Working Pack Dog Excellent
The dog's weight and the weight of his pack must be verified by an impartial
witness or trip official prior to the start of the trip. The dog shall cary an initial
load of at least 30% of his body weight. Te weight carried shall not decrease
except by normal consumption of items such as food or water.
Pack trips shall be backcountry trips with the dogs carrying equipment
necessary for the trip. Backcountry is a remote area, inaccessible and unsuited
to vehicular traffic at the time of the trip, where support and aid is not generally
available. Campouts will be necessary due to the distance requirements.
Campouts will take place in the backcountry, not at trailheads, roadside
campgrounds and the like. Suitable locations for pack trips are National
Forests, Parts, hiking and undeveloped natural terrain.
A total of 120 miles shall be completed in 1 to 3 trips.
Each trip shall be a minimum of 40 miles with an average of 10 miles per day
on travleing days under normal conditions such as maintained trails and normal
weather conditions. Day trips from the base camp msut adhere to the weight
requirements unless the applicant does not wish to include those miles in the trip
total.
Because some trips will take place in mountainous terrain, each 1,000 feet of
elevation gain may be substituted for a mile of the total mileage requirement.
