Visiting National Parks with dog

[Californiadrea1]

Hello. We are planning a Fall trip to some southwest national parks (Bryce, Zion, Arches, Mesa Verde) and are considering bringing our 13 YO dog. We'd like to hike somewhat in these areas and wonder what limitations we will face by bringing her along. We plan on being gone 4-5 weeks.

I would appreciate hearing from others who have visited the parks and had a dog with them. We plan on traveling from CA to Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona. This will be our first long haul trip in our FW. We do have a family member who will take our dog while away if this is what we decide.

Thank you for your feedback.

[Opie431]

Zion was very hot when we were there in the fall. You could call the area vets and see if they board dogs.

[OutdoorPhotogra]

4X4Dodger wrote:

OutdoorPhotographer wrote:
Had our dog with us at Arches and Canyonlands because we were in the midst of a cross country move. It was a horrible experience. Wife and I had to keep sitting by the car in the heat while the other made event the short hikes to the various arches. Never again. I've been to a dozen national parks and can't remember a single one that allows dogs on the trails unless its a service dog.

Not sure how much UT will cool by the fall but daytime heat may still be a factor depending on how late in fall you go.

Just had my dogs in Arches and Canyonlands and had no problems at all. First there are plenty of areas to walk your dogs within the rules.

Some Natl parks are more dog friendly than others and some allow dogs on certain trails but not others. At Grand Canyon I took my dogs and a pot of hot coffee to see the sunrise at Mather Point...no problem and within the rules. My dogs got almost as much attention from the Japanese tourists as the canyon did.

Guess it depends on what trails you take and what arches you want to visit. We were there in 2009 so it's been a while but there were "no dogs on trails" signs at sites we wanted to visit and DW and I had to swtich up.

[jesseannie]

We have done the Utah and AZ National parks. We have two dogs that are very comfortable in our travel trailer just like at home. We leave them sometimes for 3-4 hours at a time and then when we return they get their reward with a long walk.
The only issue I can see is if it is too hot.
We know we have limitations when we travel with dogs but it is the choice we made when we got them.
jesseannie

[sancoots]

We also took our dogs for a month to Utah's national parks last year, and I don't think it hindered us. We are niot big hikers though 3-4 miles max. We even did the horse ride in Bryce canyon. We did our activities in the morning while it was still relatively cooler, so that the dogs were more comfortable left in the trailer with the fans and radio turned on (this way I did not have to worry about power going out). When we got back at around lunch they would get there walk around the campground or on a trail (both Bryce and Zion have a trail that is dog friendly), and as someone else mentioned, the dogs don't care about the scenery. In Zion, the staff even told us it was okay for the dogs to go in the river to cool off.

[4X4Dodger]

OutdoorPhotographer wrote:
Had our dog with us at Arches and Canyonlands because we were in the midst of a cross country move. It was a horrible experience. Wife and I had to keep sitting by the car in the heat while the other made event the short hikes to the various arches. Never again. I've been to a dozen national parks and can't remember a single one that allows dogs on the trails unless its a service dog.

Not sure how much UT will cool by the fall but daytime heat may still be a factor depending on how late in fall you go.

Just had my dogs in Arches and Canyonlands and had no problems at all. First there are plenty of areas to walk your dogs within the rules.

Some Natl parks are more dog friendly than others and some allow dogs on certain trails but not others. At Grand Canyon I took my dogs and a pot of hot coffee to see the sunrise at Mather Point...no problem and within the rules. My dogs got almost as much attention from the Japanese tourists as the canyon did.

[dks]

When we visited Mesa Verde we put our dog at a daycare for dogs. It was located on a ranch and she got to be outside and in the owner's house (not in a kennel). Hot weather is hard on our golden retriever, so I would tend to not to take her on long walks in the desert.

[Jbrowland]

I would leave your old feller at home for this one. The NPS isn't very dog friendly. Some do offer a few trails to hike on but they usually aren't the good ones. Plus, most of the time, as was stated, you will be dry camping so weather is a factor while you are away from your RV. That said, Watchman at Zion does have electric hookups at some sites. Have fun and tell us all about it when you return!

[genekiwi]

We took our dog with us on a four month trip. Most of it in the areas that you are planning on going too.

We always camped where we at least had electricity. Most of the time, Annie came with us or if we were going for one or two hours we would leave her in the tt with the a/c on.

On about four occasions, we put her in a kennel for the day. Cost was on average $20.

In Alburquerque, she was put in an indoor kennel. The kennel was large, she had a bowl of water, food, a bed off the ground with a head board and a foot board. Oh, and an 18 inch TV turned to the Animal Planet channel. She was walked and well cared for. $23.

Worst place was the kennel at Carlsbad Caverns. Nothing but stacked crates and you had to go back to let the dog out. Ruined our visit to Carlsbad as we rushed through the caverns. $10

Check out the kennel before you pay.

If you want complete freedom to do what you want, take the person up on the offer to take the dog. You will both be happier.

We did find that many stores, not food stores, are dog friendly if you ask. Outdoor eating places generally will allow a dog.

[dbbls]

We volunteered for 5 years at Casa Grande Ruins National Monument in Arizona. Dogs were allowed in the ruins but not in the visitor center unless they could be carried. Their reasoning was that they did not want generators running in the parking lot to power AC's to keep the dogs cool. Not all parks are that dog friendly.

[Deb_and_Ed_M]

As others have said - in Nat'l Parks, your dogs get to explore the sidewalks, parking lots, and road edges. We still bring ours - if there's something that must be photographed, then one stays with the dogs while the other hikes.

We either vacation in the spring, or after the kids are back in school, so the temps have never really been worrisome, if we have to leave them in the vehicle while we eat at a restaurant, for example.

For us, the comfort of knowing that our dogs are with us and having fun (hey - THEY don't know what they're missing - parking lots are LOADED with "interesting smells") far outweigh anything we might miss because we couldn't hike with them.

[americanrascal]

If you are ever in the east, we had a great experience with our dogs at Big South Fork NP (or National Recreation Area?) , and we understand Hot Springs NP also tends to be more dog friendly.

We were blown away by the courtesy and welcome to our dogs in Big South Fork. Surprisingly the staff even invited them into the visitor buildings. The most fun we had was taking them on the train (open cars) down into the park from Stearns KY. Took them swimming in the river too!

Can't wait to take them again soon- they loved Big South Fork.

[1492]

Moved from Forum Technical Support

[toedtoes]

How much do you want to be out and about in the parks? Are you planning on being gone from morning to dark? Or do you plan on only leaving for an hour or two?

For me, if I'm going to be out and about all day long doing things the dog can't do, then it doesn't make sense to bring the dog along. I'll just worry about them the entire time and end up coming back to the RV early OR not going out in the first place. The dogs end up bored and I end up dissatisfied with the trip.

Instead, leaving the dog with your family member means you can make a phone call to see how she's going and then go enjoy yourselves without worry, guilt, etc.

[eubank]

At age 13, your doggie may not feel like heavy-duty hiking anyway. Old bones just don't cooperate that much any more! Just being away from home in the RV is a fun adventure, though, so make it comfortable for the doggie!

🙂
Lynn