Dan Nelson - Best Hikes with Dogs: Western Washington

To Parkamy best friend, once and forever.
We had too little time together
but she lived her life to the fullest
despite the handicaps she faced.
She no longer hikes by my side,
yet she is with me still on every journey.

___________________

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

2010 by Dan A. Nelson

All rights reserved

First edition 2002. Second edition: first printing 2010, second printing 2012

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
Copy Editor: Jane Crosen
Cover and Book Design: The Mountaineers Books
Layout: Peggy Egerdahl
Cartographer: Moore Creative Design & Pease Press Cartography
All photographs by the author unless otherwise noted

Cover photograph: Hank Bev Sparks, www.dogphotography.com Frontispiece: Parka pauses to check out the scenery while doing trail research.

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
Nelson, Dan A.
Best hikes with dogs Western Washington / Second Edition Dan A. Nelson.2nd ed.

p. cm.

Includes index.

ISBN 978-1-59485-267-1 (ppb)

1. Hiking with dogsWashington (State), WesternGuidebooks. 2. TrailsWashington (State), WesternGuidebooks. 3. Washington (State), WesternGuidebooks. I. Title.

SF427.4574.W2N45 2010

796.5109797dc22 2009047278

Printed on recycled paper

ISBN (paperback): 978-1-59485-267-1

ISBN (e-book): 978-1-59485-406-4

CONTENTS

NORTH CASCADES

49. Esmeralda Basin

There are dogs, and then there is a Parka.

Few things match the pleasure of walking a mountain trail with your best friend. Especially when that best friend is a sweet-natured, happy dog like Parka, my yellow Labrador retriever.

From 1998 to 2008, Parka was my constant trail companion, joining me (and Donna) on nearly every hikeexcept, of course, the days we spent in national parks, where dogs are banned. With Parka as my inspiration, I launched The Mountaineers Books Best Hikes with Dogs series, and she assisted with all the field research on our original edition of Best Hikes with Dogs: Western Washingtonthe inaugural book in the national series. With that book selling well, Parka went on to work as a model, selling a variety of dog products from shampoos to canine packs to Therm-a-Rest dog beds in catalogs like Early Winters, LL Bean, and EMS.

For all her hard work as a trail-loving dog, though, Parkas hiking life nearly ended before it got started. Just after turning six months old, Parka developed a limp. Our first veta specialist in hunting dogs and field trial championsnoted she had a genetic defect that left her with loose flaps of cartilage in her elbow joints. His recommendation: put her down and get a healthier pup.

Before we could say, Youre fired, we had a consultation with a new vet and a referral to a nationally acclaimed surgeon. That surgeon, Dr. Randy Ackers of Sun Valley Animal Center, performed orthopedic surgery to remove that defective cartilage in both front legs. He noted that the joints would never perform at 100 percent, but she should have a good, active life. Unfortunately, a few months later, we were back in Sun Valley having her rear legs treated for the dog equivalent of ACL tearsboth tibias were misaligned with her femurs, leaving her with stressed knees. The cure: saw off the tops of the tibias, reposition them, and bolt them back into place (known as Tibial Plateau Leveling).

So, before she was two years old, Parka had all four legs surgically repaired. Fortunately, her modeling career was doing well and she paid for all that work herself. Even more important, the surgery was wildly successful. Within nine months of the last surgery, Parka was powering up trails, and soon after was enjoying 20-mile hikes and long, multiday backpacking trips. Donna and I monitored her constantly, knowing that she was susceptible to injury and chronic arthritis in those weakened joints. While we kept an eye on her stride, though, we enjoyed hundreds of days on the trail with our best friend.

Donna Meshke, Parka, and the author resting in camp at Goat Lake, Goat Rocks Wilderness Area

Last winter, though, the day we feared came to pass. Parkas persistent slight limp turned into a painful three-legged trudge. The thin band of scar cartilage that formed in her elbows was gone, worn to nothing. Those elbows now rubbed bone-on-bone and her right elbow was a mass of bone spurs and torn tissue. Once a proud hiker capable of enjoying 20-mile days, she now struggled to get around the backyard on her own. Our constant trail companion was now a couch potato. She whined when she saw us carry our packs out the door, wanting to go with us. But she cried more when she tried to run to the vehicle to go with us. I could tolerate her whines of being left behind, but only because her cries of pain seared my soul.

At just ten years old, Parka became a retired hiker, fated to living her remaining days indoors. She probably should have stopped hiking a season (or two) earlier to minimize the damage of those degrading joints. If we had shut down her hiking career earlier, she would have been miserable the last year or two, but she might have had less physical pain to deal with at the end.