Lupe – Page 318 – The (Mostly) True Adventures of Lupe

Buffalo Peak, Jefferson County High Point, Colorado (11-9-15)

The days aren’t very long in November. Lupe and SPHP should have gotten off to an earlier start. The plan was for Lupe to climb Buffalo Peak (11,589 ft.), the high point of Jefferson County, Colorado. With no trail and over 3,000 feet of elevation gain involved, it was a fairly ambitious plan for this time of year.

SPHP had intended to park the G6 up at Stoney Pass, but just past Wellington Lake there was a creek running across the road. The creek wasn’t very large. It was about a foot deep, and maybe 6 feet wide, as it crossed the road. SPHP stood peering into the clear water. The creek bottom looked flat and smooth and firm. But, what if it wasn’t really? The G6 didn’t have much clearance. If it sank another foot into mud and the engine got wet, Lupe and SPHP were in for an adventure of the wrong sort.

It would probably have been fine to ford the creek with the G6, but SPHP wasn’t going to chance it. Not way out here. SPHP found a place nearby to park. Lupe and SPHP were just going to have to walk the 1.5 miles up the road to Stoney Pass. The only real problem was the time it took. It was already 9:42 AM when Lupe and SPHP left the G6 behind.

Looking NW at **The Castle (9,691 ft.)** near Wellington Lake as Lupe starts for Buffalo Peak.

It was a beautiful, clear and calm day as Lupe crossed the little creek, and started up the road for Stoney Pass. It was already 45°F. Back in Arvada, where Lupe was staying with cousin Dusty while on vacation in Colorado, it was supposed to get into the low 60’s. It wouldn’t get that warm out here, though, not way up on Buffalo Peak. Even so, at least weather wasn’t going to be an issue.

SPHP reached Stoney Pass after a trudge up the road. Lupe had already been busy racing around in the forest sniffing everything of interest. Now it was time to leave the road together and plunge into a dense forest. The plan was to reach the summit of Buffalo Peak by following a ridge from the NE. SPHP already knew there was no trail, that the mountain was heavily forested, and that the ridge wasn’t all that distinct.

The topo map showed the climb up would be pretty relentless, although there were some flatter areas near the top. SPHP wondered if there would be any viewpoints along the way. It would sure help to be able to catch a glimpse of the summit every now and then, just to make certain Lupe was going the right way.

Despite the possible obstacles, SPHP felt pretty confident Lupe was going to reach the top. Lupe showed no concerns, whatsoever. It was just another big, fun romp in the woods to her. As Lupe started the climb, SPHP wondered what the summit would be like. Would it even be worth the effort to get there? From a distance, Buffalo Peak had looked like just a big forested hump. Would there be any place from which to get a view? Or would Lupe’s efforts just end at a high spot in a forest that looked like the entire rest of the mountain?

There hadn’t been any snow at Stoney Pass, but as Lupe climbed, she started encountering a thin layer of snow. SPHP worried that Lupe was going too far to the W instead of heading SW. Lupe didn’t really seem to be up on a ridge. The blue sky seen between the trees above was always hundreds of feet higher than where Lupe and SPHP were. There was little deadfall timber at first, but as Lupe went on, gradually there was more. Most of it was pretty small stuff, though, so it wasn’t much of a hindrance.

Lupe climbed a very long way before she finally came to a big rock outcropping. SPHP was eager to see what could be seen from the other side. Lupe and SPHP found a way through to the SW side of the rock outcropping. The view wasn’t all that encouraging. Farther off to the W than SPHP had been hoping was what might be a part of Buffalo Peak near the summit. To the SW was a little valley, and beyond it another ridge. Now SPHP wasn’t even sure Lupe had been following the correct ridge up.

Intrepid American Dingo Lupe reaches the first big rock outcropping on her journey up Buffalo Peak.

This view to the W toward the general direction of the summit of Buffalo Peak from the 1st big rock outcropping wasn’t too encouraging.

The first big rock outcropping as seen from the S.

To the S of the first big rock outcropping, Lupe passed through a nearly level area. She headed for the next ridge that SPHP had seen ahead. She climbed several hundred feet up it to find a 2nd big rock outcropping. The views from here were a little more encouraging. What SPHP believed was the summit area was now at least in clear view.

Part of the 2nd big rock outcropping Lupe reached.

Buffalo Peak from the 2nd rock outcropping. Photo looks SW.

A glimpse at mountains to the WNW from the 2nd big rock outcropping.

Lupe had to head S down into another valley from the 2nd big rock outcropping. When the land started rising again on the other side of the valley, Lupe and SPHP faced another long climb. The snow got deeper. Maybe SPHP was just getting tired, but the climb seemed to go on and on. Except at the rock outcroppings, it was difficult to have much sense of where one was in the snowy forest.Finally, Lupe reached a viewpoint on the N side of the mountain. SPHP isn’t certain about it, but this may have been the high point marked on the Peakbagger.com topo map as point 10,778. Wherever Lupe was, there were some impressive views to the N from this high point.

Looking down to the N toward Wellington Lake (Center) and The Castle (L).

Looking NE toward Green Mountain. — Looking NE toward **Green Mountain** **(10,421 ft.)**. Stoney Pass and the road where Lupe came from are way back down at the base of Green Mountain.

If Lupe was at point 10,778, there was still another 800 feet of elevation left to be gained. Lupe and SPHP headed SW still climbing, but the mountain was no longer as steep as it had been. The going was easier. The main concern was the time. SPHP knew that Lupe had to hurry if she was going to make it to the summit of Buffalo Peak, and still have enough daylight to make it back down to the road at Stoney Pass.

After climbing and heading SW for a considerable distance, Lupe emerged into a little open area where the ground was flat. Here it was possible to catch a glimpse of mountains to the S between the trees. Lupe had to be getting close to the summit of Buffalo Peak. There couldn’t be an awful lot of elevation left to gain.

Lupe emerged into this flat little clearing high up on Buffalo Peak. Mountains to the S could be glimpsed between the trees.

Lupe and SPHP turned W from the little clearing. Lupe hurried onward, but it was still farther to the summit than SPHP realized. Lupe would have to gain more elevation and cover more ground, if she wanted to reach the top. At a bigger opening in the forest, the summit area was still ahead and higher up.

Looking W across the 2nd larger clearing toward the summit of Buffalo Peak.

SPHP knew it was decision time. Although the sun wouldn’t set for close to 2 hours yet, Lupe would need all that time, plus any twilight, to get back down to Stoney Pass. Continuing onward clearly meant breaking the rule. The rule is that Lupe and SPHP are supposed to turn around in time to be able to reach a road or trail before dark from which SHPH knows for certain the way back to the G6.

As far as complying with the rule goes, it doesn’t matter if the road or trail to the G6 is a long one. It’s perfectly fine if Lupe has to spend a few hours of the night getting back to the car. Darkness isn’t the problem. Not knowing the way to go in the darkness is….

Buffalo Peak is a big mountain. It is heavily forested, and the forest offers few views even in the daytime. There is no trail. Except near the top, the mountain sides are fairly steep. It was November. There were a lot of good reasons for Lupe to abandon the attempt on Buffalo Peak and turn around.

On the other hand, the summit of Buffalo Peak wasn’t much farther. Lupe was very close to it compared to all the distance she had already come. SPHP decided to break the rule.

SPHP reasoned that even though it was going to get dark before Lupe reached Stoney Pass, she would have enough daylight and twilight to retrace most of the way back to the road. Once darkness descended, Lupe could just head directly for Green Mountain. She would inevitably reach the road, even if she didn’t hit it right at Stoney Pass. In a sense, the route was known. It just wasn’t a trail or road.

Lupe continued onward. The snow was 6″ deep in the forest near the summit. At first, SPHP wasn’t even certain this was the summit of Buffalo Peak. SPHP was surprised by what Lupe found in the forest. Ahead was a 30 or 40 foot high ridge of rounded red rocks and boulders. To the NE, the forested ground was steeper than expected. To the SW, there was – nothing? SPHP couldn’t get a clear view over there, but it seemed like there might be a cliff.

The ridge ran SE/NW. There was no easy way up it from the SE end where Lupe first reached it. Lupe and SPHP worked around to the NW along the NE side of the ridge. Before long there was a place where Lupe could climb up. When SPHP got up there, the view was both fantastic and concerning.

From the narrow, rocky ridge, there were fabulous views in every direction except to the NE, which was hidden by the forest. SPHP’s earlier concerns that Lupe would climb all the way up Buffalo Peak to see nothing but trees was totally unjustified. The top of Buffalo Peak offers splendid views.

Looking SW at remote snowy mountains from Buffalo Peak.

From Buffalo Peak, Lupe could see Cheesman Lake to the SE. Beyond the lake was Thunder Butte, the high point of Douglas County, which Lupe had climbed just 3 days earlier. Thunder Butte and Sheep Nose looked so tiny from up on Buffalo Peak! — From Buffalo Peak, Lupe could see Cheesman Lake to the SE. Beyond the lake was **Thunder Butte (9,836 ft.)** (on L), the high point of Douglas County, which Lupe had climbed just 3 days earlier. Thunder Butte and **Sheep Nose (8,894 ft.)** looked so tiny from up on Buffalo Peak!

The object of concern was to the NW. In that direction there was clearly a break in the ridge. Beyond the break, the ridge continued. What concerned SPHP was that the ridge was clearly a little higher beyond the break. Lupe was not yet at the true summit of Buffalo Peak. It was going to take more time for Lupe and SPHP to work their way back down and around through the snow, deadfall and boulders to reach the true summit.

Looking NW along the ridge line on Buffalo Peak. Beyond Lupe is a break in the ridge. The true summit is past the break. Lupe and SPHP would have to spend more time climbing back down and then up again to get over there. — Looking NW along the ridge line on top of Buffalo Peak. Beyond Lupe is a break in the ridge. The true summit is past the break. Lupe and SPHP would have to spend more time climbing back down and then up again to get over there.

Well, there was nothing to do, but spend the time necessary to reach the true summit. Lupe and SPHP carefully climbed back down to the NE off the ridge. It only took 10 minutes or so even with the snow, deadfall, and rocky terrain to get over to the higher NW part of the ridge. Lupe and SPHP were soon up on top of it. SPHP was very happy to find a register and a USGS Benchmark. Lupe had made it to the very top of Buffalo Peak!

Lupe astride the true summit of Buffalo Peak, the high point of Jefferson County, Colorado. The blue top of the registry container is seen below her.

Buffalo Peak is also known as Freeman Peak. This is one of two USGS Benchmarks Lupe found on Buffalo Peak. This one was near the registry container.

Lupe and SPHP were soon signed in on the registry. It was fun to see that Lupe’s blogging and peakbagging acquaintances Beth & Sprocket from 3UpAdventures had been here over a month earlier on 10-2-15. (Those two peakbagging maniacs had also signed the Thunder Butte registry the same day!) Lupe had the good fortune to briefly meet Beth & Sprocket in person (in Dingo?) back in the Flat Top Mountains in August, 2015.

Beth & Sprocket of 3UpAdventures were here on 10-2-15!

After registering, it was time for a little break. Lupe gobbled up most of the Taste of the Wild supply. SPHP hadn’t bothered to bring any human food along. SPHP eyed the remaining Taste of the Wild, but decided to save it for later. At least there was plenty of water. Lupe wasn’t drinking much since she prefers to eat snow. After a short rest, it was final summit photos time. The Carolina Dog was quite willing to add a little canine interest to some of the shots.

There wasn't much time for taking breaks up on Buffalo Peak, but Lupe took a short one. Photo looks toward the wild country to the WNW. — There wasn’t much time for taking breaks up on Buffalo Peak, but Lupe took a short one after gobbling up most of the Taste of the Wild supply. A dingo gets hungry climbing mountains! Photo looks toward the wild country to the WNW.

Wellington Lake from the top. Photo looks N.

Looking NNW. — Looking NNW with the telephoto lens.

Lupe near the 2nd USGS Benchmark. (Near her left front paw.)

After all the time and effort it took to get up here, it was a shame to have to leave so soon, but it was important to get as far down the mountain as possible before the light was all gone. SPHP was glad the snow was around on the way down. Lupe and SPHP followed their tracks back down the mountain for a long way, before SPHP lost them for the final time.

The sun went down. The twilight faded. The mountain and the forest went on and on. The deadfall, which hadn’t seemed too bad on the way up, seemed more prevalent, larger and troublesome on the way down. The slopes seemed steeper in the darkness. Still, Lupe succeeded in losing a tremendous amount of elevation before it was so dark the flashlight had to come out. By that time, SPHP thought Lupe must already be getting close to Stoney Pass.

SPHP was wrong. Down, down, down went the dingo in the dark. Lupe and SPHP headed for the black outline of Green Mountain against the stars. It was the only thing that showed the way. Once SPHP distinctly heard voices. SPHP must have been losing it. There was no one out here. Suddenly a big bird flew away with a great deal of noisy fluttering. Lupe had passed beneath its perch.

Finally the steep slopes grew less steep. Lupe and SPHP emerged from the forest into a small grassy and level valley. A low dark ridge loomed ahead. There didn’t seem to be a road. Green Mountain was out of sight. Just great! No telling which way to go. It didn’t make sense. SPHP shone the little flashlight around.

A small patch of light similar to others on the aspen trees nearby looked a little different. It looked a little like it was reflective. Lupe and SPHP headed toward it. Soon it was clear that it was indeed reflective. There was some kind of sign. Before SPHP even reached it, Lupe found the road. A little wandering around in the grassy valley brought Lupe to a familiar spot. She had come down the huge mountain in the darkness to arrive just 150 feet NW of Stoney Pass.

No worries now. Everything was cool. Lupe and SPHP headed NW down the road. Although it was only 1.5 miles back to the G6, it seemed to take a longer than it should. Time always seems to go by very slowly in the dark. Lupe crossed the little creek that had prevented the G6 from reaching Stoney Pass. In just a couple of minutes, she was at the G6. It was 7:17 PM and 30°F.

It was after 9:00 PM by the time Lupe and SPHP were back at cousin Dusty’s house in Arvada. SPHP served up some Alpo for Lupe and Dusty. Andrea had a roast, potatoes, carrots, and onions ready and waiting in the crock pot. SPHP wasn’t going to have to finish Lupe’s Taste of the Wild after all.

Lupe on Buffalo Peak, the Jefferson County, Colorado high point.

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Black Hills, SD Expedition No. 148 – Smith Mountain, Flag Mountain & Campaign Hill (12-5-15)

The Black Hills experienced a cold snap over Thanksgiving and the following long weekend. Several nights there was light snow. At the very end of November, there was about 4″ of additional new snow overnight at Lupe’s house. Then it started to warm up. SPHP decided to wait for a few days to let some of the snow melt before Lupe’s next expedition.

Finally, on December 5th, Lupe and SPHP headed out for adventure again. Lupe was excited. She could hardly wait. At 9:29 AM, SPHP parked the G6 at the Newton Lake trailhead. It was 37 °F and overcast. Lupe leaped over SPHP to get out of the G6 at the first possible moment. She was expecting great things!

SPHP had 4 peakbagging goals in mind for Lupe. The first was Smith Mountain (5,897 ft.), which was very close at hand. Soon Lupe and SPHP were heading up the fairly steep NE slope. It was very slow going. There was still some snow on the ground, which made it a bit slippery. The real problem, though, was the terrible condition of the forest. There were lots of dead trees, killed by the pine bark beetles, that had fallen over.

For SPHP, it was a struggle getting over, under or around all the deadfall timber. At one point, SPHP lifted Lupe over a dangerous barbed wire fence that was partially collapsed by the dead trees. Lupe only needed to gain a little over 600 feet of elevation to get up on the ridge, but it was taking SPHP a long time to get up there. Finally, the ground began to level out a bit, and there was somewhat less deadfall around.

View from the upper NE slopes of Smith Mountain looking SE towards Harney Peak. There is less deadfall timber here than lower down.

Once Lupe and SPHP were up on the ridge, the going was a bit easier. The deadfall wasn’t quite as bad, and the ground wasn’t so steep. Lupe and SPHP reached the ridgeline near the N end of Smith Mountain. There was a series of rock outcroppings spaced out along the ridge as Lupe headed S toward the summit.

Lupe on one of the rock outcroppings near the N end of Smith Mountain. It took so long for SPHP to get up here, by now the formerly overcast skies were almost clear. It was going to be a beautiful day! Photo looks W or SW.

Here Lupe is shown at another rock outcropping farther S on Smith Mountain. At first, SPHP thought this might be the true summit, but it wasn't. — Here Lupe is shown at another rock outcropping farther S on Smith Mountain. At first, SPHP thought this might be the true summit, but it wasn’t.

Lupe up on the false summit of Smith Mountain. Despite the pine bark beetle carnage, there were still too many trees standing to permit any really decent distant views.

The Smith Mountain ridge runs N/S for about a mile. The ridge was all forested, and provided only occasional glimpses of distant hills. It was pretty easy going along the ridge, since it was plenty wide. Although it went up and down some, it was overall pretty level. Lupe found the true summit of Smith Mountain at a big rock outcropping a bit S of the mid-point along the ridge.

Lupe reaches the true summit of Smith Mountain.

Although the highest rock on Smith Mountain was too steep for Lupe to reach the tippy top, she got pretty close. Close enough for Dingo work!

SPHP reached up to touch the top of the closest high rock. It was still a foot or two below the very highest point. Lupe and SPHP are both claiming success, though.

With her Smith Mountain peakbagging goal accomplished, Lupe continued S along the Smith Mountain ridge. It was easier going along in here, since there wasn’t nearly so much deadfall. This part of the forest seemed to have been thinned by loggers some years ago. Whatever the reason, the forest was in better condition. SPHP was a bit surprised to find some big rock outcroppings near the S end of the mountain, but is pretty certain they weren’t quite as high as the rocks farther N.

Lupe’s 3 remaining peakbagging goals were all mountains along a line S of Smith Mountain. Her next goal was Flag Mountain (5,896 ft.). To get to Flag Mountain, Lupe went down the S end of Smith Mountain, and crossed Patterson Creek. Patterson Creek isn’t very large, and didn’t have much flow at this time of year. Lupe and SPHP had no problem crossing it. S of Patterson Creek, Lupe started climbing the N slope of Flag Mountain.

Lupe on her way to Flag Mountain, seen to the S in the background. Lupe is developing a habit of taking picture time very seriously, kind of like they did back in the late 1800's. Here she strikes her very best stiff and serious historic 1870 Carolina Dog pose. She often starts smiling again as soon as SPHP turns off the camera. It's a bit frustrating sometimes! — Lupe on her way to Flag Mountain, seen to the S in the background. Lupe is developing a habit of taking picture time very seriously, kind of like they did back in the late 1800’s. Here she strikes her very best stiff and serious historic 1870 Carolina Dog pose. She often starts smiling again as soon as SPHP turns off the camera. It’s a bit frustrating sometimes!

The last part of the climb up Flag Mountain was the steepest. There was snow again on the N slope, but only a couple of inches. The situation on Flag Mountain was the reverse of what it had been on Smith Mountain. Most of the deadfall timber was up on the highest slopes. The first part of the climb went fast, but the last part was slow.

Despite the deadfall, Lupe and SPHP reached the top of Flag Mountain. Lupe had accomplished her 2nd peakbagging goal of the day. It was time for a break. Lupe had some water and a bit of Taste of the Wild. She licked herself for a few minutes, and laid down to rest, but SPHP didn’t think a thing of it.

The top of Flag Mountain is pretty flat. Unlike Smith Mountain, Flag Mountain is not a long ridge. There is no chance of mistaking the summit. Toward the E is a spacious open grassy area. The actual highest point is over at some slightly higher rocks toward the W.

There are trees around the summit, some of them dead, which effectively block the views from Flag Mountain in most directions. However, there were really nice open views to the SE toward Harney Peak (7,242 ft.) from the grassy area. There was also a pretty good view to the NW, from the highest rocks at the W end of the summit area.

Lupe reaches the grassy area at the E end of the top of Flag Mountain. Photo looks SE toward Harney Peak. — Lupe reaches the grassy area at the E end of the top of Flag Mountain. Photo looks SE toward Harney Peak, the highest point on the horizon.

Harney Peak from Flag Mountain. The E part of the top of Campaign Hill, Lupe's 3rd peakbagging goal of the day is seen in the foreground on the R. — Harney Peak from Flag Mountain. The E part of the top of Campaign Hill, Lupe’s 3rd peakbagging goal of the day, is seen in the foreground on the R.

Lupe on the highest rocks on Flag Mountain. Photo looks NW.

Lupe had now completed 2 of her 4 peakbagging goals of the day. Her next goal wasn’t very far away. Just to the S of Flag Mountain is Campaign Hill (5,800 ft.). Campaign Hill isn’t quite as high as Flag Mountain, so it didn’t look like a very impressive goal. Due to the trees, it was hard to get a very good look at it, except from the very SE edge of the summit on Flag Mountain.

Since the sun stays pretty low this time of year, even at mid-day it always feels like sunset isn’t very far off. Lupe and SPHP enjoyed a little time up on Flag Mountain, but didn’t linger up there too long before Lupe began descending the SW slope. She only had to lose a few hundred feet of elevation to get down to the saddle between Flag Mountain and Campaign Hill.

Down at the saddle, there was a USFS road junction. USFS Road No. 727 passes through the gap between the two mountains. No. 727.1F branches off to head N on the W side of Flag Mountain. Lupe crossed No. 727, and started climbing directly up the N slope of Campaign Hill. It was fairly steep, especially near the top. Again there was some snow, but SPHP was glad that this time there wasn’t much of the pesky deadfall timber. Lupe was soon up on the highest rocks at the E end of Campaign Hill.

Lupe reaches the highest rocks at the E end of Campaign Hill. This was not the true summit.

There were too many trees near the rocks at the E end of the Campaign Hill ridge to really see much. It proved not to be the true summit anyway. Lupe headed W along the ridge, which soon turned SW, and came to a big rock that was clearly higher. Beyond it was a grouping of rocks that were even higher yet. This was the true summit of Campaign Hill.

SPHP had to lift Lupe up to get her up on top of the true summit. The entire Campaign Hill ridge, which wasn’t terribly long, was all pretty heavily forested. There weren’t really hardly any views. There was a glimpse of Harney Peak, though, from where Lupe was up on top.

An American Dingo is just visible peering out from the rocks on top of Campaign Hill.

Lupe was very good about staying up on top of Campaign Hill for photos while SPHP scrambled around on the rocks below for position.

Usually Lupe just jumps down off rocks, when SPHP says it is OK after taking photos. The rocks up on Campaign Hill were a bit high, however. Lupe waited for SPHP to come back up to help get her down off the rocks. She was reluctant to jump down. Again, SPHP thought nothing of it.

Lupe’s 4th and last peakbagging goal of the day was Peak 6048, about a mile to the S of Campaign Hill. The sun was definitely getting lower, so Lupe was soon on her way. She enjoyed running around in the slanting sunlight filtering through the forest, as she and SPHP continued S along the ridge. Near the lowest saddle on the way to Peak 6048, there was a little opening with a glimpse of Peak 6048 ahead. It wasn’t going to be long before Lupe would be up there!

Looking S at Peak 6048, the high point on the L. Lupe would be there soon, to complete her 4th peakbagging goal of the day!

Except Lupe never made it to Peak 6048. Lupe raced ahead of SPHP into a thick forest of small trees at the low point of the saddle. When she came out again, suddenly SPHP saw red. There was blood between Lupe’s hind legs! SPHP made Lupe stop and lay down. SPHP lifted up a hind leg. There was a gash at least 2 inches long where her left hind leg and abdomen meet. A big area of flesh was exposed where the skin was peeled back.

Fortunately, it didn’t look like anything other than the skin had been pierced or torn. Lupe wasn’t bleeding much, and she could still walk and run around. In fact, if SPHP hadn’t seen the blood, there wasn’t anything at all alarming about her behavior. She showed no sign of pain or distress. She didn’t want SPHP to touch the wound, though. It had to hurt!

Expedition No. 148 was essentially over. There would be no continuing on to Peak 6048. The only thing left to do was to get Lupe back to the G6. She needed to see a veterinarian ASAP. It was 5 miles back to the G6 along the only road SPHP was certain about. Before heading for the G6, though, it was time for first aid! Lupe had been hurt back on Expedition No. 135. Since then SPHP has been carrying bandages and gauze in case of an emergency.

SPHP tried a bandage first. Lupe was cooperative and let SPHP work on her, but the bandage was of no real use. Lupe’s fur was kind of long where her wound was, and the bandage wouldn’t stick to the wound. It stuck to her fur, but hung below her belly. The bandages were going to be useless without a way to shave the fur off around the wound.

SPHP tried using gauze wrapped up over Lupe’s back to hold the bandage in place closer to the wound. This would have worked, but it didn’t feel right to Lupe. She took a few steps and sat down. She just looked piteously at SPHP and refused to move. Maybe it hurt. Maybe it just felt weird. Probably both. Whatever. It was clear Lupe would not go on under her own power with the gauze wrapped around her like that. SPHP took the gauze off.

Injured Lupe with gauze wrapped around her back. She refused to move with it on.

What had happened to Lupe? SPHP didn’t see the injury occur, but it is almost certain she was impaled by a sharp broken limb sticking up from one of the hundreds of deadfall trees she had jumped over. It is a constant threat in the Black Hills these days. Perhaps the original injury was small, but once the wound was opened, it would have been easy for the edges of the broken skin to get caught on other sticks and twigs and tear further each time.

Thinking back, SPHP wondered if Lupe hadn’t been injured coming over the deadfall timber while climbing Flag Mountain. She had licked the area where the wound was up on top of Flag Mountain during her break. Up on Campaign Hill, she hadn’t wanted to jump down off the rocks like she usually does. Perhaps the poor injured Carolina Dog had been putting on a brave front for quite some time.

She was still putting on a brave front. Once the gauze was off, she was ready to go again. With nothing to protect her belly where the wound was, though, it was vitally important to stay away from any more deadfall timber. The last thing she needed was to get the broken skin caught on anything else and torn some more. Lupe needed to get to a road.

Lupe and SPHP headed down through the forest to the W of the saddle. Fortunately, USFS Road No. 727 wasn’t very far away. Lupe and SPHP reached the road very quickly. Lupe followed it N. She took No. 727.1F at the intersection between Flag Mountain and Campaign Hill, staying W of Flag Mountain.

No. 727.1F ended before reaching Patterson Creek. Lupe and SPHP had to continue off-road down to the creek. Fortunately, there wasn’t much deadfall in this area. N of the creek was another road, USFS Road No. 386.1B. Lupe and SPHP had explored No. 386.1B once before heading around the W side of Smith Mountain on a prior expedition. Upon reaching the road, SPHP stopped and looked at the map.

It was still close to 4 miles back to the G6 by the route around the W side of Smith Mountain. The map showed No. 386.1B also curled around the E side of the mountain, though, too. It didn’t show the E route going all the way to the highway, but it looked like it got pretty close. The E route would be less than half as long. It might easily save 1.5 hours, if it worked.

It was hard to know what to do. If the E route ended in a tangle of deadfall, Lupe and SPHP would have to come all the way back. She would then still have go clear around the W side of Smith Mountain. On the other hand, time was of the essence. Just because Lupe seemed happy enough didn’t mean things were fine. With nothing protecting the open wound, no doubt infection was setting in. The longer it took to get to the vet, the worse it would be for Lupe.

The road to the E looked pretty good. SPHP hesitated only a minute or two, before Lupe and SPHP took it. Thankfully, the shortcut worked. At 4:10 PM, Lupe was back at the G6. SPHP drove her directly to the Emergency Veterinary Hospital in Rapid City. Emergency veterinarian Dr. David Christensen saw Lupe almost right away. She was soon led away for wound cleaning, anesthesia, and stitches.

SPHP waited for Lupe to return. And waited. And waited. The clinic staff and Dr. Christensen were busy early on a Saturday evening. A woman brought in a black and white dog that was trembling all over. She thought her dog had been poisoned. A man brought in a little white dog that had a badly abscessed tooth. One side of its face was all bloody.

Eventually, a staff member told SPHP that Lupe was waking up from the anesthesia, and it would be another 5 or 10 minutes. Nearly an hour passed, though, with no further word. Finally, Lupe returned. She was walking, but looked dazed from the experience. Her fur on her chest was all wet from drooling. She was all stitched up, though! She was going to be fine!

Lupe's stitches the morning after Expedition No. 148. Her abdomen was red and swollen. She is on antibiotics for the infection, and gets a beef flavored pain killer, too. — Lupe’s stitches the morning after Expedition No. 148. Her abdomen was red and swollen. She is on antibiotics for the infection, and gets a beef flavored pain killer, too.

Oh, no! It's the return of Cone-On the Luparian! Sigh..... — Oh, no! It’s the return of Cone-On the Luparian! Sigh…..

Stay tuned! I will return with more American Dingo adventures very soon! — Stay tuned! I will be back with more American Dingo adventures very soon!

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