In the Splash Zone

Posted on July 30, 2010 in Dogs Travels - So Cal Video

Drake ran away from me on Sunday. We were near the spot where we’d both been soaked by demon waves the previous Sunday. Twice, we passed the spot — once out to the southeast end of Dog Beach and back again so we could cover the full length of the strand. It was on the way back that he panicked, but not before he attempted to go around the spot by climbing on the landslide of cement fragments.

He climbed high, almost to the rim of the cliff. I lost sight of him and began to call. A passing woman laughed and pointed to where he was, but I couldn’t see him. So I was backtracking, calling loudly, when he shot off the rocks and began zipping like a bullet the way we had come.

“Ah shit,” I said. The concept of “lost dog” flooded my brain. I ran after him, pausing after a few paces to call his name. He stopped abruptly and looked back. I jogged a little farther and called again. Just as fast as he had left me, he zoomed back. There was a mad tumble of legs and arms as I caught him.

“My poor boy,” I cooed and carried him past the spot of frightening memory before putting him back on the sand. A couple of small waves wet his ankles, but he stayed with me the whole way.