Dog friendly 14ers

[Chris+JoySolomon]

Hiked Pikes Peak via the Devil's Playground ascent this Sunday with my 35lbs dog who had a pretty rough time. Any suggestions on some dog friendly 14ers would be greatly appreciated. She's a Shar Pei and very tough, but at the top where some rock scaling was necessary she had a hard time.

[tmathews]

None that should be recommended.

[Crusty Climber]

Deleted by former user.

[climbingangler04]

Is there a reason none are any good. My brother is visiting this summer with his black lab and we were planning on taking the lab up quandry, sherman, pikes, etc...(all easier class 2 hikes). I have seen plenty of dogs on easier (class 1/2) 14ers while hiking over the past few years and was curious of this same thing. Is it more of a personal preference that some people just don't like encountering dogs while hiking? His lab is fit and hikes the andirondacks and along the apalachian trail in spots.

Just kind of curious for the reasoning of those who think it is a bad idea and if maybe we should leave the lab at home or if it is that some people just dislike encountering dogs. In all my reading I've never read that taking a dog in higher altitude for a few hours is terrible for them, as long as you make sure the dog is hydrated and are willing to not summit if he/she shows signs of altitude sickness or tiredness. Just curious since they will be coming out in late July....

Thanks for the input

[JE242]

+1 Your pup can't tell you if they are having issues from altitude, or are worn out, etc. And they will follow you through hell or highwater (they are your best friend). I have hike with friends who brought their dogs. They always have trouble with talus scrambling.

There are some ridge hikes on the continental divide in the front range that may interest you. Not 14ers, but will get you high.
Hikes from Loveland pass, Berthhoud pass, Jones pass, maybe squaretop mountain from Guanella pass(I don't remember how rocky the top was).
A friend and I tried to summit Mount Guyot from Georgia Pass. The the terrain was just too rocky for the dog. And even with paw-padded shoes, he was whimpering. Enjoy your hikes with your pooch. Just make sure he/she is enjoying them too.

[mtnjam]

We have a 85 pound golden retriever who climbed about 25 of the peaks with us. It is great to have him along; but ... for one thing dogs need special gear, in particular socks and boots, medicine for their feet (we liked second skin and some kind of foot toughener from Cabellas), and you need to have a plan for rescuing the dog in case he becomes ill or injured. But, that is not the main issue. Most folks that we have seen with dogs did not have there dogs on leashes and they did not make them mind. It is a lot of work to climb a fourteener and keep the dog on a leash (a fifty foot retractable lead is not really a leash) and to make them be respectful of other folks and animals.
A quick story we had hiked into Chicago Basin from Purgatory because we had the dog. On our return after climbing all morning we were hiking out and nearing the Purgatory trailhead. We allowed Jake to be off his leash walking between my wife and I. He was so tired he was dragging - we had walked over 16 miles after the morning climbs. Suddenly a ptarmagin hen and three chicks crossed the trail. Quicker than you could imagine, he jumped off the trail chased down one of the chicks and had it in his mouth before I could catch him, wearing a pack and all. After a severe scolding (to myself and him) he spit the chick out and the chick ran to mama (thankfully he has a soft mouth). Okay, the point is, he is a dog and doing dog kind of things. But on the mountain, he is required to act civilized like a human. So, the question is - are you capable of handling your dog on a leash at all times. All of the 14ers managed by the forest service or NPS have this restriction. I guess privately owned peaks like Bross do not; but I guess we are not supposed to be there either!
No hikers will be excited to see your dog. They would pet Jake and say what a good dog he was, but you could tell they weren't big fans of crotch sniffers. It was like they were telling us, we left ours at home - so why didn't you?
Back to your original question, any class one and most class two climbs, most dogs will not have much difficulty. They might need socks and boots or their feet toughened, but that is about all. To find a route, just look at Bill's list and sort by difficulty. I am sure that you have the cutest dog in the world; but it is still a dog and if you take it into the mountains, the land management rules require it to be on a leash. Since our incident, our dog has not been off the leash again. By the way our dog is voice trained and is a very obedient dog.
Most of the negativity about dogs is really about dog owners, who just allow their dogs to run off the leash. Keep your dog on a leash and in control and hikers do not seem to have trouble with them or you.
Wag more - bark less
monty

[metalmountain]

Dogs should be left at home.

Seriously?!?! . . . screw this persons reply. . . . dogs are awesome to have on the trial as long as they are well behaved. Mine is extremely well mannered and can handle up to class 3 but I wouldn’t take her on anything harder than that.

I second this, your dog rocks! And I love seeing dogs up on the trail, as long as they are trained well I see no issue with it. The only annoying occurrence I ever had were some people that took there dog up the stupidly loose gully on Lindsey and then said dogs proceeded to rain rocks down on us. But I think its great to see dogs enjoying the mountains as much as we do, especially if they are wearing doggles ;)I can't help it, I love those damn things. I should get some for my basset hound, they could protect her while she basks in the sun on my living room floor.

[auriel]

Just 2 other things to mention on this thread:
Dogs can get lost! Even if your dog is well behaved on "voice command", he/she still has a dog brain and may decide to run after a deer,,,, or some sound,,, and follow that until said dog is lost. And then you have the whole effort to find the dog, which may or may not be found.
Finally, if you bring your dog just remember the hike is now your dogs, not yours, as you are going to have to make accomodations for him/her.

[peter303]

Pikes Peak via Devils Playground is the 2nd easiest 14er I can think of after Evans from the parking lot.

I think the poster was looking minimal rock and mostly dirt-tundra all the way to the summit.
Most of the 14ers have a talus/rock cap the final several hundred feet.
I recall this cap is minimal size on Elbert and Handies.

[scalba123]

Just 2 other things to mention on this thread:
Dogs can get lost! Even if your dog is well behaved on "voice command", he/she still has a dog brain and may decide to run after a deer,,,, or some sound,,, and follow that until said dog is lost. And then you have the whole effort to find the dog, which may or may not be found.
Finally, if you bring your dog just remember the hike is now your dogs, not yours, as you are going to have to make accomodations for him/her.

Didn't we just have a "lost dog" episode a couple weeks ago?

[PattyCakes]

To get to the real reason why you posted this question. Some good doggy friendly 14ers in terms of not that much Rock Scaling are Quandary, Huron, Sherman, Oxford, Belford, Missouri, Democrat, Lincoln, Bross, Grays, Torreys and Elbert. Hope you have fun with your Pup!

[Missy_Goat]

We are looking at doing Holy Cross July 4th weekend, and I was wondering how the difficulty (dog ability wise) of Holy Cross would compare to say, Yale? Our pup has been up quite a few peaks (including Quandary, Pikes, Democrat, and Torrey's among others)- but my own personal experience has told me that some "class 2's" are decidedly more challenging than others. For example, I know he could take Massive with no problems, Yale and Humboldt on the other hand would be notably more challenging for him. Just want to keep him out of trouble

Thanks in advance for the input!