Enjoying a Dog Day Afternoon

By Michael Pearlman, 8-23-09

For more than a decade, I lived in a mountain town that accepted canines as more or less furrier people. During my 20s, Jackson Hole ski bum parties I’d find myself at were likely to have more dogs than females present. Aside from Jackson’s popular pathway system, there’s no leash law in Teton County and dogs are welcomed in many community businesses. Labrador retrievers were a ubiquitous breed, suitable for skiing or hiking.

My need for independence and penchant for extended travel had me resisting dog ownership until two years ago, when Lindsay more or less told me she would be getting a dog within a few weeks of moving in with me. We chose a golden retriever, whom we named Neve, in a nod to the Spanish and Italian words for snow. 

When the three of us moved to Sheridan last year, it only took a few walks around our new Wyoming neighborhood for me to realize that we had moved to a different kind of dog community. There are no shortage of dog owners here, but there is a strict leash law and it became obvious that many dogs in our new town spend the majority of their lives in a fenced yard. When I’d ride past on my bicycle, with Neve on a leash, the sound of dogs going ballistic became an regular soundtrack. But yesterday, Sheridan surprised me with a unique opportunity that made me reconsider the city’s attitude towards our canine friends.

Saturday was closing day for Sheridan’s public pool in popular Kendrick Park. Though I’d only managed to use the pool twice over the course of the summer, I regarded it as a wonderful community amenity. It’s large enough to swim laps in (though there are no lanes), has a diving board, waterslide and admission is incredibly cheap. Jackson’s lap and kiddie pools were inside the town’s recreation center, making them more of a winter diversion than a summer cooling-off spot. 

For a whopping 50 cents admission fee, anyone could enjoy the last 45 minutes of the pool season with their dogs. Though the event wasn’t particularly well-advertised, a long line of dogs of all sizes, along with their owners, were waiting in line when we arrived. For Neve, the only thing more desirable than an unlimited food supply is a body of water and a ball to chase into that water. Before she was a year old, we discovered that her eagerness to retrieve a tennis ball translated into a fearlessness that had her leaping Superman-like into most bodies of water.

While I watched with amusement as some owners tried in vain to coax their dogs down the stairs into the shallow end, Neve was busy leaping nonstop into the pool, paddling eagerly and efficiently to retriever her beloved tennis ball. Since she has never used a ladder before, we lifted her out by the scruff of her neck. I had speculated before the event whether dogs would be permitted down the waterslide or on the diving board. The waterslide was closed, but the diving board was open and Neve’s retrieval instincts never wavered when we led her off the diving board. Her running start and full-speed leaps drew praise from other owners and adults. One lifeguard remarked it was only the second dog he’d ever seen that eagerly took air from the diving board.

When the swimming session was over and the pool closed for the season, we leashed the dog and walked through the park with ear to ear smiles. Walking past the groups of teenagers that gather in the park every day in the summer, me made for the park’s ice cream stand that’s only open in the summer. I noticed a sign informing us that on Labor Day, cones would be 50 cents “Until the ice cream is gone.” June seems like it was yesterday, but summer 2009 will soon be a distant memory.

I haven’t bagged any peaks yet this summer or logged very many miles on my mountain bike. But I’m learning to embrace experiences that, while slightly less exciting, are rewarding in a completely different way. While wandering the wilderness is still magical, an evening in the park with your family is an equally great place to spend one’s time.