Concerts in the Park

The city of Huntsville sponsors a weekly "Concerts in the Park" event during the summer. The performers set up on the back deck of the Huntsville Museum of Art and people bring folding chairs and picnic meals and dogs. Some people dance. This week there were 2 acts: Mambo Gris Gris and the Rocket City Jazz Orchestra. 

Mambo Gris Gris (web page) was good fun, playing latin flavored dance music. They had a great sax player and Huntsville string master Jim Cavendar on electric bass (who's guitar work with the Rolling Jazz Review is always amazing, if you get a chance to see that band).

The Rocket City Jazz Orchestra (web page) played second and covered a range of big band and swing tunes, both with and without a vocalist. The vocalist did a great job with the appropriate tune, "Summertime, from Porgy & Bess.

Hampton Cove Kayak Adventures

• We decided to try out canoeing so we rented canoes to take a 2.5 hour trip along the Flint River.
• HCKA (facebook page) was great dropping us off and picking us up at the end of our trip. 
• The Flint River was definitely a challenge with lots of debris and fallen trees in our path. 
• We definitely had a lot of flexibility with the canoe in getting in and out of the canoe, which we needed to do more than once due to the water hazards. "Do Not Lean," however, was a mantra to Dee as we avoided spiders, submerged tree, and overgrown areas.
• Definitely a trip worth taking as long as you are aware it's not a lazy, stress free trip. 

Chattanooga Downtown Kayak Adventure

Chattanooga Downtown Kayak Adventure

• We had a fantastic time taking the kayak tour of downtown Chattanooga offered by Outdoor Chattanooga.
• The tour lasted about two hours and went at a very slow pace. 
• We learned about some local history, viewed a blue heron rookery, and did some wonderful bird watching. 
• We can't wait to get Otis out on the water in our very own kayak!

Ditto Landing

Ditto Landing

• We love to go with Otis & Beans to Ditto Landing. It is in south Madison County in Huntsville and midway on the Tennessee River.
• Ditto Landing has a marina, picnic grounds, and a camping area. We like to picnic beside the river and walk along the river watching the boats go by. 

Lookout Mountain, TN

Ruby Falls

• We crowded into the underground maze to view the falls and took a mile-long walk inside the mountain. We enjoyed seeing all the rock formations and learning the history about the mountain. The caverns were once used as a hospital during wartime.
• The site is not pet-friendly and not for someone who cannot hold their bladder. No restrooms are available during the hour-long tour. 

Rock City

• We absolutely loved visiting this tourist attraction that also happens to be pet-friendly. 
• The rock gardens were beautiful and views just amazing. 
• Atop the mountain, we were able to see 7 different states. 

Georgia Aquarium

• The Georgia Aquarium is a great place to go if you buy your tickets ahead of time and get in as early as you can, otherwise you are waiting for hours with very little shade.
• It's not pet-friendly, but inside the Aquarium, we enjoyed seeing the Dolphin Show and all the various marine life including the beluga whales. 
• Centennial Olympic Park is pet-friendly, but we went when it was so hot outside that the park was not even people-friendly. 

my favorite whale shark photo with the people silhouettes in the foreground giving scale

Piranha!

Whale Shark

Someone has to clean out the penguin habitat... good job for an intern.

UFO..... no, actually its a jellyfish. Eastern Sea Nettle to be exact.

Dauphin Island

• Dauphin Island is a great place to visit if you want quiet time on the beach with your friends & family.
• The island doesn't have many restaurants or stores, so it's also a good place to go if you are content to eat in a lot. 
• We stayed in a pet-friendly rental called Safari Island. It was just perfect for our little tribe. 
• Most of the time the weather was great and Otis & Beans romped in the sand & surf with us on the pet-friendly beach. Pugs can't take the heat, so Otis could not stay out long. Otis is also a little afraid of water. He did swim, but only to get out as fast as possible. Beans, on the other hand, loved to run in the sand, go crabbing, and swim.