Dog-friendly Hiking Vacations

Dog-friendly Hiking Vacations – We have done this almost every year since Emmett’s younger days with us. We pack our bags and head to a cabin somewhere in the woods for a long weekend of pet-friendly activities: hiking, napping, snacking, whatever!

It’s super fun to plan an outing for your dog because… well… let’s talk vacations for a minute first.

Dog-friendly Hiking Vacations

We ALL need to get away from time to time. Even the most conventional among us carry stress, and vacations provide an opportunity to get out of trouble and recharge with energy. Dogs? Well, they don’t have the same daily load. (Thanks, right? That’s one of the things that makes dogs so magical!) But wounded dogs get tired. Even if your dog is never bored, your dog loves you and loves the opportunity to bond and play!

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One caveat: It’s about planning your vacation around YOUR dog. Back in 2006, we could take Em anywhere, and he loved nothing more than sitting on the pet-friendly patio and getting attention and treats. He could tour a winery just as easily as he could follow a trail and be just as happy doing it. If your dog is like that, that’s GREAT! You can do almost anything for your pup’s vacation!

Cooper, however… Coop not so much. Public spaces increase the pressure. Every time I took him to the terrace of the cafe for training, he was so worried that he wouldn’t take any treats, even though I ordered his plate of something delicious like scrambled eggs! That kind of vacation just wouldn’t be a fun, enriching, bonding experience. However, he likes to exercise. He likes to run. He likes to walk. He likes physical challenges and we haven’t been able to do much since Violet came, so we decided to take him on longer, harder walks this year on Cup’s holidays than he’s been there for a year or two.

So we found a pet shack near a park we wanted to hit and off we went!

If this idea makes you wonder and maybe you want to take your dog on vacation, here are some things that worked (and didn’t) for us that might help you get started!

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Planning a vacation around your pet just means you get to do fun things together away from home! 🙂 It’s a great way to build your relationship, spend some time away and go on a new adventure. You’ll cherish the memories you make together and have a great time – that’s all that matters!

Have you ever taken your puppy on a road trip? Do you usually take your dog on holiday? Would you consider planning all or part of a family vacation around your dog’s preferences and personality? Let’s share in the comments! My Trusty Pup Ruby loves going on walks with me, and there’s nothing she loves more than being outdoors in a dog-friendly national park. Ruby has been to six national parks so far, including the Redwoods and Olympic National Parks. Read on to see how your dog can join you on dog-friendly hikes in Washington State’s North Cascades National Park.

Disclosure: Some of the links below may be affiliate links, which means I will receive a commission at no cost to you if you click and make a purchase.

The North Cascades National Park Service Center is very dog ​​friendly. The service area also includes Ross Lake and Lake Chelan National Recreation Areas.

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North Cascades National Park (NCNP) is part of a larger National Park Service complex that also includes Ross Lake National Recreation Area (NRA) and Lake Chelan NRA. Many of the most popular hikes are not technically on national park land, but are on NRA Ross Lake or National Forest land, which allow well-behaved leased dogs to walk. I will use NCNP or North Cascades to designate the entire National Park Service Center.

Within North Cascades National Park itself, dogs are only allowed on the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), on paved areas where cars can normally go, and within 50 feet of roads.

This region of the Pacific Northwest is three hours from Seattle and is located in the Cascade Mountains, as the name suggests. Highway 20 is the only road through NCNP, and it closes due to snowfall on Washington Pass during the winter. Newhall, Marblemount and Mazama are small towns with many small hotels and holiday accommodation, often dog friendly. You can also camp at several public and private campgrounds along Highway 20 with your dog.

North Cascades is one of the least visited parks – only 30,000 people visit this park each year. Aside from a few popular fall trails, many trails receive very few hikers year-round. If your dog is like mine and doesn’t do well walking on crowded trails, the North Cascades will be a dog-friendly national park for you and your pup.

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What about the National Park of Mt. Rainier? Or Olympic National Park? I’ve put together a guide to the most dog-friendly national parks to help you find the right one for you.

As with any park or trail, you and your dogs should behave like BARK Rangers. Dogs must stay in rented rooms, pack plenty of water and pick up and pack after your dog. I’ve linked each trip to their Washington Trails Association trail page. Be sure to read the directions, notes and trip reports carefully to assess whether this walk is suitable for you and your dog’s fitness level.

Enjoying a hike along Diablo Lake at Colonial Creek Campground in North Cascades National Park. You can see the old scratches from pesky raccoons on her mouth!

Before each walk, check whether the trail is suitable for dogs and whether it is accessible in winter. You can also check out North Cascades National Park, Va Green Trails Map no. 16 k

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Many hikes in the North Cascades are at higher elevations, and snow can fall between October and May. Highway 20 at Washington Pass will be closed during the winter, so some tours may be completely impassable. The upside to this is that Highway 20 becomes a snowshoe trail for you and your dog when it’s closed!

North Cascades National Park: 12 miles RT; Elevation gain 1300 feet; No pass required This easy hike through the woods is just off Highway 20 before Lake Diablo and has plenty of parking. Total mileage is 12 miles, but since it’s an outdoor ride, you can walk until you or your pup gets tired and turns around. We walked this for the first time in October 2023 and only saw one other person on the trail. This trail is multi-purpose and sometimes there are horses on the trail.

The trail itself skirts the creek through old growth cedar and pine, and is somewhat rocky, but mostly dirt covered in pine needles. The Washington Trails Association trail page says there is a “backcountry” camp two miles in and another near the end of the trail. This trail is also the starting point for many other return trails deeper into the forest.

This was a good choice for us as the hike is not too steep, especially if you are only walking the first few miles, like we were. My faithful pup loved this trail because of the different smells (the horse smells definitely helped!) and the wide open trail. You may be tempted to let your dog off the leash, but remember that this is bear and mountain lion country. Be aware!

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North Cascades National Park: 5.6 miles RT; 635 feet high; No pass required Across from the Thunder Creek parking lot are several spots for Thunder Knob, a 3.6-mile RT trail off Highway 20 at the North Cascades National Park Service Center. We originally planned to hike this trail, but ended up hiking Thunder Creek as mentioned above since there is a small switchback at the trailhead. Someone didn’t want to walk it (hint: it wasn’t me) and we turned around to find another option.

There are bridges over the stream for easier crossing in the summer. The bridges will be removed for the winter. Depending on the weather, rain and snow, the lake may not be safe to cross. If neither you nor your dog is comfortable crossing the creek, this is still a great place to park and explore Colonial Creek Campground. We walked the empty camping roads and also had direct access to the lake.

I originally chose this hike because it was very flat (elevation of 635 feet), and would have fall colors and views of Sourdough Mountain. I look forward to walking again when the bridges are back over the stream.

North Cascades National Park: 11.6 miles RT; Elevation gain of 1,400 feet; No pass required Diablo Lake is the lake you see in any picture of the North Cascades, with that classic blue color that results from glacial silt in the water. You and your dog can walk this RT route

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