Last Hike With Bailey Tuckerman, Happy Birthday, Sweetie!

After Spreading Bailey's Ashes &
Fur Beneath the Cairn

One view from the Yellow Overlook Cairn that
I call Bailey's Cairn. 

Bailey and me

In the morning, rain soaked the driveway. I left at 7am to have The Rig inspected. Sue Adley at Adley's Auto asked how I was feeling about Bailey--up and down, I said. Her husband, Brad, encouraged me to get out in the van to explore. 

Back at home, I checked the tv weather forecast and saw that the day would turn partly sunny with a chance of evening thundershowers. I immediately realized I could do our birthday hike on Whitecap. 

I removed the screws on Bailey's wooden urn with an electric drill and discovered a fancy, blue-velvet bag. Inside that bag was a plastic bag with his ashes. I used a kitchen spoon to shovel the tiny, stone-like ashes into a sandwich baggie. Then, I added some of the fur I collected from Bailey the morning he died. It's not that I don't trust Final Gift Pet Memorial crematorium in Turner, I just decided to make100% sure that something of Bailey was going to make it to the cairn on the Yellow Trail overlook of Whitecap.

I've been planning this final hike for many years when I started calling the rock pile "Bailey's Cairn." I got a hair bit weepy when I loaded up the back seat of the car with Bailey's leash, harness, and collar.  His remains went into the left-hand, lower pocket of my hiking pants. I wore his leash around my shoulders and attached his harness and collar so they hung down my back. 

I've got a ton of pictures of Bailey at this spot as well as pictures of the two of us. Later (much later, I hope) some of my remains will be poured beneath the rock cairn, too. Nephews Tyler and Fred Kent are in charge. Is that a mistake? Will they leave me in a coffee can at camp until they get motivated to drop me off? Boys, if you're reading this and you haven't done the Uncle Richie deal yet, get your lazy butts up that mountain and place me with Bailey! He's lonely! 

😎