The hills are always better when shared, in this case one of the almost constants on the hills with me is my companion Tonto, hence the blog title. Tonto is a six year old Jack Russell Terrier with one hell of a set of trembly legs, always excited and eager to hit the hills, This guy does double, no, triple the distance that I do. He is either off in front being Pathfinder General or rounding us all up to keep on going. Even when lunch comes around its just more time to play, chase stones, or wave big sticks in peoples faces to get them to play, although tipping the flasks over or upsetting our lunch box,s is not the best way to get people to play. Its no wonder when we eventually get home he sleeps for 48 hours solid! Its a pity the same can't be said of his best friend Patch or tubbs as he is better known to the wider family. This short legged barrel of a fella is a 6 year old Plummer Terrier more at home on the couch than sniffing through the grass. The only thing that sets him to running is the sight of a paraglider which means a walk turns into mountain marathon trying to catch him! However, we all have our gifts and his is swimming (probably cos it takes the weight of his feet!) He will swim all day, his big shovel feet pushing him effortlessly through the water.

For a couple of small terriers they have done quite a few of the big ones in Scotland, Ben Nevis, Cairngorm, Bynack Mor, Bidean Nam Bian, Slioch, Quinag and Buachaille Etive Mor. All of the Beacons east, west and central and have just started out in North Wales. Over the space of the next few pages i will put down as many of those trips, the back packs and day walks as i can as a record for the family and me. There are obviously some trips that the boys don't come on, in particular the winter climbs and scrambles, although i am sure they would like to as the sulks and cold shoulder that often greets my return at the end of the day will testify to! At least if the photographic opportunities or weather are not with me i always know i can get a few shots of the boys up to thier eyeballs in some mountain bog or rolling around the hillside happy as hell. together they can make an average day out on the hill pretty memorable, sometimes i wish i could see things through their eyes. maybe thier blog entries will enlighten us?

TONTO'S TRAILS

It seems I am on the go all the time, everyone telling me to slow down, but I like living life at a hundred miles an hour and id love nothing more than launching into my blog on my mountain trips, however, I think I'd better take time out introduce myself and family before I do, seeing as they all play a part in these trips. My name is Tonto (no I'm not named after the Lone Rangers sidekick, but the dog of the John Smiths Adverts) and I am a 5 year old Jack Russell Terrier, I can't be considered short haired or long haired because there's both! So I usually go for the scruffy look until dad decides its time for a stripping, which is usually once the brown carpet in the living room starts to take on a whitish tinge and everyone starts spitting out two inch hair with their meals.its not just me and dad who hit the hills theres mam and my brother, Patch or as we like to call him Tubbs

Mam tells everyone how much she would rather be gardening/shopping/sleeping/card crafting/ etc but turns up week after week, puffing away muttering under her breath, if there's any left (I think she's really a closet mountaineer and putting it on)

Tubbs - Well what can I say…. Like chalk and cheese we is. He says he isn't fat its just he got little legs and that's why his stomach drags on the floor, so low in fact that when its muddy and cold his willy looks like a dirty carrot! If there is an art to being lazy he is the Rembrandt daddy of them all. Likes nothing more than a good swim if it means he take the weight of his feet and float around, oh and he has an arse to die for, no I really mean that.. one smell of that and you wish you could die!

TONTO