(3 minute read)

It was a gloriously sunny spring day in the Lake District. Herdy and Sheppy were up early packing for their latest adventure, to canoe the length of the deepest lake in England — Wastwater.

Obviously, it was going to take a great deal of strength and persistence to paddle the three miles to the other end and three miles back again, so they packed plenty of snacks and lots of water.

Sheppy packed his favourite high-protein dog biscuits while Herdy stuffed a bag of sheep nuts into his rucksack, along with a slice of lemon drizzle cake, two blueberry muffins and, just to be on the safe side, a bar of Kendal Mint Cake.

“You never know when you might need an extra energy boost,” Herdy said to an increasingly excitable Sheppy.

A few squirts of sunscreen on their ears, hats on their heads, and they were ready to set off. It was only a short walk from the campsite to the lake.

Herdy unpacked the inflatable canoe and began pumping it up with the hoof pump while admiring the sparkling view across the water. Sheppy, however, was nowhere to be seen.

“Probably off chasing something fluffy,” Herdy chuckled.

A few minutes later he shouted, “Come on, Sheppy! We’re ready to go!”

Sheppy came flying down the hill and screeched to a halt beside the water.

“You sit in the front,” Herdy said. “I’ll sit in the back. And don’t forget your life vest!”

Sheppy leapt into the canoe, pulled on his vest and grabbed a paddle. Herdy loaded the rucksack behind him and pushed the canoe into the lake before hopping in.

“Woah!” cried Sheppy. “You nearly tipped us over!”

“Sorry,” Herdy laughed. “I got a bit over enthusiastic!”

Soon they were paddling perfectly in time, creating little ripples behind them as buzzards soared overhead. Everything was peaceful and calm.

They were nearly halfway across the lake when — SPLASH!

A huge fish leapt out of the water right in front of them.

“Aaaaargh!” barked Sheppy.

Startled, he jumped to his feet, rocking the canoe from side to side. Herdy grabbed the edge to steady himself. In all the wobbling and panicking, neither of them noticed their paddles slipping into the lake.

“Crikey!” gasped Sheppy. “We nearly fell in!”

“You’re right,” Herdy puffed. “That was far too close for comfort.”

Once the canoe settled, Herdy reached beside him.

“Uh oh,” he said slowly. “Where’s my paddle?”

Sheppy looked around in alarm.

“Mine’s gone too!”

The two friends stared at each other.

They were stuck in the middle of the deepest lake in England without any paddles.

“What are we going to do?” Sheppy whimpered.

Herdy thought carefully.

“I always do my best thinking when eating cake,” he said wisely.

He pulled out a blueberry muffin and began nibbling thoughtfully.

“We can’t do this on our own,” Herdy decided. “Sometimes even the bravest sheep and dogs need a little help.”

So Sheppy barked and Herdy baa-ed as loudly as they could.

Again and again they called out across the water.

At first, nobody came.

Just as they were beginning to lose hope, they heard a loud splashing sound behind them.

SPLOSH! SPLASH! SPLISH!

A family of otters was swimming towards the canoe.

The biggest otter popped his head above the water.

“Well now,” he said. “What have we got going on here then?”

Herdy explained all about the rocking canoe, the runaway paddles and being stranded in the middle of the lake.

“We need our paddles to get back to shore,” said Herdy. “Can you help us?”

“Of course we can!” squeaked the otters together.

Without another word, they darted off in every direction, diving beneath the water and searching among the reeds.

A few moments later, the smallest otter popped up with a squeak.

“Found one!”

Then another otter surfaced holding the second paddle triumphantly in his paws.

The otters swam back to the canoe and handed over the paddles.

“You saved us!” cried Sheppy.

“That’s what friends are for,” smiled the biggest otter.

“Thank ewe very much!” said Herdy gratefully.

The otters grinned proudly before darting away again.

“Hunting for paddles is hungry work!” one called back as they disappeared with a splash to chase a fish.

Herdy picked up his paddle.

“Well,” he said, “let’s not rock the boat on the way back.”

This time they paddled slowly and carefully all the way to shore.

When they finally arrived back at the campsite, Sheppy flopped onto the grass dramatically.

“I’m starving!”

In all the excitement, they had completely forgotten to eat their picnic.

As the sun began to set, turning the lake golden and glittery, Herdy unpacked the snacks, poured himself a flask of tea and shared the muffins with Sheppy.

“That really was quite an adventure,” Herdy said happily.

Sheppy nodded.

“And we would still be floating around out there if the otters hadn’t helped us.”

Herdy smiled warmly. “Sometimes,” he said, “when things get wobbly, friends help keep you afloat.”

“And tomorrow,” barked Sheppy, “we’re bringing the otters a giant fish feast to say thank you!”

Now that,” laughed Herdy, “sounds otter-ly perfect.”