Easter sailing holibobs 2013

Woofings! Here in New Zealand we’ve been enjoying the driest, warmest, longest summer, since like, furever!

So at Easter we set sail once again to our favourite spot: Te Kouma, in the Coromandel Peninsula. (Yes, I’ve been here many times, including Summer 2012 and earlier this year too.)

OMD, there are moo-moos on the hills – and on my beach!

I was fascinated by the moo-moos on my beach! We kept a very respectful distance from each other. (I would have loved to say ‘woof day’ to them, but mum and dad kept me away. Spoil sports!)

As you can see in the photo, we had our kayak with us! I repawted to you recently that I am now a kayaking dog, and I did more kayaking these holibobs.

Mum takes me for a spin on the kayak. Look how flat calm the sea is, it’s pawsome!

Round the bay (and round the boat) we go… it’s so pawretty!

Dad took me for a paddle too.

So yes, we did lots of kayaking. But I digress. This blog post is about our Easter holibobs… and you’ll never guess what, the Easter Bunny came to see us in her little rowing boat!

The Easter Bunny brought chocolates for mum and dad! (This is the daughter of a friend of dad’s… they were also spending their Easter holibobs on their boat.)

Chocolate’s no good for dogs, but fear not, my furiends, I did not go hungry. Mum gave me a lovely big bone to nom on! *drools*

All too soon it was time to go home: holibobs are never long enough. Here I am on mum’s lap while she’s steering the boat. If you look carefully, I am so content that my eyes are closed and my tongue is poking out! I was like this for ages, I was totally blissed out!

Bye bye beautiful Coromandel, I’m sure we’ll be back again next summer!

So that was my Easter holibobs!

Good times, my furiend, good times…

Love ‘n’ licks,

To link to this post, use: https://www.minniethewestie.com/easter-sailing-holibobs-2013

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Kayaking dog: Minnie the Westie goes kayaking!

It’s so exciting… Santa brought Mum a kayak for Christmas!!!

(There’s a bit of a story – in cartoon format – about that! You can see it here.)

It was impawtant to Mum that the kayak had enough room for me, so she wanted a sit-on-top one, with plenty of dog space. The kayak also has to be small, so that it fits on our small yacht (sailboat). She got a Viking Pacer kayak, which is made here in New Zealand.

The Viking Pacer kayak fits on the side deck of our Elliott 7.9m (26ft) yacht.

Before taking to the water, Mum read up about taking dogs kayaking. (I’d love to share the links with you, but the web pages no longer exist!)

She also made sure we’d be safe out on the water: both her and I already have life jackets.

A life jacket is essential for kayaking dogs.

If you think that I’m pulling a funny face, you’re right. I hate wearing the life jacket. Orange is so not my colour! Mum says I look cute in it, but I don’t believe her. It’s pawful!

Mum and I on our very first kayak outing together.

Mum has a silly grin… me, I’m not so sure about this kayaking dog thing yet! I stay absolutely stock-still like a little furry statue… I don’t want to rock the boat!

I should add that Mum did kayak around a lot first, before taking me onto the water, and she only takes me when the water is flat calm. She is always safe and careful.

Mum also watched lots of kayaking safety and instructional videos on YouTube at home before the holibobs – her favourite videos are by Paddling TV.

One day Dad made us practice our safety manoeuvres. He made Mum capsize the kayak, and (a) got her to practice the “brace” motion to prevent the capsize; and (b) capsize the kayak properly – and then climb back on it. This was trickier, but she did it!

The next bit, I wasn’t so pleased with: while Mum was in the water near the kayak (and he was on the yacht), Dad put me into the water, while I was wearing my lifejacket, to check that I could swim in it OK. Since he was the one to put me in the water, it was obvious to me which parent I’d swim to for safety – Mum!

I could swim, but it is weird that dog lifejackets have most of their buoyancy on the back, but only neoprene underneath. I hate swimming, and a little more buoyancy would have been nice!

Thankfully no photos were taken of me at this point. I am very very pawleased about that!

Anyway, here is another photo of me and mum kayaking – I’m looking a little more confident now as a kayaking dog!

I am getting more confident as a kayaking dog!

Mind you, I do keep nice and still on the kayak. Besides, it’s quite comfy sitting between Mum’s legs!

Mum takes me for longer paddles now that I’m getting more confident as a kayaking dog.

There are so many pawsome beaches and bays to explore…

We have the whole bay to ourselves at Ponui Island.

Dad joins Mum and I on the beach… he’s arriving in the dinghy.

I’m ready to go back to the yacht now!

Back at the mother ship… and I do believe it is dinner time now! *nom nom nom*

If you want to see more of my summer holibobs photos, here they are:

Summer holibobs 2013: Part 1 – on the boat

Summer holibobs 2013: Part 2 – adventures ashore

That’s all for now – till next time!

Love ‘n’ nose licks,

To link to this post, use: https://www.minniethewestie.com/kayaking-dog-minnie-the-westie-goes-kayaking

Do you enjoy Minnie the Westie cartoons?

Treat yourself (or a loved one) to a book full of smiles!

Go on, buy someone a smile today! 🙂

Birthday holibobs

Apawlogies for being so quiet on my blog recently. We are having the most pawsome summer in New Zealand (in fact, all of the North Island has been declared a drought zone… it’s sunshine, sunshine and more sunshine).

I’ve been spending most weekends cruising (sailing holibobs) with mum and dad on our yacht (sailboat). And that is where I (the real Minnie) celebrated my 7th birthday!

Minnie celebrates her 7th birthday in style on board her yacht!

It’s a dog’s life, eh!

I also got a bone – and 4 walks on the beach… as well as lots of cuddles, of course!

Love ‘n’ nose licks,

To link to this post, use: https://www.minniethewestie.com/birthday-holibobs

Do you enjoy Minnie the Westie cartoons?

Treat yourself (or a loved one) to a book full of smiles!

Go on, buy someone a smile today! 🙂

Summer holibobs 2013: Part 2 – adventures ashore

Woofings and welcome back to my summer holibob photo album!

If you’ve not seen Part 1 yet, it’s here… it’s all about life on board my boat.

In fact, all of the photos in Part 1 were taken at Great Barrier Island (in New Zealand). The photos in Part 2 were all taken at Coromandel Peninsula (New Zealand).

Another day; another bay. I resume my fav position on the cabintop of my boat. It’s cool, breezy, and has a great view!

This bay is so pawretty that I have a big smile on my face!

There are lots of hills for me to run down near this bay… pawfect for a Westie!

Two smiley girls! Mum loves it here too. 🙂

A little while later, daddy gives me a cuddle and a belly rub! Gosh I love holibobs!

It’s a hot day, and I find a nice shady tree to sit under. This is the life!

A few days later, we check out another beach. I love the soft, white sand, it’s so nice under my paws!

Running on this pawretty beach makes me smile! 🙂

Phew, that was hot work! I find a nice shady spot where I can rest and cool down.

Finally, here’s how I get from boat to beach: on the Minnie-Mobile (which has a Minnie-Motor)! Mum and dad take me ashore several times a day. This evening trip ashore was pawticularly pawretty. We get to see lots of lovely sunsets on holibobs on the boat. 🙂

I hope you’ve enjoyed my holibob photos… there’s more to come!

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Love ‘n’ licks,

To link to this post, use: https://www.minniethewestie.com/summer-holibobs-2013-part-2

Summer holibobs 2013: Part 1 – on the boat

Woofings!

Gosh it’s been a while since I last blogged: it’s summer here in New Zealand, and I’ve been enjoying the summer holibobs to the max! The weather has been hot and sunny, so I’ve been chilling out. 🙂

I went away on mum and dad’s yacht (sail boat) for 3 weeks, it was soooo relaxing, and I had lots of pawsome adventures!

In fact, I’ve got so many photos to share with you that I can’t fit them all into one blog post, so I’ll spread them out.

I hope you like them!

Ahoy! And welcome to my yacht! This is my favourite chillaxation spot when we’re at anchor: it’s nice ‘n’ shady, plus there’s a great view. The breeze gently wafts over me, and I get to sniff all the latest sniffs! Pawfect for a westie!

I can also stick my nose over the edge, and keep watch on what’s happening in the cockpit!

Naturally, my beach towel is pink. 🙂 I look very snug and cosy eh!

This is another great spot: near the noms! Mum might think this is her spot, but hey, finders keepers! 😉

I wuff to keep watch on what’s happening in the bay… mum calls me her Baywatch Babe! BOL!

Phew, that was hard work, I’d best have a nap!

Mum’s very good at relaxing on holiday too. Here we are chillaxing together! Mmmm, so comfy…

Whereas mum likes relaxing on holiday, dad is quite active. He had a few attempts at fishing, but the only person to get a fish for dinner was me! (He only managed to catch little bait fish… nommy for me!)

Phew, that was a big day! Lucky I have a nice comfy bunk in the cabin, and my teddy bear to use as a pillow. Zzzzzz….

The next day… Just as well that I have a big mug of coffee to help me wake up!

That’s just Part 1 of my holibob photo album: check out part 2, my adventures ashore!

Love ‘n’ licks,

PS. A final photo, just to show that it wasn’t sunny every day!

We did get one day of rain:

We did have one day of rain on holiday. It was still warm though, so I kept up my Baywatch guard dog duties!

PPS. I have sailing holibobs every year!

To see my entire holibob photo album, check out: https://www.minniethewestie.com/tag/holibobs

To link to this post, use: https://www.minniethewestie.com/summer-holibobs-2013-part-1 ‎