The Chopper Chronicles

I know it’s been almost forever since I posted last. What can I really say, except ” You just can’t get good help these days ” Drums handsome Chihuahua toe toes and looks around. In all fairness, things got kinda crazy around here for awhile. SO much has happened lately I almost don’t know where to begin…..so I suppose it’s easier to start where I left off ! Not that I, Chopper The Brave, Grand PooBah of All I Survey and King Of both North and Mid Wales ( yeppers folks…I have extended My Territory since the last time I posted ! ), thought it was such a great day !!! It began as most *Adventure Days* did….Early wake up time, early cooked to order Chopper sized fresh Welsh sausage for breakfast ( and the 3 measly pieces of wheat toast Mum tossed My direction ). The Tetched Twosome were all excited about where they were going today. Dinas Bran….sounds like some breakfast cereal that comes in one of those boxes that do not have free surprises in them, to Me ! In any case…spirits were high. That Bearded Guy did a great job directing Mum to a narrow lane near Worlds End called Panorama Walk. Instead of turning towards Worlds End like before, we turned right this time and followed along the base of an AMAZING limestone cliffs formation. ( this entire valley is a Site of Special Scientific Interest & Landscape of Special Historic Interest ) Without warning, Mum suddenly turned off the road into a small pullout.  She is famous for these sudden unannounced stops which always leave That Bearded Guy sitting in the navy gators seat saying “..poop…poop…poop.. !! ” These usually knock me off of My Throne perch in the back window as well…..raises one handsome Chihuahua eyebrow, taps toe toes and glares at Mum ! I was alright with it this time though….this was as yet, unclaimed territory for me and I was anxious to leave a few markers and do a fair bit of scratching. Turns out that it was a marked section of The Offa’s Dyke Path ! That Bearded Guy stayed behind to take some pictures of the high limestone cliffs beside us ( except the sun had not peeked over their tops yet ). Mum and I walked along the road/trail/path for a little ways. That’s when My day started to go ever so  wrong !!! I was just trying to leave a nice Claim Marker to make it well known the area was now Mine when those darn Klingon’s attacked Me again !!! About this time I am seriously wondering why the heck this was called Offa’s Dyke Trail…because it certainly was NOT coming Offa !!! Making matters worse, That Bearded Guy caught up with Mum and I, and they continued walking up the trail !!! No matter how far i duck-walked, looked miserable, etc etc…onward they went !! Needless to say, I was lagging behind by an entire lead length. I could hear them plotting some dire measures, but could not hear anything beyond..” …not getting in the car with Klingons..” This would pose a major problem. It was cold, we were out in the middle of nowhere, and neither one of them is brave enough to take on the removal without body armour. Ok Ok…so this is entirely MY fault. I tend to go into devil dog mode when anyone tries to get that close to my Handsome Chihuahua butt !! Back at My chariot, things went from bad to worse !! That Bearded Guy pulled out an ultra thick pair of winter gloves ( henceforth known as gauntlets ! ), Mum produced a ziploc baggie of emergency toilet paper, and a bottle of water that i swear she had been keeping under a Glacier ! Let’s just say they BOTH got “Black Marks” for that ordeal ! I was ready to go home now. Cancel the day….the spell of excitement was thoroughly broken ! They even had the NERVE to take a picture of me curled up on My Throne in the back window a few minutes later !! I thought about pee’ing in their shoes for that indignity ! The Panorama Walk track is very skinny narrow, so the going was slow.  Although I was in full sulks and wanted to go home, I really did enjoy the spectacular views ! Not far down this track was our destination for the day. A castle ruins atop a really steep sided mountain, called Castell Dinas Bran. This area even got ME into high spirits as soon as I got out of the chariot !! It was built on the site of a really really old old Iron Age Hill Fort so the place really hummed ! There was only a small footpath type sign indicating the way up, and room for only 2 or three cars to park there.  Only one car was already there, so we anticipated having the place almost to ourselves ! Mum clipped on My Royal Leash ( nice, handy, retractable deal ) then she and That Bearded Guy started digging in the chariot boot. ( that’s the trunk to us Yankee Doodle Chihuahuas…not the smelly old kind people put on their feet ) It was really really windy and pretty cold so The Bearded Guy was putting on his down jacket, and Mum was tying hers around her waist. Well folks, I am not one to wait around for the Dawdling Duo for too long…so i carefully started making My way across the flat railed cattle grid between us and the path. Honestly folks, I really think I could have made it all the way across if That Bearded Guy had not alerted Mum, who instantly freaked out and not only called My name, but also clicked stop on the lead handle !!! Ever try turning around on a 3 inch wide rail ???? It sucked me right down and almost swallowed Me whole !!!! Literally hanging on by My toes, I could feel nettles tickling My tail !!!! It was terrible horrible and very very bad ! No sooner did I gain the top of the next rail…it sucked Me down AGAIN !!!!! Oh Waily Waily Waily, I kept falling through the raily !!! Not once…not twice…but THREE times it tried to eat Me. There i was, hanging on by mere claws, body dangling over an ancient oubliette, full of nettles growing on top of layers of prehistoric hedgehog remains, dinosaurs and certainly more than one Roman sandal, and all my Mum could do was call My name ! ( drums toes…like I wasn’t already TRYING to get away from it’s greedy jaws ! ) She was finally able to assist Me by pulling straight up on my leash. This was fine and dandy enough, although I could have done without that momentary dangle over the gaping maw of that hideous creature called a cattle grid. Whats worse, is there was not a single cow in sight !!! Mum put Me in the car boot for safe keeping, and i instantly tried to burrow in That Bearded Guys newly discarded fleece jacket. I was traumatized, claws and toe toes ached from the strain, my backside and tail, not to mention my hind legs had nearly been nettled again…and all I wanted was to burrow all the way HOME home home !!!!! Sighs heavily here for dramatic effect….Do you know what I got folks ??? If you guessed tenderly carried back to My throne in the chariot’s back window for careful transport back home…you would be wrong. Nope….The Terrible Twosome were still determined to climb the vertical hill to the castle above !!! Mum simply gave me the once over…..and shoved Me into her bozo, and off they marched….around the side of the Chihuahua eating prehistoric oubliette hiding cattle grid !  Slaps paw to handsome Chihuahua forehead…no one told ME there was another way to get past that thing !!! Without Me to pull them both up the steep hillside, it was their turn to climb up stuff with their nails !!!….. But that’s for the next post… Thanks for your patience, folks. I promise a return of regular posts. Everything has kind of settled down a bit around here.

Mum and I headed down a portion of Panorama Walk that is also a section of Offa’s Dyke Path

On Offa’s Dyke Path….not ONE word about My Duck Walk stance !!!

View from The Offull’s Dyke Path

My ‘Post Gauntlet Indignant’ pose. I was NOT amused

Refusing to acknowledge The Terrible Twosome and their levity !

Yours Truly after the prehistoric oubliette hiding Chihuahua eating cattle grid incident

To view the entire set of 18 pictures taken of the Eglwseg Rocks and The Offa’s Dyke Trail and Panorama Walk click -> HERE <-

This is Chopper The Cattle Grid Survivor, ( Gone where NO Chihuahua wants to go ! ) Grand PooBah of all I survey and King of North Wales & Mid Wales signing off for now……

Happy Turkey Day to My American Friends and Family !

I raise my Paw and Wag my tail in a *bark out* to my wonderful friend, Debbie with a new last name as of Oct 11, 2008, in Marana/Tucson, AZ !!!!! HellOoOooo and Thank You Debbie Of All Pet Travel ! HelloOoOo and Thank You’s to Rich and Erika, miss and love You’s ! You too,  Carmen,  All of Vail AZ, …. Lots of kisses and Wags.…Hiya’s to Maxx and Duke ! Also to one of My NEW friends from Washington State, who recently visited…HellOooo Rob ! Thanks for the awesome tin of South American beef with gravy !

Chopper The Brave ” Going Where No Chihuahua Has Gone Before “

This is the final entry about one of My big days out and about. After leaving the Chirk Aqueduct, That Bearded Guy directed Mum up into The Ceiriog Valley. He made only ONE wrong Navel Gator instruction, but since we were still headed in the right general direction, it was alright. Have I even mentioned that the welsh have insanely crazy skinny curvy lanes ? This was no exception ! Before too long we were back on track and winding our way up into another amazing green valley. No wonder much of North Wales is considered areas of outstanding natural beauty ! I had no idea My new Kingdom was so breathtakingly beautiful ! I learned something too. The Welsh like certain village names so much, that they re use them a lot. Only adding slightly different endings to distinguish them fro another village of the same name. For instance, the village of Llanarmon ( Clan Arm On ) Locally its just Llanarmon, but beyond a short distance they are referred to by Llanarmon DC or Llanarmon Dyffryn Ceiriog. Close to My village of Gwernymynydd, there is another Llanarmon. That one is Llanarmon-yn-lal or Llanarmon YL .  Give a town or village a long name, then shorten it so people who are not welsh speakers can actually say it i guess. Like the little town in North Wales with the outrageous name of Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysyliogogogoch. Its referred to as Llanfair PG ( rolls handsome green Chihuahua eyes…can’t imagine why ) Mum just loves to pronounce these Welsh village names using American phonetics ! I digress however. We stopped in the quaint little village of Llanarmon DC( <- very cool link worth clicking ). Walked around a little bit absorbing the quaintness like typical tourists, even though the true reason was for me to claim just a little bit more of My ever growing domain. I posed with The Bearded Guy in front of a pub / hotel by the main crossroads ( the crossroads even had wooden signs like those you might see in an old Hollywood movie ) The pub was called The Hand. I am resisting mentioning how nice it wasn’t The Finger.Then The Bearded Guy indulged My Mums fascination for old old churchyard cemeteries. ( click here for a pic of the church ) The small old looking sign on the churchyard gate said ” no dogs” ( actually it said “Na Ci” then below it…No Dogs for the odd non Welsh speakers in a VERY Welsh area ) so Mum had to pick me up and become a Royal litter of sorts. Just as well because of the soft soft soft cushy feel to the ground. This one was full of ancient looking great huge Yew trees that had never had their leaf droppings raked away. Most of the headstones in the older section were dated in the early to mid 1700′s. Those yew trees looked a whole lot older than that ! Many of the grave markers had crumbled into small piles of slate rubble, so perhaps those even predated the 1700′s. Mum just now did a bit of research on the church ( thanks for being such a history geek Mum ! ) There is at least one yew tree in that churchyard that is over 1000 years old ! WOW ! No wonder so many of the headstones were half buried in tree droppings ! One of the mounds Mum walked around is said to be a Bronze Age Burial mound !!! The Bearded Guy snapped a few pictures for My Mum. I was feeling magnanimous and even posed for a few ! Back to My chariot once again and down the road we went in the direction we had come. This time The Bearded Guy didn’t lose us in Glyn Ceiriog. All the little villages we passed through had their own claim to extensive history ! One, Pontfadog, has the oldest Oak tree in Britain. King Henry II ( boo ) has the entire Ceiriog Woods cut down in 1165 ! Guess he heard all the werewolf legends too ! That Bearded Guy was going to take us up and over another steep mountain lane, that would take us back to Llangollen the back scenic way. When we had gotten to the top ridge, the road had evidently been washed out and there was a sign saying it was closed. Ok, this was NOT his fault….but I still raised a brow and began renovation ideas for the back window ledge ! Instead of going back down the ridiculously steep lane we had just climbed with the chariots fingernails, off along the ridge-top we went. The Bearded Guy decided against taking the little road that was for the diverted traffic from the closed one ( did not trust those kinds of diversions ) and since he had found the road we had taken on his map…all was good. I must admit, the views from top there were tremendous ! Mum stopped a few times to let The Bearded Guy take some pictures before the road descended towards Llangollen. We came around a corner, and there in the distance,  was the Castle  Mum and I were beginning to think The Bearded Guy was pulling our legs about ! Chirk Castle sure looked big !! From what The Bearded Guy said, a family actually lived in part of that castle until very very  recently ! The National Trust finally convinced them to move i guess . Mum stopped the car and The bearded Guy jumped out and snapped a few pictures. Sighs heavily….evidently they do not allow Grand PooBahs inside. They will only let Me on the grounds ( which I understand is HUGE and criss crossed with lots of paths ) Not in the formal gardens though…drums handsome Chihuahua toe toes ! I suppose ONE of Edward I’s 700 year old Welsh Marcher fortresses can be claimed as Mine by proxy ! Grins a Charismatically Handsome Chihuahua grin…now which one will I let leave My marks…Mum or That Bearded Guy ?? It was a nice drive home, and a truly wonderful day. I visited and experienced so many ancient places, I was almost afraid my sniffer would give out. My marking leg sure was getting tired and stiff !! The kind of awesome day that took three blogs to tell everyone about !!! Thank you Bearded Guy for the great tour of parts of North Wales ( and England…looks at Mum and snickers…tee hee hee )

Llanarmon Dyffryn Ceiriog AKA Llanarmon DC

Cripes Almighty !! smile will you, people might think you don’t like Chihuahua’s

Are we done yet?  The pub’s still open. Make mine a Guinness !

Very Ancient Yew tree and old headstones in  Saint Garmons Churchyard

Ssshhhh !! I’m hiding because the sign on the gate says “No Dogs” in two languages !

Riding on My Royal Barge ( well Mums back…was not allowed down on the ground except for a quick dash under a tree ! )

View over the Ceiriog Valley

Looking back in the direction we had just come from

Chirk Castle from a distance ( Mum was stopped in the middle of a crazy skinny curvy welsh lane ! )

One VERY tired and content Grand PooBah a mile from home after an excellent day !

For the complete set of 30 Ceiriog Valley Pictures, click ->> HERE<<-

This is Chopper The Explorer, Grand PooBah of all I survey and King of North Wales, signing off for now……

I raise my Paw and Wag my tail in a *bark out* to my wonderful friend, Debbie with a new last name as of Oct 11, 2008, in Marana/Tucson, AZ !!!!! HellOoOooo and Thank You Debbie Of All Pet Travel ! HelloOoOo and Thank You’s to Rich and Erika, miss and love You’s ! You too,  Carmen,  All of Vail AZ, …. Lots of kisses and Wags.…Hiya’s to Maxx and Duke ! Chopper The Brave ” Going Where No Chihuahua Has Gone Before “

Still continuing from yesterdays post, brings me to the long anticipated Lunch Time ! After smelling a delicious sandwich for about 100 miles, ( 5 actually, but it seemed like 100 to this Sensitive Handsome Macho Pink Chihuahua nose ! ) we pulled into another little parking area beside the same canal that runs through Llangollen, just further down the road near Chirk. That Bearded Guy kept telling Mum there was a huge castle in Chirk, but we didn’t see even a glimpse of one. We trundled out of my chariot and walked just a short ways to a nice peaceful bench along this canal for lunchtime. WAY over due in My not so humble opinion, as I had already missed second breakfast ! Didn’t even Scratch and Sniff My way over to the bench I was so famished ! There were a few ducks around, but not many so I didn’t really pay them any mind.  We all sat down and That Bearded Guy unwrapped the sandwich. I am telling you, folks…ducks came from EVERYWHERE. They even came swinging out from the overhead trees, I swear it ! Big ducks, little ducks, medium sized ducks, Mallards, and even a herd of those big ol white Jemima Puddle Duck kind. Cheeky cheeky ducks…even worse than cheeky sheep !!! Never have I met such a cheeky bunch before !!! They obviously did not know who I was !!! Never before has The Grand PooBah, King of North Wales been mobbed by ducks ! Needless to say they didn’t get any of My…er…the sandwich ! I let Mum have some sandwich for driving the chariot, and I even magnanimously let That Bearded Guy have some for holding the map ( and really, all in all, he did a very decent job Navel Gatoring ) Lunch devoured, off we went to stroll along the canal again. The Chirk Aqueduct and Viaduct were this stops attraction !! Not far down the path I met up with a Westie walking his peoples back from the direction we were going. He began, by nosing respectfully, although I could feel some underlying hostility. Next thing I knew he was trying to have a go at me !!! Never in my life have I met such a cheeky bunch of creatures ! First the ducks, now this insolent Westie !! Luckily for him, his people had him leashed and scurried him away before I really let fur fly ! To make my displeasure well known I did a really deep scratching and left a reminder marker beside the canal. Rolls handsome green Chihuahua eyes…Mum, picked it up in a bag and threw it away as usual. Drums toe toes and looks indignant. She tossed it in a bin belonging to an empty holiday cottage rental beside the canal. The Bearded Guy was afraid someone would greet us on the return stroll grumpily swinging the bag and looking mean. Mum being a cheeky Yank didn’t care…. Before I knew it there we were at the aqueduct. Impressive indeed with the much taller viaduct right beside it !! The view of the Chirk River and valley far below was quite impressive. Bright green dotted with ships….er…sheep. Mum kept asking The Bearded Guy to take pictures of it and could not figure out why he was hesitant and kind of turning a funny shade of grey. THEN she remembered his distinct aversion to heights !!! I think he is contagious, because I have to say, it wasn’t too thrilling for me either ! We walked across anyway and found this really cool long dark tunnel on the other side…right behind this little sign that said ” Welcome To Wales” !!! Mum sputtered a very Irish sputter, stammered a bit, turned a funny color herself, sputtered some more, pointed at it and gave The Bearded Guy a very unusual look ! Stammered some more and finally spit out…”…You mean I ate lunch….in….( more sputters )….ENGLAND ?? ” Then she made a sound that sounded very much like a cross between an angry Donald Duck and a mad hen ! Well, I guess THAT explained those cheeky ducks and insolent Westie !!!! The Bearded Guy just looked innocent and honestly said he had forgotten it was England on the other side of the aqueduct, and went on to say it was an area that has been a border region much in dispute over the years. This made her feel better.  Mum and I wanted to walk through the long dark tunnel, but The Bearded Guy was suffering from  ‘Tall Aqua Duck Syndrome’ so we walked back across the aqueduct and watched him turn funny colors again !! Mum managed to take a picture of me half way back across, but it was veto’d during the downloading…it was not a very flattering shade of green I had turned, and it clashed with my Handsome Macho Pink Chihuahua nose. The Bearded Guy took a picture of My Mum standing next to the “Welcome To England” sign on the other side. She had something stuck to her mouth as he snapped it though ! I left enough peemails on the way back to the car to effectively reclaim the disputed border region for Wales. The dispute is now forever ended ( until it rains again anyway )! Such is the life of The Grand PooBah and King Of North Wales !  Back to My chariot and My Throne cushion position ready to steer from the aft once again, and we were off down the road to yet another destination !!!

To Be Continued……..

Looking through The Chirk Viaduct towards The Ceiriog Valley

Chirk Viaduct with a bit of the Llangollen Canal

The Chirk River

Ships in a sea of green

The Bearded Guy turning funny colors and feeling…um…woozy

Looking towards the Ceiriog Valley with a nice viaduct frame

Nice shot of both the Aqueduct and Viaduct we had just crossed

Mum with something stuck on her mouth and looking pleased to be back in England. Guess she was wearing the perfect bozo. It says ” Pog Mo Thon “  ( A tasteful Irish Blessing )

This is Chopper The Explorer, Grand PooBah of all I survey and King of North Wales, signing off for now……

I raise my Paw and Wag my tail in a *bark out* to my wonderful friend, Debbie with a new last name as of Oct 11, 2008, in Marana/Tucson, AZ !!!!! HellOoOooo and Thank You Debbie Of All Pet Travel ! HelloOoOo and Thank You’s to Rich and Erika, miss and love You’s ! You too,  Carmen,  All of Vail AZ, …. Lots of kisses and Wags.…Hiya’s to Maxx and Duke ! Chopper The Brave ” Going Where No Chihuahua Has Gone Before “

Still on about our day out that was so exciting and long that it requires several chapters to tell everyone about. We loaded back into My chariot after a very nice amble around Valle Crucis Abbey ( now Mine ! ) Taking my usual position in the back window on my Throne cushion ( steering the rudder ) Mum driving and That Bearded Guy Navel Gatoring, we were back on the road. Llangollen was next on the list, and a mere 2 miles down the road into the Dee Valley. One would think there would be no more turning the car around and having a second go…for awhile at least. Rolls handsome green Chihuahua eyes !!!! I am giving serious thought to renovating this back window of Mine to accommodate That Bearded Guy ! Ok, so the first Llangollen turn around wasn’t his fault. The car park he directed Mum to was no longer in existence. Still we had to turn around on a crazy skinny curvy welsh lane. Add to that a great huge mowing vehicle was making the crazy skinny single car width lane wider so one car could jump into the hedgerow to let another car past.  Mum said a few things a Chihuahua should not repeat…( covers handsome Chihuahua ears with paws and giggles a dignified royal giggle ). Once again back on track we made our way into Llangollen. Very interesting looking town…but very busy with other tourists as well ! Following the signs to the short stay car parking lot wasn’t as easy as it looked…they disappeared at a crossroads. Did I mention we turned around…again…some more ? After finding the right lot to park in we were on our way to explore the ancient welsh town of Llangollen. One of the first things Mum noticed was the Dinas Bran Castle on a mountain top high above the town. Very friendly place. No wonder there are many legends of King Arthur surrounding this area !  So much history everywhere it seeped out all over the place ( and they say watch your step around doggie walks !! ) Lots of people with dogs walking around ! The Llangollen Railroad was closed for the season already ( except for the Santa train on Dec. weekends ) After walking over a REALLY really old stone bridge that took us across the River Dee, up a steep walkway we went. At the top is the Llangollen Warf and canal. Both horse drawn canal boats and motorized ones use this canal. There were no boats when we arrived at the top, so it was a very nice peaceful quiet stroll along the canal for quite a ways ! I even met a new friend, StickFace. ( his name has been changed to protect his true identity and privacy ) After about an hour of strolling, we turned around and headed back towards Llangollen. On the way back we saw one of the canal boat horses. He seemed to be a very nice Chap ! I kept my “barker” quiet when we passed him. I did however, have quite a good bark at all the grey haired elders riding in the canal boat the horse was pulling !!! For some reason they all found this quite amusing and the entire boat laughed at the same time….this of course made me bark even more ! Even the back half of that boat was laughing by the time it passed us by. Drums toe toes…… Back down the hill we went and across the old old stone bridge, this time on the other side so That Bearded Guy could take more pictures. The recent rains really had the River Dee flowing quite high and wild. But I kept Mum safe and sound by snuggling in her arms as we crossed and took pictures ! Once across we headed to the sandwich shop, only pausing once to take a picture of some shop with a VERY long name ! Once Mum came out of the sandwich shop with a deliciously loooong something wrapped in paper, it was back to the car again. This terrible Traveling Twosome tortured me with its tantalizing smell for miles and miles and miles and miles and more miles ( 5 in all folks…it was for * ev * er ! ) After about a year of driving, That Bearded Guy directed us off the main road and up a pretty steep little hill…..thank goodness that yummy smelling sandwich survived !!! Lunch time in….wait for it folks…..ENGLAND !!!  ( Mum wasn’t making noises yet because That Bearded Guy forgot to tell her we were no longer in Wales…. tee hee hee !!! )

To Be Continued…..

The River Dee from the Llangollen Bridge

The Llangollen Canal

My new friend StickFace graciously stopped for The Bearded Guy to take his picture

Cool bridge over the Llangollen Canal

Yours Truly almost out of picture (center bottom) walking along the canal

Come on Mum, I missed second breakfast and My tummy is rumbling !

My horse friend pulling a canal boat and hiding behind the guy leading him. That Bearded Guy did not check with Horsies agent first !

The River Dee from the other side of the really old stone bridge

Keeping My Mum safe on the bridge is hard work…Look !!! Isn’t that a sandwich shop over there ?

A shop with a really really long welsh name that most likely sounds like That Bearded Guy sneezed when pronounced !

For the entire set of 25 pictures taken in Llangollen by That Bearded Guy click  >> HERE <<

This is Chopper The Explorer, Grand PooBah of all I survey and King of North Wales, signing off for now…… I raise my Paw and Wag my tail in a *bark out* to my wonderful friend, Debbie with a new last name as of Oct 11, 2008, in Marana/Tucson, AZ !!!!! HellOoOooo and Thank You Debbie Of All Pet Travel ! HelloOoOo and Thank You’s to Rich and Erika, miss and love You’s ! You too,  Carmen,  All of Vail AZ, …. Lots of kisses and Wags.…Hiya’s to Maxx and Duke ! Chopper The Brave ” Going Where No Chihuahua Has Gone Before “