Sharon Allen defies conventional wisdom and plans take her dog along on her 2007 thru-hike of the Pacific Crest Trail. Her rationale:
I’ve heard various arguments about why not to bring your dog hiking. The two major arguments put forth that A) dogs do not enjoy long distance hiking and that this taxes them too much and B) it ruins the trail for everyone else by disturbing the wildlife and making the trails a mess. Clearly, people need to learn more about how to hike with their dogs.
For reference, a wolf will cover between 10 and 30 miles a day in search of food. Dogs evolved the capacity to cover distance. Their ability to do so has not disappeared simply because they have been domesticated, though this is truer for some breeds more than others. Sled dogs regularly run between 20-30 miles a day (and LOVE it), while Great Danes simply don’t do well hiking far. There are even backpacking titles for some breeds including Siberian Huskies, Collies, Samoyeds, and Malamutes. Many more breeds are beginning to adopt requirements for this title in the dog world.
She goes to describe an in-depth training regimen for making sure her dog will behave well in camp and on the trail. All excellent points. Her dog is an Australian shepherd, a breed that, as far as I know (because I saw that movie “Babe,” mind you) is responsible, mature and prefers Masterpiece Theater to Fear Factor. Probably the best possible canine to take along, and handy for shooing sheep off the trail in a pinch.
Even with a perfect pooch, though, I’d have to think long and hard about trying to take him along for months at a time. The point of starting such a venture is to finish — everybody who doesn’t can say “well at least I got off the couch and tried” but they didn’t set up all their mail drops for 2600 miles with the idea that their knees would betray them. On the upside, you get constant companionship; on the downside, you’re taking along another living creature whose welfare must be taken into account. It’s hard enough keeping one human healthy for all those miles; keeping a human and a dog in walking trim just adds to the odds of physical failure fouling things up.
On the other hand (I know, balance is booooring!!), there’s the excellent journal kept by Kim “Twodog” Hastings, who’s been on the PCT the past few months with two border collies and getting along fine, near as I can tell. I suspect her journal is what put the take-my-dog-along idea in Sharon’s head.
I’m on the fence. I like dogs just fine. I’m not keen on them marking their territory on my tent or pack but who knows, it might keep the bears away. Seems like the people who take their dogs hiking share a common trait with those who hate it when other people take their dogs hiking, which keeps both camps in a state of permanent hostility.
Because let’s face it: you take your dog hiking knowing full well that dogs on the trail cause problems. You feel like your need for canine companionship — and your companion’s need for regular exercise — outweigh those problems. But the folks ragging loudest about dogs on the trail think their need to see no pooches on the path outweighs the interests of dog owners.
Dogs have been domesticated for about as long as humans have (point for future debate: who tamed whom?), so it’s kinda silly to keep having these arguments. Dogs have always been with us, and they have always pooped on the trail, peed in inconvenient places, chased anything that moved and barked up a storm in camp all night. If you’ve got a dog allergy or phobia, OK, you’ve got a point. If you’re worried about dogs upsetting nature’s delicate balance, OK, I get that, though I have a hard time believing dogs are harder on the environment than people are.
The trouble for dog people is the look of utter bliss a dog’s face when it’s ripping and tearing across the countryside. Dogs have so much fun at a dead run that it seems ethically questionable to leash all that enthusiasm. Dogs must be controlled, but controlling them is a drag.
People hit the trail with horses, camels, llamas; dogs seem fairly benign in comparison. I’m still not sure I’d take one on a six-month hike, but hey, I’m not sure I’d take myself on a six-day hike. Think of all the blogging opportunities I’d miss.
Geez, I can think of lots of folks who finished the Appalachian Trail with their dogs. I backpack with Dog all the time (he loves it, too). The only time I questioned how it would go was when a friend started the AT with a pretty young puppy (collie-shepherd mix), and though he told me had to carry the puppy over rocks a few times, the puppy finished the trail with him.
Carolyn H.
I think the dog concerns are more PCT-specific, presumably because of the more delicate environment, higher altitude, more elevation gain, more difficult resupplies, etc. Though from what I’ve read the AT has more harsh inclines than the PCT overall, because it’s graded for horses.
I’m just going on what I’ve read — I did go on an overnighter a couple summers back with some people who brought their dogs along and they were fine. One was a big German Shepherd with guard dog in his genes, so I felt pretty safe having him around.
here’s a trailforums thread on dogs on the PCT: http://tinyurl.com/y37hs8
On point to keep in mind is that the PCT passes through some significantly large national parks — over 100 miles in Sequoia/Kings Canyon alone. All of those parks have prohibitions against bringing dogs into their wilderness areas.
Hey Tom-
I actually hadn’t read that journal, but since I know of several hikers who have taken their dogs, some successfully and some unsuccessfully- even in the desert. Without these success stories, I would not take Maverick along. After all, my job is to offer him his best life for 12-15 years and for some dogs that does not include hiking. AND, if he shows he is not enjoying his time on the trail, I’ll take a couple days off the trail to drive him back home.
That said, one point I chose not to mention in my journal is that as a single woman (though most likely I’ll end up hiking in a group), my dog also lends a sense of safety to my time on the trail. I don’t know how many hiking women feel this way, but I bet I’m not the only one!
While I haven’t ever been on the PCT, I have hiked in it’s neighborhood, and I did so with my dog.
My dog goes on all my hikes, and I won’t hike where I can’t take her along.
My dog while running ahead of me (and behind and beside)while hiking is trained not chase anything.
We see deer almost daily and the occasional moose.
We hike through herds of cattle every spring when they are grazing on public lands.
It is perfectly legal here in Montana to shoot a dog if you see it running stock or game. If my dog was chasing game or stock and got shot it would be my own fault.
A well trained dog isn’t a problem on the trail, and I see no reason to limit access because of a few idiots that can’t or won’t control their dogs.