Trip Report
East Fork Foss - Necklace Valley — Saturday, May. 7, 2016
Central Cascades > Stevens Pass - West
Type of Hike
Day hikeTrail Conditions
Minor obstacles posing few problemsRoad
Road suitable for all vehiclesBugs
No bugsSnow
Snow free
We had an amazing time on this hike, it has always been a favorite. Minor obstacles but very few. The sky was beautiful and there are river(s) and waterfalls literally everywhere. The frogs are croaking at Lake Alturas and the trilliums look great. This is a perfect time to go weather wise, (normal spring weather temps anyway). Out of the 10 mile round trip hike to the river and back, I couldn't have asked for a better 9. Unfortunately we had people with loose dogs. I have a big, shy dog who I leash. Going by "like" dogs, there's no problem. Unfortunately none of the people, (4 parties with dogs) leashed any of them. By the 4th, it went bad. 3 malamutes (or huskies) run up and surround our dog. Our dog is flipping out and the owners are no where. The dogs aren't biting but they aren't leaving and we can't go anywhere. This is all happening within a couple minutes where they finally do leave and come back 2 more times before 3 guys finally show up. We're shaking and calming our dog and yell at them to leash their dogs. One of them yells back "NO" and "we shouldn't have an aggressive dog out in the woods". I'm controlling my dog, (whimpering loudly or not) by keeping it near me with a leash and it was inspirational to know that I am to also control other people's pets that run up and to be surprised when it becomes tense. Who would have thunk. Called the Rangers and it's a $125 fine. Not all, but the majority of hikes are like that. We were told when it happens again, report them to the rangers but also call 911 because there are a couple cops up there who love those calls. So get out there, enjoy the views and I'll be bringing maze next time. (Leash sign ripped down but rangers putting another up soon).
Comments
Call 911
Seriously! Sheesh!
With thst said, I wish hikers would leave their dogs at home. I'm so frustrated with off leash dogs lately.
Some of you dog hikers are the worst
I have 2 very well behaved dog companions, but I've never had them as hiking partners and never will
Posted by:
Kingdingaling on May 11, 2016 08:27 AM
No Way!!
Did you go on Saturday the 7th? Because same thing happened to me!! I was sitting with my daughter by the river and then suddenly three dogs (looked like huskies) came out of nowhere and wanted to eat our food and owners were nowhere in sight!!
Posted by:
Liz84 on May 11, 2016 03:19 PM
Response to No Way!!
Yes it was on the 7th. We were done and at the parking lot by 11:30 a.m. and saw them about a mile from the trailhead. They were getting a late start.
Posted by:
Dirt Lover on May 12, 2016 11:35 AM
ID them
Take their photo and post it.
Same continuing conversation from last year (the increasing problem).
But yes please, do the 'rest of us' who don't love your dog a favor and leave them at home. Or stick to Rattlesnake and Si for dog park time, and spare more 'wilderness' trails.
Posted by:
alexlim on May 17, 2016 09:08 AM
SO MUCH NEGATIVITY and ANGER!!!
i always find it so interesting how such NEGATIVE and ANGRY people either don't like dogs or have freaky, MEAN dogs! millions of people have wonderful, trusting, caring relationships with their dogs and have hiked thousands of miles beside their trusted companions. dogs, humans and wilderness are a beautiful thing! take for example all of the people who have dogs who walk ON the trail with them, are well behaved, gentle, love all people and all animals, and are voice controlled, so there is no need for entanglement by leash. we have an incredible relationship with our gentle, friendly, service trained labrador retriever and take her with us everywhere on backpack trips etc. PLEASE stop the knee jerk reaction to one or two bad dogs...it makes for miserable interactions on a community trail.
Posted by:
CKZfurrrever! on May 23, 2016 11:12 AM
SO MUCH NEGATIVITY AND ANGER!!!
We all like to believe we have well behaved, gentle, voice controlled dogs that have no need for "entanglement by leash". And we know there are millions of people with wonderful, trusting, caring relationships with their dogs, that's not a secret. Unfortunately if you don't need to leash your dog, then everyone else has that same right whether their dog is as well behaved or not. Right now, there is a $125 dollar fine for an unleashed dog period. I'm assuming it is for a good reason and I respect that. We live out here and hike a lot. I've put up with this for 7 years and have never said a word. When I finally do after experiencing a scary and traumatic event, I get a response "PLEASE stop the knee jerk reaction to one or two bad dogs". We do approx. 70 hikes a year and you can bet it is a whole lot more than one or two dogs but thanks for your sensitivity, I find it very interesting.
Posted by:
Dirt Lover on May 23, 2016 05:27 PM
Same
Thanks!
Yea, it's not really about whether your particular dog is immaculately trained and loves all animals... it's also not a knee-jerk reaction for me either. It's a constant problem. When I encounter dogs on trails, it's about an 80% negative experience. Meaning... I either see a dog(s) running off lease, far from the owner's sight (or care) they digging up the ground, harassing native wildlife, harassing me, trying to eat my food, barking like crazy, invading my tent/private camp area, threatening someone on the trail or another dog, pooping, or some other experience-diminishing event/act.
And like the previous poster, I too spend a great deal of time out on trails, about 80-90 days a year. And I have noticed an increase (largely maybe due to an increase in People) in dogs and dog activity on trails.
It makes me the most upset when I see it in explicitly dog-banned areas, like the enchantments and others. I see it all the time.
I also think these dog owners are totally clueless, because people tend to have 1 of 2 reactions. They either are dog people/dog lovers themselves, so they gush and gab and pet and ask dog-related lifestyle questions... (which is a positive reinforcement experience), or they say nothing, and silently mutter under their breath about stupid people bringing stupid dogs into the wilderness. Maybe they're all cat people? Who knows. It's much more cat style to not be confrontational and passive. Except maybe sharing some honest and useful feedback online on sites like WTA.
Posted by:
alexlim on May 25, 2016 08:37 PM
wow! such righteous, sad and angry people
again...completely missing the point. and again...negative and angry and attacking...such righteous people (we have all hiked many miles and love the wilderness!). it's amazing to me that people such as you take negative experiences and equate them to ALL dogs! dogs have traveled in the wilderness alongside humans since the beginning of time! the problem is that some people have not properly trained their dogs. but having a reaction where we decide to BAN all dogs is not a respectful solution! sadly, people like YOU are what destroys a sense of community and caring. in older societies societies where people come together - I.e. Europe - to find solutions that benefit all - the human/dog partnerships are rated so that dogs who are well trained are given access to restaurants, trails, public spaces - everywhere.
please stop blaming and generalizing to ALL!!! it's destructive.
take he example of how many times I have found piles of human shit sitting on top of the soil with smeared toilet paper wadded up on top - right next to pristine alpine lakes, rivers, water sources! or the myriad of times we have been camping above timberline and witnessed other campers having huge roaring campfires, or wilderness camps that have been completely trashed with heaps of plastic, metals, etc - these seem like much more pressing issues facing our wilderness areas! and I have not asked to BAN all humans from wilderness areas!!! instead I try to have conversations with rangers about sign posting and solutions. grow up people!
Posted by:
CKZfurrrever! on May 27, 2016 09:02 AM
Uh
Pretty sure you missed the point.
No one is talking about stupid people, people poo, garbage or other dumb hiker issues. Or history lessons about canine breeding evolution and ye old Europe.
The references we made to the number of hikes/days is not for ownership of trails or bragging, it's in response to the notion that it's an isolated incident or knee-jerk reaction versus a common and often under-spoken issue. It's for context of volume and frequency of the problems and negative experiences we encounter.
Likewise no one said anything about all dogs, or ALL DOGS, as you might say. But I did mention it's something that diminished my personal experience about 80% of the time. I'm not sure how you plan to educate thousands of owners, train the dogs, monitor and implement some policy of 'approved dogs' being allowed on trails, behaved, on-lease, but go for it.
You talk about community, but you don't seem to care much about how that community feels (ie, feedback here), or how your dog makes others in the community feel. And to me, that's the point.
Anywho, 'see ya on the trail!'. Hopefully not.
Posted by:
alexlim on May 27, 2016 12:54 PM
mean and inappropriate
again...the point is inclusivity and solutions not exclusivity! and I refuse to lower myself to what I really want to say about you and your limited thinking. ciao forever
Posted by:
CKZfurrrever! on May 27, 2016 01:04 PM