Follow as a track

The more you make your dog hiking, the more you are exposed to mark their routes to parks in different ways. The best parks provide a Mapboard to study, to take a card, what to expect short directions - including distances-, well marked hiking trails and exit signs.

The most parks give you all, - from the menu, or perhaps none at all receive some elements. Depending on the see more hiking with your dog, you get to activate a wrong somewhere. Even if you really pay attention, it is surprisingly easy to miss a turn in the Woods. Unless you are looking for a real wilderness experience with compass and wayfinding helpers are not to go, to go, unless you have a card in the forest. Also keep a card, if it's a little sketchy, you of lost, if you selected the tracks, which not thrilled to find.

A printed card is often not available, but sent to the starting point is. If there are many options of traces of a piece paper sketch of your car, a rudimentary map before you is rather than on your memory in the Woods, which can make confusing.

Once on the trail are colored blazes on trees painted follow. The best way will be often enough the line, that the next conflagration immediately after passing the previous. This is rarely the case. With blazes trees fall over, color faded only sparingly used routes that are not maintained or blazes. This is therefore it is important to the card - strengthen your trust in bad way marked.

Large parks can a complex trail system with many colored routes - you have that I have ever seen 23 trails of all blaze in various solid or is multi colors. The same way can be used to multiple routes, so pay attention. On many out, multi-day paths (the Appalachian Trail, for example) is the main line, makes white and each page path is the line in blue.

Some parks blaze their way not at all - they rely on signs at crossings the trail, you here and as lead. Again, a map is a must the Park come to this, since you don't want, to a junction, where a sign disappeared or stolen by vandals. By the way crosses in the Park, the characters not by two fire appear way one above the other. The higher of which two blazes is offset in the direction to go, i.e. If the top Blaze is something further than the lower left turn. To the marked paths sometimes three found that blazes in the form of a triangle - the end of a route marked. Congratulations - you have it again, and I hope you are not on your dog.

Doug Gelbert is author of more than 20 books, including the canine Hiker?s Bible. To his free newsletter on hiking with your dog, subscribe and get a copy of the rules for dogs in 100 of the most popular National Park Service countries, in the warmer months, which he leads hikes for hikewithyourdog.com tours canine, dogs and people on hiking adventure, visit http://www.hikewithyourdog.com/. Tours of excursions up to several days exploring, visit parks, historic sites and beaches.