Lisa Densmore - Best Hikes with Dogs: New Hampshire and Vermont

NEW HAMPSHIRE & VERMONT

A bible for all who love to hike in New England with their canine companions.

The Critter Exchange

Looking for the perfect gift for the dedicated dog-lover, or well, dog? Check out the new book, Best Hikes with Dogs: New Hampshire and Vermont.... Who can resist this guidebook, starring Bravo on the cover? Let him lead you and your canine companion on your next hike!

New Hampshire To Do

A great resource for any type of dog and owner.

KidsVT

The publishers couldn't have found a better author for this book.... Judging by the author's attention to detail, you can rest assured that every hike has been meticulously researched and chosen with care for your canine companion. Anyone who hikes with dogs would benefit from this book. And not only are the trails good for dogs, you'll like them, too.

Vermont Sports

Lisa Densmore

Dedication

To Bravo, my Chesapeake Bay retriever who likes to hike as much as I do.

THE MOUNTAINEERS BOOKS is the nonprofit publishing arm of The Mountaineers Club, an organization founded in 1906 and dedicated to the exploration, preservation, and enjoyment of outdoor and wilderness areas.

1001 SW Klickitat Way, Suite 201, Seattle, WA 98134

2005 by The Mountaineers Books

All rights reserved

First edition: first printing 2005, second printing 2007, third printing 2009, fourth printing 2011

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Manufactured in the United States of America

Acquiring Editor: Cassandra Conyers

Project Editor: Laura Drury

Copy Editor: Jane Crosen

Cover and Book Design: The Mountaineers Books

Layout: Mayumi Thompson

Cartographer: Moore Creative Designs; Profiles: Judy Petry

Photographer: All photographs by the author

Cover photograph: Bravo, a happy hiker

Frontispiece: Bravo on the summit of Mount Monroe

Maps shown in this book were produced using National Geographics

TOPO! software. For more information, go to www.nationalgeographic.com/topo.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Densmore, Lisa Feinberg.

Best hikes with dogs. New Hampshire & Vermont / Lisa Densmore. 1st ed.

p. cm.

Includes index.

ISBN 0-89886-988-9 (pbk.)

1. Hiking with dogsNew HampshireGuidebooks. 2. Hiking with dogsVermont Guidebooks. 3. TrailsNew HampshireGuidebooks. 4. TrailsVermontGuidebooks. 5. New HampshireGuidebooks. 6. VermontGuidebooks. I. Title.

SF427.455.D46 2005

796.51'09742dc22

Printed on recycled paper

ISBN (paperback): 978-0-89886-988-0

ISBN (ebook): 978-1-59485-236-7

CONTENTS

HIKE SUMMARY TABLE

Includes deck of summit hut

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Special thanks to the following people who have given their valuable expertise, opinions, and advice about hiking with dogs, not to mention encouragement about this book.

First, my family: My husband Jason and my son Parker, who not only accompanied me on a number of hikes while I was working on this book, but also held the household together while I stayed up night after night to write it; Martha Densmore, my mother-in-law, who lent me her camera so that I could bring professional-quality images from the trails to you; and my father-in-law, Ja Densmore, whose beautiful photos, knowledge of photography, and encouragement gave me the confidence to push the button again and again.

For their inspiration: Dan Nelson, author of the original book in this series, Best Hikes with Dogs: Western Washington. Without the gift of his book, his insight and his encouragement, I might never have written the first word of this book; and to Paige Boucher and Cathy Wiedemer, the P.R. team at Mountain Hardwear, who threw Dan and me together on a backcountry ski trip and have outfitted me for many of my recent mountain adventures, including the hikes in this book.

For their dog-hiking wisdom: Dr. Arleigh Reynolds, for his insights into the nutritional needs of working dogs; David Bumstead, a fellow dog-hiker who knows the best backpacking routes in the Whites with a pooch; Paul Kruse, Leader of the Pack at Ruff Wear for supplying my dog, Bravo, with everything he needs for the trail, and for letting me pick his brain about all aspects of dog gear; and Dr. Laurie DeMuth, the only veterinarian I know that hikes regularly with her dog, for educating me about the most common injuries dogs have on the trail.

For their trail knowledge: Sean Lawson, Director of the Naturalist Program at Mad River Glen, who finally showed me the difference between a spruce and a fir on our hike up Burnt Rock Mountain; Katie Stewart, District Ranger, White Mountain National Forest, and Tim Yurkiewicz, who helped me sort out where to go around Mount Cabot and the Kilkenny Range, not to mention much of the Presidentials; and Pete An-tos-Ketcham, Education Coordinator and Facilities Manager at the Green Mountain Club for helping me narrow down the choices in Vermont.

For their companionship, my many friends who hiked with me during the summer of 2004: Peter Knights and his daughters Carly and Mackenzie; Eileen Shiffrin; Lisa Grose; Steve and Cindy Berlack and their kids, Ron and Carolyn; Karen Carter and her sons Jake and Cole; Steve and Alice Andrews and their son Ethan; Tara Martin; Rick Moulton; Deborah Hannam and her children, Max, Benjamin, and Grace; Win and Janne Piper and their sons Win and Duncan; Jonathan Kenkel; Sheldon Perry; Paul Bousquet; Edie Lodi, Marc Valance and his son Quinn; Kate Carter; Wendel Behrend; Belle MacDougall; Peggy Shinn; Liz Venesky and Miles Galin; Lucinda Bain; Eva Merriam; and Bunny Merrill. It would have been a lonely summer on the trail without your company! Without your insights and trail suggestions, this