The weather is getting warmer here in Texas. When most people are looking forward to hitting the beach, Preston’s beach season soon will be over because in a couple of months, it will be too hot for him to enjoy the beach. Mommy and Daddy planned Easter weekend at the beach in Galveston Island, 50 miles southeast of Houston.

A week ago, Preston visited San Antonio for a weekend getaway.
San Antonio is located in the beautiful Texas Hill Country. Mommy and Daddy planned a hiking trip in nearby Government Canyon State Natural Area.
After sharing a Texas-shaped waffle with Mommy, Preston was ready to hit the trail.

The natural vegetation in the Hill Country is sure very different from what Preston used to see in New England.

When the family goes hiking, Daddy is always the pack leader and Preston follows closely behind. When Preston senses that Mommy is falling behind the pack, he slows down his pace and waits for Mommy to catch up. Whenever he does that, his tail also goes from curly and up position to straight and down. His sweet gesture always makes Mommy feel warm and fuzzy inside.

After a day of hiking on Saturday, Preston spent Sunday sightseeing in downtown San Antonio.
Preston couldn’t miss a photo opportunity at The Alamo eventhough he wasn’t allowed to go inside. The Alamo is a very important battle site in Texas history.
The most fun Preston had was at River Walk. It is a network of walkways along the San Antonio River in downtown. There are lots of dog friendly shops and resturants along the walk.

Two of the activities Preston misses the most since moving from New England to Texas are playing in the snow and going hiking. Preston got to do both in his trip to Seattle!
Seattle’s winter is mild and the city doesn’t usually get a lot of snow but a snowstorm hit the Northwest the day after Preston arrived. Preston was out playing in the snow and so were all the kids on the block!

Preston revisited Marymoor Park, the locals call it “Doggy Disneyland”.


When the snow melted three days later, Preston went hiking in Cougar Mountains.


How did Preston warm up after getting out of the icy water?

Preston also visited the famous Pike Place Market in downtown Seattle.

When Preston wasn’t going out, he was obsessed with his new found friend at Grandma and Grandpa’s house.

Preston’s Seattle trip 2007: Sleepless in seattle.

Daddy was attending a conference in Austin, TX last week. Mommy and Preston got to tag along and made it a family trip.
Austin is a very charming city and super dog friendly! Preston’s long-time blogging buddy, Coco the Puggle, lives in Austin. Coco and her mommy Lena told Preston all the fun places to visit in Austin.

Preston was hoping to meet up with Coco but unfortunately, Coco had to stay home since both her Mommy and Daddy had to work. Coco’s mommy Lena works in a very dog friendly fancy shopping center so Preston stopped by and said hello. Lena had told her friends at work all about Preston so when he arrived, he got the “celebrity welcome”. Look how much he enjoyed the attention from all the glamorous ladies at the cosmetic department at Neiman Marcus.

Preston is adjusting well to his new life in Houston.
Mommy and Daddy still have some more pictures to share from the last two days of their recent roadtrip.
As the family drove further south, the temperature and humidity were getting higher. In Atlanta, Mommy had to pour two bottles of water all over Preston (oh, he loved it!) before taking him to Centennial Olympic Park and Coca-Cola Museum to snap a couple of pictures.

Mommy and Daddy were very excited about their next stop – New Orleans, Louisiana! They remembered how happy their tummies were last time they visited this city.
New Orleans is a fun city to visit. French Quarter is always festive!


Preston didn’t get to taste the canjun cuisine Mommy and Daddy had but he wasn’t going to leave New Orleans without at least having a bite of Cafe Du Monde’s beignet!

On day3 of the trip, Preston visited Washington D.C., one of Mommy and Daddy’s favorite cities. Daddy was even considering taking a job here but eventually decided to go to Houston.

The next day Preston arrived in Virginia and continued his journey south through Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park.
The beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains on Skyline Drive.

Mommy and Daddy planned a 3-hour hike in Shenandoah National Park. It is a bear country here so Preston had to be on leash. Mommy and Daddy picked a trail (rose river trail) with streams and waterfalls. They know how much Preston loves the water.


**Reminder** See Preston on TV 7/24 (Sat) 8pm ET/PT (7pm Central) on Animal Planet “Dogs vs. Cats“!

Preston’s road trip is off to a great start.
Preston visited his blogging friend, Oliver Tates, when passing through New Jersey.

Preston also met his 1-year-old cousin Deana for the first time and learned that babies are not as scary as he previously thought. They give treats…very generously.

After leaving New Jersey, Preston’s next stop is Philadelphia.

Of course Philly Cheesesteak is on the must-do list.
Preston is here to settle the famous Philly Cheesesteak rivalry between Geno’s and Pat’s. They are located across the street from each other.
And the verdict is….

After leaving Prince Edward Island, Preston headed towards Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. This is one of the most beautiful places Mommy and Daddy have ever been to. People are very friendly here too. Mommy and Daddy like Nova Scotia so much that they have already talked about going back to see fall foliage next time. Preston spent two days here and had his first encounter with a moose in Cape Breton Highlands National Park.

Hiking with Preston is a lot of fun but Mommy and Daddy have to keep their eyes on him the whole time because he has tons of curiosity and NO fear of heights!

Preston never missed any chances to get his paws wet even when the water was freezing cold!

The last stop on the trip before heading home was Fundy National Park, New Brunswick, Canada. There are lots of trails with great views of Bay of Fundy and waterfalls in the woods.

During the 7-day trip, Preston traveled more than 2200 miles (3500 km) and hiked 11 trails.

It was a wonderful vacation. It rained a couple of days during the trip but it didn’t wash away any fun. Cape Breton Island is such a pretty place to visit. Mommy and Daddy hope after seeing how much fun Preston had, you will want to include Nova Scotia in your next vacation planning.
Here are more photos from the trip. Click ” i ” for captions and “FS” for full-screen view.
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