Sparkly and Sparky the Urban Tracking Detectives
OK, I'll put it right out there. Tracking IS a sickness. I had River and Caden in the car with me tonight, and as I drove past Red Deer College, I noticed that the construction barriers were down and I peeled into the college to see the new building, new parking lot and new road configuration.
I walked nearly two kilometers around the College in the dark investigating new places to track, and took pictures with my cell phone, thinking they would be a good "scientific" file showing features to remember when plannng urban tracks. Well, check out this one...I laughed so hard when I downloaded it...especially because in my mind I wanted to point out the neat brick walkway and swirls leading to a manhole in one of the courtyards.
Seriously, River looks like Al Jolson!
Here is a Google Map showing the east half of the grounds and our path. The top yellow placemarker shows where the new building is located. We went through the garage, and into a courtyard that I have never seen before because of the construction barriers. I was so excited, as I thought it might actually be an opening between buildings. The centre placeholder shows the deadend courtyard. The bottom placeholder marks the sidewalk behind the residence. 
From the courtyard I took this photo looking back towards the new addition - that bright opening that is a white square. This is where I took the photo of River and Caden. You can see the nice brick surface here. You also pass over alternating grass and gravel. Caden has his reflective collar on.
Maybe it is because of the construction, but there is a wire mesh under the gravel that made for an interesting surface - as I tried to take a photo, River and Caden were sniffing away - they always think we are tracking...it is ridiculous to "go for a walk" sometimes.
There is only one place where you can go between two buildings, in the older residence area. Otherwise the college is just a huge blob that you circle around. Not great for serious training if you plan to trial elsewhere. I like Olds College much better for the individual buildings and ability to go through them back and forth.
This is the west half of the walk tonight. I have tracked in these areas a lot, using the soccer field and parking lots and lawns on this side of the college. The east side is much more hard surface. This side of the college has the automatic doors - when we track down that sidewalk, they open - and once, River tried to go into the building! I have only done one track using the neat set of stairs going uphill to a parking lot - marked by a placeholder.
Now I can start Googling new configurations to practice, which is nice because the west side was getting too "samey."
I walked nearly two kilometers around the College in the dark investigating new places to track, and took pictures with my cell phone, thinking they would be a good "scientific" file showing features to remember when plannng urban tracks. Well, check out this one...I laughed so hard when I downloaded it...especially because in my mind I wanted to point out the neat brick walkway and swirls leading to a manhole in one of the courtyards.
Seriously, River looks like Al Jolson!I saw a NEW "open air" garage affair and headed straight for it, in a sort of "tracking trance." It is attached to the College's new Trades and Technology Centre. Construction on this started the month I moved here, August 2008. In the picture below it looks like a tracking "Taj Mahal" all lit up and white!
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Below is my photo of the dogs pulling through. The surface is very nice, round white gravel.
Here is a Google Map showing the east half of the grounds and our path. The top yellow placemarker shows where the new building is located. We went through the garage, and into a courtyard that I have never seen before because of the construction barriers. I was so excited, as I thought it might actually be an opening between buildings. The centre placeholder shows the deadend courtyard. The bottom placeholder marks the sidewalk behind the residence. From the courtyard I took this photo looking back towards the new addition - that bright opening that is a white square. This is where I took the photo of River and Caden. You can see the nice brick surface here. You also pass over alternating grass and gravel. Caden has his reflective collar on.
Maybe it is because of the construction, but there is a wire mesh under the gravel that made for an interesting surface - as I tried to take a photo, River and Caden were sniffing away - they always think we are tracking...it is ridiculous to "go for a walk" sometimes.There is only one place where you can go between two buildings, in the older residence area. Otherwise the college is just a huge blob that you circle around. Not great for serious training if you plan to trial elsewhere. I like Olds College much better for the individual buildings and ability to go through them back and forth.
This is the west half of the walk tonight. I have tracked in these areas a lot, using the soccer field and parking lots and lawns on this side of the college. The east side is much more hard surface. This side of the college has the automatic doors - when we track down that sidewalk, they open - and once, River tried to go into the building! I have only done one track using the neat set of stairs going uphill to a parking lot - marked by a placeholder.Now I can start Googling new configurations to practice, which is nice because the west side was getting too "samey." Below: "Sit, Sparkly, Stay Sparky!" They look like aliens, glowing inside a dog form. I LOVE the eyes!!!!!!!!
What is interesting is that Caden's eyes have way more reflection because he is younger. River at age nine has less "thingamajiggy stuff" so less reflection (what is that stuff? I will have to Google it). I wonder if that makes a difference with her night vision?
Category Article Caden, German Shepherd, River, tracking maps, urban tracking
