Black Magic Woman

About six years ago, a young female Rottweiler was found wandering the canyon. At the time she showed up, there were some workers staying in cabin #76, as they built a retaining wall for John Woodburn. The dog came sniffing around and they fed her table scraps. But it was clear that the dog needed medical attention as she had some severe wounds on her back.

Mike "The Fiddler" Pauro, whose cabin is just upstream from there, took her to the vet for inspection. People had been wondering if the wounds on her back were sunburns from being lost on the road in the summer time, but it was worse than that. The vet said that the wounds were consistent with a hot water scalding. Obviously someone had tortured her or tried to kill her, then dumped her at the end of the road here at Chantry Flat. Mike took care of the vet bills and took her home until he could find and owner for her. That was the start of a long relationship.

Mike jokes that he didn't want a woman in his life, choosing to concentrate on various art projects such as craftsman-style lamps and poetry. But he found companionship and unconditional love in the girl he named Allie. She followed him everywhere. She lived with Mike in town, she went with him to "The River", but of course The Canyon was Allie's favorite place. She would walk up passed The Falls with Mike to a place he calls "Magic". They would always find a cure for writer's block up there.

A couple of months ago, Allie started having problems with her back legs. They were sore and swollen. The edema progressed and eventually she could barely walk. Sue thinks she had a heart disease that was causing this problem. The vet bills were adding up and her condition was worsening in spite of them; and she had no quality of life. So Mike had to make the difficult decision to put her down. She was only about seven years old.

Just recently Mike and his daughter Tina took Allie's ashes up canyon and spread them around Magic. So if you spot a Rottweiler chasing a squirrel into a stand of Maple trees, about halfway between Cascade and Spruce Grove, you'll know she's in Heaven.

Click photo for full image.