#flatmarley 2013

Hello my dear friends, it's me Clapton.......one of the many things that Marley left for me to do when he passed OTRB last year was to continue the #flatmarley fun...and so I am announcing the start of the 2013 season. For those of you who have not played before,  you can see a link to the rules of the game at the top of this page or over there on the right......it's very simple...just download one of the pictures of Marley over there on the right ------> and print it out...take it with you as you go on holiday or to fun events and take photos of Marley along the way then email them to me at marleyterrier57 at googlemail dot com and we will feature them in a blog post....we ask our friends to donate a little money to the Dogs Trust for the fun of playing the game...you can do that by pressing the Just Giving button over there on the right hand side of the blog.....and again this year I will ask the Typist will donate 50p to Terrier Rescue for every pound that you donate to Dogs Trust....any questions?

If you are still puzzled by what we are doing then check out some of the older posts below....and just to make sure it's clear to you all I asked a couple of my border terrier friends to take me, Clapton, on their recent holidays in a mini-game of #flatclapton....

Miss Tilly (@whatwecalltilly) sent me off to Morocco with her ma and pa to join the adventure to climb Mount Toubkal, the highest mountain in the Atlas Mountains, North Africa, at 4,167m above sea level....eeek!  I went away with a group of experienced and hardy climbers called Jo (Tilly’s mum), Andy, Steve, Anna, Joe, Hannah, Maisie, Toby, David, Rich, John and Old John....

EasyJet like my pass-pawt...

We spent a few days in Marrakesh soaking up the atmosphere of the Souks. The main square (Djemaa el Fna) was so busy and full of people with minarets on all sides….not a place for a small flat terrier! The snakes charmers and monkey tamers were particularly scary so I hid in Jo’s rucksack.

The stalls in the Souks were fantastic. So many good things to see and eat and sniff….

We stopped for lunch in a balcony café and partook of the local brew of mint tea. Took a while to get the taste but very refreshing on a hot day in the mountains.

I met a chap who is the locksmith to the king and makes handmade locks which were fantastic. Such a nice old chap too.

From Marrakesh we took a taxi ride up to Imlil at 1740m above sea level. This is where the treking started. We had mules to take our overnight bags up to the refuge. I had to help load the bags…the mules are so strong!

The first day’s walking was nice and steady, on nice easy tracks, up to the first refuge (as 2550m) for a couple of nights and acclimatisation walks.

I made friends with some local goats who came to see us at lunchtime, just like dogs would do at home. They were happy to have a cuddle (and some lunch).

This is a spectacular frozen waterfall we climber past on our way to the second hut. 

And then at the top of the pass, we got our first view of Mount Toubkal.

The second hut was at 3207m just at the foot of the Mount Toubkal. 

We started our ascent the next day. The view at the top was fantastic. I could see right over to the Sahara Desert which was weird looking at sand dunes when you’re wearing crampons and wielding an ice axe!?!

At the top of the mountain is their weird triangular monument. I pretended I was in the space shuttle….

On the way back down we stopped at a shrine but I wasn’t allowed to go in as I am not a muslim so we stayed with the mules and had a refreshing glass of mint tea (got the taste for it by then).

Once we were back at Marrakesh, I was very tired and dreamed of sleeping next to one of the fantastic fireplaces in the old palace….just imagine a roaring fire in there….zzzz…..zzzz….zzzz

Regular readers of this blog and players of #flatmarley know that all trips are folowed by periods of rest and recuperation and so I next jetted off to Lanzarote with my friend @erictheborder and his family...

I demanded a window seat on the way out....

...and I was somewhat keen to get down to the harbour to check out the sights when we arrived....

...and I thought it would be prudent to get my towel down on a sun-lounger early in the day.....

....as I wanted to be sure I could dry off after my dip in the pool....

....and be ready for my night out on the town...

...the locals were all very friendly...although not quite what I had expected...

...it was sunny and we were never very far from the sea....

....there was entertainment every night....

...even if you had to provide it yourself.....

...no, we have not seen a rowdy dog around here officer....

...and there were some things that reminded us of home.....

...and plenty that did not.....

...and like every good holiday it was all over far too soon....

I do hope you will be able to join us in playing #flatmarley again this year and helping to raise some much needed money for two deserving charities. Feel free to ask questions if you need to...i am @claptonterrier on twitter...and I hope to bring you some lovely #flatmarley adventures over the summer...

p.s If anyone knows anyone in the Antarctic it would be hugely exciting for us to get a #flatmarley photo from there as it is the only continent on which #flatmarley has not yet appeared.

p.p.s. for newbies, the #flatmarley game came from an idea by our dear friends @piprufus1 in Twitter and we have ben playing for over two years. We've raised over £2,000 for our charities to date. That's all down to YOU!!