May 17-18, 2016......Leisure day.....Hiking accident!

Tuesday May 17, 2016- A Leisure Day!
Please let today be less strenuous than yesterday!?! 😓 It is!!! After breakfast we're going to take a ride into Asheville, NC & have lunch at one of our favorite places to eat, 12 Bones a wonderful BBQ place in the Art/Deco neighborhood of Asheville. NC!

                     Otis can't wait to get hooked to his leash, he just loves going with us!

Looking across the campgrounds, there's a lot of empty sites. The real camping rush will start Memorial Weekend & stay busy right through Labor Day Weekend

Okay.....on our way to Asheville!

              This restaurant, 12 Bones is a great BBQ place! We've eaten here a few times!

 There's always a line, we knew ahead of time what we were going to order, so I sat down while Lennie waited the line out!

 There's tables available inside or plenty of tables outside. The weather was good so we chose outside seating. You order inside & they bring the food to your table.

 Len had barely come outside with our water & BBQ sauces when our food was delivered!

 Yummy !!! Pork BBQ, sweet potatoes & corn pudding, except Lennie isn't a fan of corn so he had coleslaw! They give you too much food, which works out just fine for Otis!

                                                       Better than a McDoubles!!!

Thanks Dad, Thanks Mom!!!

After yesterday's drive down the gravel road to view Mary's Falls, our car was once again filthy, our next stop is the car wash!

                  Otis thinks there are better forms of entertainment, other than a car wash!

               He needs a little reassuring that the water wands are NOT going to harm him!

                                                          Okay......we're out of here!?!😓

         Our next stop is the local Farmer's Market, another stop Otis isn't interested in because.......

          We're here on a week day & goodness, what a difference from the weekend crowd!

 We didn't need anything, we were just "looking" so we may as well head back to the serenity of the campgrounds!

 We take Otis to the leash free dog park but he doesn't get the gist of a dog park! He doesn't know this is his time to run wild & play. He just takes his time sniffing everything he can......

                                  and when he's taken care of business, he's ready to leave!!!

                                                                   Today was nice!!!!

Wednesday May 18, 2016- Who Knew What Was in Store for US Today???

 Today Lennie has a picnic adventure planned for us! Yep! We're packing a picnic lunch & heading to the Blue Ridge Parkway, where not only will we enjoy our lunch, but all the scenery to go along with it!

We drive through Historic Waynesville,( I wonder if I'm ever going to get the chance to walk around this cute little town this trip!?!) on our way to the Blue Ridge Parkway.

                            Entering the Blue Ridge Parkway. Be prepared for a beautiful ride!

                    Sometimes no words are necessary except maybe "OOOH & AAAH"!?!

Usually it's the fall of the year when we're visiting the Carolina's, seeing all the greenery has been nice too!

                          I'm sure Lennie is keeping an eye on the clock gearing up for lunch!

                               I am NOT a fan of Hominy but Hominy Valley....I'll take it!!!!

Oh Boy!!!Picnic time, Lennie's happy now!

                                                   Back on the road for more scenery!

 Behind me is Looking Glass Rock. This is the most photographed picture on the Blue Ridge Parkway!

So I better photograph it too!

Now.....from just beyond the viewing parking lot of Looking Glass Rock is a path that leads to a beautiful waterfall called SKINNY DIP FALLS! Lennie found this on a site called Secrets on the Blue Ridge. From the beginning of the path to the waterfalls was only 0.8 of a mile walk. Easy enough, after all we had a day of rest in between our last treacherous hike!?! So here we go.....little did we know that Otis would have an accident while we were hiking this trail😓

                            A man & his dog! Would you believe Lennie bought Otis for me!?!

                                               What kind of animal is that up there????

                                                        A little humor in the wood!

                                                       Oh-Oh.....I hope this is an old sign!?!

                                            At this point we can start to hear the waterfalls!

                                                               Hey Little Birdie!

                                              Look! I think this must be a real Faerie house!

                                         We reached the falls, & I forgot to turn this shot!!!

I have to go down these steps to get a better view of the falls. Lennie & Otis are already down there!

                                                                      Worth the walk!

    When I got down to the bottom, Otis was sucking up attention from some random stranger!

                                                                             "Andy & Opie"

              The falls empty into a basin below just begging for swimmers to take a dip....

                                Remember the name of the Falls......SKINNY DIP FALLS!

Now we're turning around to head back to our car & then the accident....it happened so quick. Lennie took a couple of steps & Otis jumped from a rock to catch up with him. It wasn't a high jump but his leash was around his right front paw. When he landed, he let out the most awful squall. Lennie picked Otis up immediately, Otis was still crying. He wouldn't put any weight on his leg, & was limping. Poor little guy.....

                        He was shaking as Lennie tried to comfort him.It's 0.8 of a mile back to our car.....

               "And when you saw only one set of foot prints, it was then that I carried you...."

 Leaving the Blue Ridge Parkway heading back to Waynesville to find a vet. We fear Otis may have broke his leg?

     There's the sign for Waynesville.We pull into the first parking lot to GPS a Vet office.

 Here's where we wound up at. turned out to be a very nice Vet! As a rule, Otis is in a panic anytime he walks in a vet office. Now he is in too much pain to care where he's at. We didn't wait long for an exam. She checked him out thoroughly & came to the conclusion Otis had pulled a ligament in his shoulder. She gave him a prescription for pain & inflammation & said bed rest & NO HIKING for a week!

          When we left the Vet office, Lennie added one more prescription for his injury!

                                                        "One plain McDouble Please!"

                                                           Just for what the DR ordered!?!

                                            Otis was a little hesitant, you know he's hurting!

                                            Okay......I'll try to eat it, for medicinal reasons.....

                           I think I'll just follow the Dr's orders & start getting the bed rest......

The Dr also said, NO STEPS, NO JUMPING UP or DOWN, so Lennie carried Otis outside to potty, & come bed time.....carried him back to our bed!!!! I wondering if Otis hurt himself on purpose!?!