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Tag Archives: Winthrop WA

Doggie Dash 2020

Once a year in Winthrop, there is a six-legged race where a dog stays attached to a person wearing skis sponsored by Methow Trails! As you might imagine, it is a fun and exciting event. And if racing isn’t enough, it’s also a costume contest! People in the Methow Valley love to play dress up. The day starts with a costume parade and then the judges confer as to who will be in the finals for best costume. The prize for best costume is the coveted golden poodle, a traveling trophy. Then there are the races. This year there was a kids’ race, a ski joring race, a little dogs race and then the big dogs. There are plenty of big dogs (must be another Methow thing) so there were three heats of big dogs and then a final. And after all the racing, the finalists for the best costume, again parade past the crowd and the winner is decided by who gets the most applause and cheering. There are three highly skilled judges for this. All in all it’s a darned good time!

How’s that for a perfect weather day with perfect skiing conditions.
Oreo
Lima
I was totally smitten with these two pups.
Hopefully no wardrobe malfunctions
The emcee introduces the skilled judging panel
The coveted golden poodle
Hazel and Harriet seem to be getting out to a head start for the costume parade
Princess
Pabst Blue R-mour
Make America Ski Again
Methow Valley Spring
Ernie, the dog, recently survived a cougar attack
Uh oh, Harriet and Hazel are asleep on the course
Little bit of a dust up
Mountain Man and Dan easily win
Family fun
Winner of the big dog race
Best costume!

Lights of Winthrop

I started a class in After Dark Photography last night. It is sponsored by The Methow Conservancy and taught by Ryan Bell. A group of eight of us listened to Ryan talk about exposure and how to use it create our own images with limited light and went outside at dusk to see what we could do. We started at the Conservancy office and then walked across the river to the Winthrop Ice Rink and then back to downtown Winthrop. It was fun to get out and make photos with other enthusiastic people, not afraid of the dark. There are many lights around town so it hardly seemed dark. Our next assignment is the full moon. Hoping for clear skies.

Winthrop Ice Rink
Spring Creek Bridge
Highway bridge across the Methow River
Of course, I peaked in the windows of The Winthrop Gallery

Homestream Park

Two very generous people, Phil and Cathy Davis, have gifted the community of Winthrop a new park! They purchased some dilapidated floodplain at the entrance to town and with a lot of hard work and money too, they changed it into a place for walking, gathering together, studying, contemplation and relaxation.

Homestream Park “is dedicated to the rivers and fish of the Methow Valley, and to the native people, past and present, who have called this place home for thousands of years.”

The park features original artwork by Smoker Marchand and Bruce Morrison. There is a kids’ lookout topped with Bruce’s carved Ospreys on a nest. A path meanders through the park, and like the Columbia River, it features nine obstacles (boulders) that represent the nine dams on the river that salmon must cross to get to the ocean and then back to the Methow to spawn. Native plants have been used to restore the area to something like what it may have been in the past.

There was a grand opening of the park just a little over a week ago. More than 300 people were there to stroll the path, study the art and listen to prayers of welcome and a few speeches and music too. It was a very nice celebration on a nice fall day.

Thank you Phil and Cathy Davis and all of the volunteers that worked hard to develop your dream.

Tule mat detail from the tule mat house
This was made from litter and old wood that was on the property before the clean up began.
The planting continued on opening day
Arnold Cleveland played a prayer with his flute
Phil Davis
Lots of happy faces
Some people brought their dogs
Ken played music
Marcus Dukes played bass
Lynnette Westendorf played too
Arnold Cleveland sang and played drum
Songs from The Last Salmon, a rock opera about our native fish

Doggie Dash 2019

Methow Trails hosted the annual Doggie Dash race at the Town Trailhead in Winthrop on Sunday. It was great fun with terrific snow and good weather. There were three categories of races – Kids, Little Dogs and Big Dogs – and the ever popular costume contest. The Big Dogs category had the most entrants so there were three heats leading to an exciting final race. The prize for the costume contest is the much-coveted Golden Poodle – a traveling trophy. The winner has now won three times in a row!

Start and finish line
The ever important judges
Some dogs just come to watch
The person and dog must stay attached. The mitten doesn’t count.
We don’t see many poodles like this in the Methow
Excuse me?
Some dogs are into pulling
Some dogs just enjoy the walk
Some dogs are excited at the start line
Some dogs need reassurance
Some dogs are chill
After it’s over, dogs just want to have fun

Balloon Roundup

Last weekend was the Hot Air Balloon Roundup in Winthrop – always one of my favorite festivals in this area. The weather did not cooperate so the balloons didn’t have as many opportunities to fly. I got to see them on Friday and I heard that the ‘balloon glow’ in town Saturday night was glorious. I always enjoy being around the staging area, watching the balloons slowly inflate, tipping the baskets upright and getting ready to fly. It really is a lot of fun. Bring your kids and your mom and everyone else but it’s probably best to leave your dog at home.

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