National parks and dogs

[n2916s]

Having a dog with you in a national park is tough. I lived in Yellowstone for 12 summer seasons with a semi-house trained dachshund (if you have ever owned one, you know what I mean). So, bear spray just to walk the dog. Stay away from the forest edge, eyes on a swivel for wildlife. Short leash on a full harness.

Even in the employee only areas, leash rules were rigidly enforced but we still had folks with the “my dog is perfectly trained/behaved so exempt” mindset. We had employees lose their dogs to coyote predation on a regular basis. We had off-leash dogs harass bison into stampeding. We lost marmots, squirrels and other varmints as well.

I admit Yellowstone is rather exceptional in the number of dangers it presents to dogs. Grizzlies hate dogs, coyotes eat dogs, dogs can’t tell hot water from boiling so ever other year or so, one dives into a crystal clear 180f pool (it doesn’t end well).

But, if you are going there this summer, there is in fact one dog-friendly trail in the park. It runs between the old fisheries building next to the Lake Hotel and the loop road (about 1/2 mile). It is kind of bear-friendly as well so I would pack bear spray.

[ROBERT CROSS]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

Hi

Indeed dogs *are* allowed in most National Park campgrounds. The gotcha is that things like Bison also are allowed in the same campgrounds. When the Bison decide that *your* campsite looks like the one to bed down it, taking the dogs for their evening / morning walk .... not so much. I have data on this ...

Indeed, even inside the truck, dogs and large wildlife can be a challenge. When the dog in the back seat decides to get excited about the Bison wandering past, things can get a bit tense. Nothing bad came of it in our case, but I can see things going a bit sideways ....

Bob

Back seat?....Never while moving.

Bob
🇺🇸

[Atwebs]

Rangers and locals are a great source of information on where to go hiking with Fido or where to find a place for Fido to stay while you do go hiking. We prefer staying outside the National Park even when the dog is still restricted to leash and we learned the hard way to use a short tie out; long cables seem nicer, but can lead to accidents and incidents.

If your trip really involves really long driving days, a desire to hike all day, touring local sites or do exciting things (riding a train, white water rafting) really consider whether a good dog care center might not be a better choice for Fido. No longer just kennels, some have temperament evaluation, home styled rooms, play sessions, "love sessions", enrichment activities (scent games, touch therapy), and even medical monitoring. If you can find one near where you are going, you won't even have to spend much time without your buddy.

[ratch]

Totally agree with psy1. Last trip out was parked next to a Fifth Wheel with a barking dog while the owners were enjoying Glacier NP. And I wasn't.
And that's not the only time.
So, leave them at home.

[Len n Jeanne]

If your dog is OK with a kennel, you might look for one near your must-see national park.

Zion NP is reasonably dog-friendly, as MrStreamer mentioned. We've also left our dog for day care at the Doggy Dude Ranch in nearby Rockville, UT.

When camping with family, we've sometimes left one person with the dog (on a rotating basis) so the others could go off on a hike.

The thing to really watch out for in the desert areas is extreme daytime heat.

BTW, dogs are allowed on trails in Canadian national parks. It's just that the border with the US is still closed for tourists till further notice.

[drmox]

I'm getting a kick out of reading these responses, and I can really tell a difference between the dog lover types and the cat lady anti-dog crowd.

[JonDNC]

Originally Posted by ratch

Totally agree with psy1. Last trip out was parked next to a Fifth Wheel with a barking dog while the owners were enjoying Glacier NP. And I wasn't.
And that's not the only time.
So, leave them at home.

So guess I should also sell the airstream... bought it so we could travel with the pup.. before Covid

Just saying....

Cause your rights matter more.

And yes my dog is trained .. and doesn’t bark all day.. I know cause I ask the neighbors whenever we leave him in the trailer ...

And we always pick up deposits.. cause I have the same reaction as you do when someone doesn’t..

[ROBERT CROSS]

Originally Posted by ratch

Totally agree with psy1. Last trip out was parked next to a Fifth Wheel with a barking dog while the owners were enjoying Glacier NP. And I wasn't.
And that's not the only time.
So, leave them at home.

'Pirate' 'sez.....Walk the Plank Matey.

Bob
🇺🇸

[adobehome]

Mikko, my Borzoi & I go to NPs all the time. In many NPs you can walk them some areas. I.e, Grand Canyon paved rim trail. And few wildlife dangers at those Campgrounds. My '62 Globetrotter has no AC & he does not bark. So, if weather is temperate, he stays inside. However, if too hot I use Rover.com. It's like an AirBnB & all over the country in urban, suburban and rural areas with hosts offering day & overnight care in their homes. Check the map, look at hosts' page for home, description & reviews, then send out multiple emails to find a host with availability. Mikko has spent a day in a Boston penthouse, a Kentucky ranch with dog friendly swimming pool and much more. Here he is at Big Bend. (Didn't need a Rover.com host, then, as it was Feb.)

[wulfraat]

Originally Posted by Dennis C;

That sounds great - I wish we could join you. Our Airstream is in winter hibernation at the storage facility down in Denver until late April.

We are going roof top tent and camper shell tomorrow. Mobile apartment!

Who needs a furnace camping at 8,000 feet in the Rockies in February!

Puppy upstairs dog downstairs. All good

[drmox]

Originally Posted by adobehome

In many NPs you can walk them some areas. I.e, Grand Canyon paved rim trail.

Yep.

[NascarNomads]

Originally Posted by rmkrum

We travel with four smallish dogs. They think the Airstream is THEIR big silver doghouse. If they get off leash in unfamiliar territory they run straight back to the Airstream, no matter where it is.

Attachment 388116

Cash and Karey. Brothers totally bonded to each other.

Attachment 388117

Teddy. Big goof. The very tolerant Alpha male of the dog pack. He’s in charge, period.

Attachment 388118

Vader. Stealth Pomeranian/chihuahua mix (The dirt in the flower pot was much warmer to stand on than the cold concrete patio!)

These crazy pups are all rescues. They all enjoy traveling.

I noticed an issue of QST. Are you a ham? My call is KM4WSJ. Do you have a station in your airstream? I am looking for ways to run the coax into the trailer.

Happy camping.
73

NN

[rmkrum]

Originally Posted by NascarNomads

I noticed an issue of QST. Are you a ham? My call is KM4WSJ. Do you have a station in your airstream? I am looking for ways to run the coax into the trailer.



Happy camping.

73



NN

Call sign is KE4GNK. Been a ham for a long time. I have an FT-857 with the main unit installed in the wardrobe closet and the head and speaker mounted on the desk in the rear of our 2007 22’ International CCD. It’s the last year Airstream put desks in any model. Power is routed from the battery buss bar area to a West Mountain power strip and connector block near the radio main unit. Hardest part was running the wires under the kitchen cabinets snd shower pan to the desk.

The coax for the VHF antenna goes through the rooftop combiner box for the solar system we installed. The short VHF/UHF whip antenna is mounted on the solar panel bracket.

I also have a couple coax feed through connectors mounted between the wardrobe and the refrigerator compartment. I can patch from the HF side of the radio to ground mounted antennas by opening the upper fridge access door for now. I carry several coax assemblies to locate portable antennas at a reasonable distance from the Airstream.

Part of the plan is a self-erecting HF whip on the roof.

[Vitaver]

An alternative that I happen to enjoy is to visit the parks during the low(est) season, if open of course. Then you can walk your dog anywhere, even off leash, as often my dog and I are the only ‘people’ around. The natural beauty is still there, and that is why I visit in the firs place.

As for poop, I absolutely always pick up after my dog, and most times with a canvas bag and a pole I pick up garbage left by others, but we should also recognize that most of those wonderful places are full of wildlife. They poop. Is organic. Anybody screaming bloody murder with their hair on fire over moose’s poop?

My wonderful GSD runs far and wild (as they did for 2 millions years before we happen into Earth) chasing (never catching) hares. If out there she goes #2 out of my sight, oh well.

[Vitaver]

Somewhere in Colorado, park with two lakes. Only neighbors were souls in kind, had dogs and wanted them to enjoy nature free of leashes.

[JeffofCT]

While wildlife (particularly bison, moose and bear) can be dangerous to humans, humans are not on the typical menu. Wildlife view dogs and their distant cousins notably wolves, coyotes and fox as predictors and competitors. Dogs definitely can stress out the wildlife more so than humans. Likewise, there have been many instances where coyotes have gone after a leashed dog, completely ignoring their human owner.

We have two dogs and are now accustomed to the limitations and disadvantages to traveling with them. It's still worth it.

[GettinAway]

We just left Big Bend NP and had Kate with us the whole time. 40+ pound English Setter. While we were frustrated we couldn’t take her on any of the trails, we did walk her around as often as we could. We had a shady site, and the temps didn’t get above the 70s, so neither did the inside of the trailer. Some of the trails there would be very difficult walk with a dog, and fellow hikers. It’s not perfect, but we don’t like leaving her at home. Especially for four weeks.. Had to watch her closely around camp as Javelinas come right into the campsites.
We did get to take her on the trails at Davis Mountain SP which is near Big Bend.
We took her last year to WY and MT, but avoided NPs, as we’ve camped in Tetons and YS several times in the past.

[fthopkins]

I may leave my wife at home but my dog is going with me.

[Northsite]

This is a very good thread with many interesting replies. I'm noting some of them because I always travel with my dog and avoid NP for the reasons most have listed. Max, my 130 lb. very friendly bull mastiff, had traveled over 100,000 miles with me. We never had a problem and followed the park rules, although some said that he was intimidating. Going through Border Patrol checkpoints on I-10 and I-8 were a snap with Max. I would roll down the back window, he would stick his big head out to see why we were stopping and the Border Patrolman would wave us on. Cooper. my 50,000 mile Border Collie, sticks his head out gets a nice pat.

I always ask the RV Park manager for the "pet rules." The response is usually something like, "normal leash and clean up rules, quiet dog in the park." One manager told me that they had a guest that took his 8' boa out to the grass so it could get some air. He changed the park rules to restrict snakes, lizard and exotic pets to the trailer. The manager also added that he could get 1000 RV'ers in a season, but there was bound to be one with a snake.

[smithcreek]

I concur with a few other posts that suggest travelling in the off season when possible. On my cross country trip last year I stayed in Yosemite for six days at the end of January with my dog Jax. Even without a dog I would highly recommend going at that time of year. It was like having the whole park to myself. I've heard horror stories about the valley roads becoming parking lots in the summer. I hiked from the valley to the top of Yosemite Falls then over to Yosemite Point. I saw one other person the whole way up.

Jax was not allowed on that hike but dogs are allowed on any paved road or path. There are a number of roads that are closed to only buses in the winter and there are a lot of footpaths all over the Valley. Jax did not get to run around free, but I never felt Jax was too restricted to enjoy himself.