Recently, I schlepped my dog for a walk with the intention of it taking 1 hour and then she could play in the garden the rest of the night, barking at fresh air. What happened was something entirely different.
We live in Inner Richmond and strolled to Lake St. A stray woman demanded I not walk so fast since my dog (Muppet, aka Mups) couldn’t keep up. I told her that a: she needs to not interfere with anyone else’s lives unless asked (a rule I never keep!), b: Muppet drags her paws even 1 block from home – that’s just how she rolls, c: Stop approaching people randomly and get your own dog. We had a lovely shouting match across the street for a while. Her voice travels 1 foot, mine travels 3 days & boomerangs back. I believe I won!
With that said, Muppet then splat on the floor, validating this woman’s false & interfering case. Taking a nudge and a hissing ‘Get up now, Muppet, the freaky woman’s still staring at us and she’ll call the SPCA’ in the ear, we toddled off down towards 24th Avenue.
At 25th Avenue we spun a sharp right and a mighty fine left onto Sea Cliff Avenue. Now, I see the Golden Gate Bridge most days but on this gorgeous Saturday evening, it was magical from Baker Beach. Just shimmering and glowing in its own ‘I’m the coolest bridge on the planet’ type of blush, Mups and I sat for a while just loving that this bridge is on our doorstep. The moment then turned into a no-warning pee fiasco. So, to the person who lives at 2 Gibson Street: Yes, it was I who used your porta potty (the brand new one). I’m incredibly sorry, I couldn’t hold it in. I also can’t promise I won’t do it again.
With the magical moment now over, Muppet and I trotted off along to El Camino Del Mar, right up to the Legion of Honor. With the sun starting to set and romantic couples having a snoggable moment, I grabbed Muppet and we had a special mother/daughter fluffy cuddle. I’ve lived in SF for 7 years and have no idea why I’ve a: Never visited the Legion and b: Never been on a date in the area. It’s stunning!
After a mini huggable break, we trotted over down 32nd Avenue and spun a right onto Clement Street towards the Ocean and Point Lobos Avenue. I had a 2 minute staring contest with a Raccoon and then a mild panic attack over the sunset. There’s something about a large spans showing the same visual - it freaks me out! Like huge pillars on mansions or the Grand Canyon. Seeing so much of the sky (minus buildings) and the vast ocean set me into a knee buckling girly moment. I got through it by the time we arrived at Cliff House. Muppet was still dragging her paws, so it was nice to see she’d not evolved once since we’d started walking and picked up pace.
Not remotely expecting our 60 minute walk to turn into a 3 hour marathon, I hadn’t bought any cash with me. So I spent the next 5 minutes apologizing to Mups and assuring her that 40 mins walk home will be…a walk in the park. She didn’t buy any of it and huffed & puffed the whole way home. Ever heard a dog tut? I have.
Four hours later we arrived at home, whereby Muppet raced straight into the garden and started running around like a demented hamster. It was at that moment, I wanted to video record her, find the mad ‘dog savior’ woman and just shout ‘Here’s your evidence, my dog has when-it-suits-her-to-walk-itus syndrome. Back off!’
Overall, that walk was the most amazingly inspiring journey over cliffs, through parks, forests and high ocean peaks. So the next time you’re going on a date and want to do something different, grab a bottle of wine (forget glasses, be reckless and drink out the bottle), chips & dips and walk the exact same route I did. When you reach the Lands End entrance by the golf course, take a load off and really love the view. If you’re not going on a date anytime soon, then find a reasonably OK friend to walk with. The type of pal that won’t capsize 20 minutes into the walk and sue you for blisters – that’s the kind of walking partner you want. Oh, and not a spaniel!
