I wonder if you can make anything of this as well? We used to have a summer home on a lake about 100 miles from our regular home. My parents also had a summer home in the same area and a home at the Jersey Shore. When we drove, the dogs began to nose in the air and then get restless up to excited the closer we got. They could identify by scent the region and locale. We also had an airstrip and a fairly large private plane. When we would fly in, they could also sense the region, although I think it was more based on the change in harmonics from the propellers, pitch change, and reduced cabin noise. Once the gear dropped they would press their noses on the incoming air vents and get excited.
I could also take a small rock and toss it in the lake ten feet deep off the dock or in the ocean surf. The black lab could swim down and get the exact rock I threw in. Sometimes it took him a few dives down. I could see him moving from rock to rock either tasting it or somehow picking up a different scent or taste than the others.
I think a lot of the dog journeys we hear of are just dogs doing an inventory and order of smells in their heads. I think they navigate by scent and waypoints tied to the route.
I believe you are right on all counts. I lived out in Washington State in the mid 1980s in a housethat backed up to 1000 acres of State forest. We had a Golden. My daughter got married and we had a 2nd reception at the house for relatives and friends who had traveled a long way for the wedding.
My dog kept bringing rocks to the people sitting on the deck (there was an unlimited supply under the deck that had been placed there to keep down weeds. These rocks were varied in appearance.
People threw rocks off the deck, into the night, until the wee hours of the morning. She brought every one back to the person who threw it without a mistake until the wee hours of the morning.
My other Golden always knew when we were approaching a friend’s Lake House where he knew he would get to romp on the beach with their GSD and their Yellow Lab. He would get very excited.
Now we have never allowed our dogs to ride in the car with the windows open because we feel that it is dangerous and we don’t like the wind. But, he still knew when we were approaching the cottage — whether it was because the road must be navigated at a slower speed, or whether the woods made the light darker. Or, perhaps he could smell the difference through the car’s AC.