The best stories always include a bit of action and suspense, and Butterscotch’s session definitely had its fill of it!

On a sunny afternoon in Shelton, I visited with a good friend and their dog Butterscotch. They wanted to show me around some secret spots in the Shelton area that they thought would be great locations for photo sessions.

While mid-day in the summertime isn’t the best time for photos, we still got some amazing images at these beautiful hidden gems. The harsh and ever-changing sunlight was a challenge for sure, making the greens and yellows of the forest around us vary greatly. The patches of sunlight a stark contrast to the shadows within the trees.

But nothing could take away from the beauty all around.

Our first stop on this day led us down a short path to quiet and serene river, with a low and manageable level of water to play in during the hot summer heat.

At home, Butterscotch has a large piece of property to run around and play, and is rarely on leash. His recall is fantastic and with no-one around his parents felt fine with him being off-leash. They come to these spots often and never have a problem with him being off-leash.

So, off he went to explore and play in the water.

This isn’t something I normally allow. Even when running around or playing out in water, I have my clients keep their pets safely on leash during their photo sessions. I even bring two-three 30ft leashes with me for that exact reason.

But since this was a friend who’s dog I knew very well, trusted his recall, and that this family was very familiar with these locations since they visit often, I trusted in their decision to leash.

One of the cool features of this location is the giant feld tree that spans almost the width of the river. Even better, it’s very accessible and easy to climb onto for those adventurous enough to do so, especially given its wide girth to stand on.

Butterscotch had no problem jumping up and walking along the trunk of the old tree.

Beautiful as it is, this first spot was pretty limited in what we could do. The river and the tree are the main attractions, with dense forest all around and faster rapids only a short distance away making the river play area fairly small.

Once we had our fill of playing in the water, we headed back to our cars to move to our next destination, only a short drive further down the road. Shelton is such a beautiful area, full of forests, trails and more. It’s not a big city, but more of a small town vibe with lots of space to live a quiet life in peace.

The next stop in our adventures took us down the Vance Creek Railroad deeper in Shelton. This decommissioned railroad is perfectly safe to walk along, as long as you keep an eye/ear out for any rail-riders!

The rails are part of an old track built by the Simpson Logging Company, and are now used for rail riding tours. We actually arrived at a lucky time and encountered a group on tour during our adventure. Everyone loved seeing Butterscotch and his brother, Ramen!

I mean, who doesn’t love seeing adorable dogs, especially a puppy?

After the group had passed, we knew we were in the clear for a while, so we stopped to get some cute photos of Ramen and Butterscotch together.

Ramen, the ever-wild pup, stayed safely on leash during all of our adventures. Rambunctious and crazy, he was not to be trusted running around on his own!

We continued our way down the tracks looking for just the right spot to head further down towards the river below. Luckily, it wasn’t too long until we found just the right spot. Once we did, it was simply magical.

Mossy boulders and mini-cliffs greeted us after our decent, keeping us above the rushing waters but giving us lots of space to walk and explore.

And of course, get gorgeous images.

However, this is where our adventure ran into some peril.

Butterscotch was leading the adventure a little ways ahead of us. I was behind him but a good distance away so I could capture photos of him exploring along the cliff edge and his parents were further back from me, keeping Ramen entertained.

I turned to look at Ramen to capture a couple quick photos and when I turned back, Butterscotch was gone.

The rushing waters around us had masked the sound of Butterscotch slipping on the moss and splashing into the water below. Luckily, I had only just noticed that water was splashing up in an area where the rapids weren’t flowing as heavily, and could only just barely see Butterscotch’s nose bouncing up and down.

Without hesitation, I dropped my gear and ran over to him. Laying on my stomach in the wet moss, I was luckily able to reach his paws as he bobbed in the water, trying desperately not to drift away from the edge. I grabbed those paws and heaved him back up out of the water, safely back on land.

*Butterscotch’s mom snapped this photo after I pulled him from the river.*

After that, mom and dad put him safely on leash again for the rest of the day.

Check out this Instagram Reel Butterscotch’s mom made about the experience.

Thankfully Butterscotch was perfectly okay after his fall, and didn’t even seem to notice how much danger he was just in, curiously wanting to wander and explore even more. Fearless or ignorant?

This incident was just another reminder to me that even with the most faithful dogs who have 100% recall, accidents can and do happen. It is always safest to keep them close by and on leash unless in a super safe area.

Rest assured, 99% of my dog photography sessions are photographed with your dog safely on leash.

This post is a part of a photography blog circle featuring photographers specializing in a variety of niches. See what the next photographer is sharing for our weekly theme, “Lucky,”.

Does it take loads of luck to capture portraits of your dog? About A Dog Photograpy has the answer!

Continue to click the link at the end of each post in the blog circle until you eventually find your way back here.

Butterscotch’s Lucky Day and the Importance of Photographing Your Dog Safely On-Leash

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Including Your Dogs in Maternity Photos - Rattlesnake Lake, North Bend