First off, sorry about the delay in responding. I started a pretty good response last week, but my email program crashed. So here we go again.

First off, I'll say that having Heidi along made my trip very special. It was awesome to have a buddy with me. Arriving at Baxter State Park in Maine (where dogs are NOT allowed) was disappointing, as she could not hike the last 15 miles with me. In addition to keeping me company, she kept me and other hikers entertained, and was often greeted with much enthusiasm by other hikers.

As mentioned by others, there can be some anti-dog sentiments from other hikers on the trail. I did not experience much of this, but I know some others that did. If/when you do, don't argue, just walk away.

Since I expected some anti-traildog attitudes, I planned to avoid staying in shelters. This worked fairly well, though the first time I tried to stay in a shelter (it was raining) it was nearly full and we got the welcome 'Is Heidi going to sleep in the shelter too?' That was enough for me to shoulder my pack and walk a mile and a half to the next camp site. My advice is to plan on carrying a tent that'll hold both you and Mable, and plan to use it. When the weather warmed up, I began sleeping out (without a tent) at scenic spots rather than hiking to shelters. These were some of my best nights on the trail.

Since you're starting so early, plan on dealing with the cold. During the day, its pretty easy to keep warm by moving. Your idea of the z-rest for Mable is a good one; we started with 1/3 of a ridgerest for Heidi, which worked fairly well, though I sent it home after two or three weeks (it was warming up, and Heidi couldn't go through the Smokies anyway). She never needed a blanket or vest, though a couple nights in late September/early October she was definately interested in snuggling up with me. A short-haired breed will definately need supplemental insulation; it was cold for us into southern Virginia, in early June.

The heat can be tougher to deal with than the cold. Again, it seemed like the short-haired breeds had more trouble than Heidi (she has a mid- length coat). During the hottest weather, we'd take a long siesta; usually from 1 to 3, sometimes from noon to five. When the days are long its much easier and more comfortable to hike in the mornings and evenings than during the day. One friend (also with a dog) lived by the motto '9 miles between 6 and 9.' While I was not normally a 3 mph hiker, it illustrates the point that hiking in the evenings can be a good time to cover the miles.

This year we didn't see very much rain. That worked out fairly well, as Heidi does NOT like to walk in the rain. Of course the drought brought its own problems, but we didn't get any rain from early June to mid July, and that was just a downpour in July. We didn't get an all-day rain between southern VA and mid MA (thats Massachusetts). OK, I just went to look it up. I'm pretty sure it was between 6/16 and 8/21 (about 840 miles) we encountered only two rains - a brief evening downpour in Shenandoah, and a quick afternoon thunderstorm in PA. Hopefully, next year's weather will have a little more rain. If its infrequent, you can probably get away with sitting it out. If there's regular rain, you'll have to walk in it, like it or not. I kindof like it, but Heidi definately prefers to sit it out. You and Mable may be different...

For preperation, the best thing to do is hike, gradually building up mileage and load. Is Mable carrying a pack? If so, get her acclimated prior to the trip. Even with preparation, plan on low miles when you start. Being from the midwest, I wasn't too sure about what to expect for terrain in the south, and boy, was I shocked. Its not as tough as NH and ME, but it sure ain't easy either. Anyway, we planned on 8 to 12 mile days for the first two weeks. In reality we did between 4 and 14 mpd. Our pre- hike preparation was mostly 4 to 6 mile runs, without packs. Not the best training, but better than nothing. My best advice is to say that you need to let Mable pick the mileage. Forget about schedules, mileage goals or anything of the sort, particularly if you or Mable is showing signs of being tired. Sometimes its tough to do that, but you'll be better off in the long run. I don't know if it was luck or just the way we gradually built up our mileage, but Heidi never had problems with her pads or anything else. There were definately days that she was not interested in doing the last couple miles that I wanted to do; in retrospect, she's a better judge of when to stop than I am.

Regarding hiking with Heidi, I was amazed by two things. One, she never needed the booties. We carried them the whole way, but not even 20 mile days in the rocks of Pennsylvania wore through her pads. I think it was our gradual build up that enabled this. Two, her pack held up tremendously. We never had a problem with it. It only came off twice, both times on very steep downhills, when it slipped over her head. She also did not have chafing problems with the pack. Her pack is a Wenaha, and its the only dog-pack we've owned. Based on what I saw on other dogs, I'd say that the fabric one-piece top is a superior design to the three-strap designs. Also stay away from the 'vest with velcro bags' design - it flops around very easily, and could get lost in the woods. When I bought it, I thought Heidi would outgrow her Wenaha, but she did not. Its showing signs of wear, and I've always wanted to get her a Wolfpacks Banzai, but so far she doesn't need one yet...

Lastly, for food, I switched to puppy chow. At first she ate regular dog food, but lost weight. It was also, at times, difficult to get her to eat. I started doctoring her food by adding a little warm water with boullion or ramen seasoning. This interested her greatly in her food. Or, I'd mix in some of my dinner with hers; or use treats. Anything special to get her to start eating, including summer sausage or pepperoni. Once she'd start by eating the treat, she'd kindof realize 'oh, maybe I am hungry' or something. Once we switched to puppy chow, she put on weight and muscle. You'll probably want to consult with a vet though, depending on the age of the dog, puppy chow can be a bad choice. Heidi is three and we had no problems; like I said, the extra protein seemed to really help her out.

I could go on and on, but will stop here for now (sorry about the length). If anyone has other questions, I'm more than happy to answer them. We don't have any post-trip information yet, but you can learn a little bit about Heidi at http://www.visi.com/~bsimon/heidi.html and about our trip at http://www.visi.com/~kkokal/simonat where a friend kept track of me while on the trail. There're also pictures at http://www.visi.com/~bsimon/hiking/at99/images/

brian (kernel) and heidi

At 07:33 PM 10/29/99, Jake wrote:
>
>I know that dogs aren't exactly welcome on the trail by some and I also know
>that dogs can have a lot of difficulty with trail life if not cared for
>properly.  I am really doing my research so that Mable can be a very happy
>trail pup.  I've gathered a lot of good information, but I always feel like
>I could learn more.  I know I will learn the most once I actually hit the
>trail for 5 months, but being prepared never hurt anyone, right?
>
>Maybe you would send me a few thoughts, just off the top of your head about
>thru-hiking with a dog.  Preparation?  Training?  Food?  Health?  Cold
>weather?  Hot weather?  Rain?  Behavior around other hikers?  These are all
>things I'd love to hear about, and anything else you can come up with.
>Maybe you would just be open to answer some questions.
>
>Hopefully I'll hear from you soon.
>
>-Jake and Mable
>