In late October, after finishing my field work in Idaho, I took a trip to my cabin in northern Washington. In the western US, it’s always a long distance from one place to another. The cabin was 500 miles away. I had gone there earlier in the season, and had left Noble Fur in the care of a neighbor. This time I decided to take her along.
The cabin sits on a hard-to-reach hillside, 20 miles by road from the nearest town. There is no electricity or running water. Just a cabin on partially wooded land, with a great view of the valley and the mountains on the other side. I wrote extensively about the place in August and September 2015, when huge forest fires threatened to take out the view, as well as the cabin itself. Fortunately it survived, giving me and Noble Fur a chance for more adventures.
Coyotes are very common in that area. I had to make certain that Noble Fur was secure at all times. Even while indoors, she was on the harness to prevent her from bolting out the door. Most of the time she was tied up in a manner that allowed her to explore the front porch and surrounding area.
The dry season had ended, and the land was wet enough that the county had ended the burn ban for the year. My friend had helped me cut down about 30 small pines that had been infested with bark beetles. We cut them into pieces and dragged them to a burn pile.
Of course Noble Fur wanted to explore the center of activity.
When I said that the place lacked running water, I meant it. Yes, that is a real outhouse. And it has a great view.
By the end of the last exploration of the day, the sun was setting. We went back to the cabin to settle in for the night.
I had hesitated to bring Noble Fur on the cabin trip. I was worried that the location might be too remote and unfamiliar, but she fit right in. There were no close calls with coyotes or other predators. And on this 1,000-mile side trip, she established herself as a Road Warrior who could not only handle long rides in the truck, but could be comfortable nearly anywhere we ended up.
Other diaries in this series:
A Christmas Cat Story
Noble Fur joins the sekritarmy
Noble Fur, Road Warrior, Part 1
Noble Fur, Road Warrior, Part 2
Please don’t forget at 4:45 Eastern: