemed friendly though, everyone waving and smiling as we drove by. I hung my head out the window, wishing I was able to wave back. At the top of the park there was a large area that looked much more like home—the dry camping area. It was a little more crowded than we’re used to but it had the same easy feel of our boondocking sites.

Sweet shade.

It was hot the whole time we were there so we dogs spent quite a bit of time lying in the shade of the trailer. T and Nollind went swimming in one of the resort’s pools every afternoon but, as usual, I wasn’t allowed to go. I probably would have appreciated that pool more than all of the humans put together and yet I was excluded. If dogs ran the world…

On the plus side, there were no restrictions on where we could walk and there were miles of trails just outside the park fence. We were even allowed to walk all over the resort, on a leash of course, and "most" everyone was very friendly toward dogs. We did our desert walks in the morning to avoid the heat of the day and usually had a nice stroll around the resort later in the evening. At camp I had to be tied because, well, I’d run out to meet this Rottie who was walking by on a leash—but he told me to come over to him! I swear! What was I supposed to say to a dog that big? But anyway, I was kept on my tether after that. That Rottie is probably still laughing.

Fountain of Youth campsite.

We stayed at Fountain of Youth for a week and I think T and Nollind did seem a little younger by the time we left—but, in my opinion, it was more the R&R than any magical waters.