It's been a rainy weekend here in the Phoenix area. Some people hate this weather while others love it. No matter how you feel about rain drops falling on your head you cannot deny that it's excellent hiking weather for black dogs. With less solar energy to contend with we can go on longer more demading hikes. During a break in the rain (which didn't last long) the boys and I headed to Usery Mountain Regional Park in Maricopa county to hike the Wind Cave Trail.
If you've never been to Usery park you can find a map, contact information and park fees at the bottom of the post. I live close by, so I hike there with the dogs quite often and it has lots of great trails. Say hello if you ever see Nigel and Hugh! The Wind Cave is generally a very popular trail so be prepared for a lot of traffic (today was an exception, I only saw one other person because of the terrible weather). It's about 3 miles round trip (1.5 miles out and back) with an elevation gain of about 800 feet. Because of this I would recommend that you work up to this trail if you don't hike a lot with your pup. Between the uneven ground and the elevation gain some dogs could overheat or get sore quickly. If you do a google search on this trail you will find lots of information on it so I will spare you the non-doggy details.
The trail stars out wide and flat then after about a half mile narrows down to nearly a 1 person trail and starts climbing. This first part of the trail seems the most problematic for my big dog, Nigel. Every time I have brought him here he manages to step on some cactus needles and completely cover his paws. Ow! This time I made him wear his RuffWear boots, which to my surprise stopped the cactus needles from going in his paws today even when he stepped directly on some. He does hate the boots but I rather have a sullen dog for a quarter mile than an infected abscessed foot. As the trail starts climbing and becoming more narrow the vegetation decreases slightly I worry less about my dogs feet and more about where I put my own. Whereas both my dogs are nimble and quick I am very much the opposite and tend to fall a lot while hiking. This is one of the reasons I try to keep both the dogs leashed, it's helpful to use the leash for balance from time to time. I stopped to water the dogs twice and we made it just shy of getting to the top before we turned around. The rain was making the trail more slippery and a girl can only fall down so many times before she needs to call it quits. As we started to descend I was grateful that the coyotes waited to start howling until I was almost back to my car. If you do hike at Usery with your dog be aware that they do have a lot of coyotes and I hear them howl every time I go. I bring bear spray in my pack because it makes me feel safer. I have really enjoyed starting to hike with my dogs more because it keeps the puppy's energy level down to a reasonable level and keeps the old man fit. When the weather is bad what do you do with your dogs? Have you ever done the Wind Cave Trail?
If you've never been to Usery park you can find a map, contact information and park fees at the bottom of the post. I live close by, so I hike there with the dogs quite often and it has lots of great trails. Say hello if you ever see Nigel and Hugh! The Wind Cave is generally a very popular trail so be prepared for a lot of traffic (today was an exception, I only saw one other person because of the terrible weather). It's about 3 miles round trip (1.5 miles out and back) with an elevation gain of about 800 feet. Because of this I would recommend that you work up to this trail if you don't hike a lot with your pup. Between the uneven ground and the elevation gain some dogs could overheat or get sore quickly. If you do a google search on this trail you will find lots of information on it so I will spare you the non-doggy details.
The trail stars out wide and flat then after about a half mile narrows down to nearly a 1 person trail and starts climbing. This first part of the trail seems the most problematic for my big dog, Nigel. Every time I have brought him here he manages to step on some cactus needles and completely cover his paws. Ow! This time I made him wear his RuffWear boots, which to my surprise stopped the cactus needles from going in his paws today even when he stepped directly on some. He does hate the boots but I rather have a sullen dog for a quarter mile than an infected abscessed foot. As the trail starts climbing and becoming more narrow the vegetation decreases slightly I worry less about my dogs feet and more about where I put my own. Whereas both my dogs are nimble and quick I am very much the opposite and tend to fall a lot while hiking. This is one of the reasons I try to keep both the dogs leashed, it's helpful to use the leash for balance from time to time. I stopped to water the dogs twice and we made it just shy of getting to the top before we turned around. The rain was making the trail more slippery and a girl can only fall down so many times before she needs to call it quits. As we started to descend I was grateful that the coyotes waited to start howling until I was almost back to my car. If you do hike at Usery with your dog be aware that they do have a lot of coyotes and I hear them howl every time I go. I bring bear spray in my pack because it makes me feel safer. I have really enjoyed starting to hike with my dogs more because it keeps the puppy's energy level down to a reasonable level and keeps the old man fit. When the weather is bad what do you do with your dogs? Have you ever done the Wind Cave Trail?