A guide for hiking with a dog in Catalonia

Hiking with a dog in Catalonia

Catalonia has incredibly green natural parks. Unlike the southern parts of Spain (which are a savannah type landscape) the natural spaces in Catalunya have much greater bio-diversity with some beautiful forests, mountains and deltas. But what about hiking with a dog?.

There are several factors that need to be cosidered when choosing a route and it very much depends on your dog so I have ranked all of my hiking routes for dog fun, on a scale of 1 to 5, based on the factors below.

Travelling to Catalona, Spain with a dog

Standard EU rules apply to travelling to Spain and Catalonia with your dog so if you are travelling from another European member state then all you need is that your dog has a microchip and EU pet passport plus a vaccinated against rabies at least 21 days before crossing the border.

If you are flying to Spain from outside of the EU, as well as a microchip and valid rabies vaccine, your pet will require an EU health certificate and from some origin countries, a rabies titre test. To find out the specifics check your government website.

Dogs on Beaches

During the bathing season there are restrictions on staying with dogs on the beach.
• April 1st to June 30th: dogs are not allowed on the beach on weekends
• July 1st to the last Sunday of September: dogs are not allowed on the beach all days of the week

Coastal hiking route should not be done when when dogs are banned. There are beaches which have fenced off dog enclosures but this does not permit walking with a dog along the whole stretch of the beach.

Dudideous Trees

Trees such as oak, maple, hickory, ash and cork drop thier leaves in autumn and winter and produce amazing forest colours that are great for hiking with a dog as well as plenty of scents from wild mountain animals.

Pine Trees

Pine trees are evergreen and retain their needle leaves throught the year. They also can have poisiounous processionary caterpillar nests in the spring and summer.

Pine processionary caterpillar

Pine processionary caterpillar's are poisionous to dogs (and cats!) so extra vigilance is required when walking through pine forests in the Spring and Summer. Please read my Pine Processionary Article for all the information you will need to plan a hiking trip that involves pine forests. I have ranked the routes based on probability to come across pine processionary caterpillars based on a scale from 1 to 5.

Rivers, lakes & Waterfalls

Hiking routes with rivers, lakes and waterfalls are popular with dogs because they can swim and find drinking water easily.

Ladders and chains

Some hiking routes involve ascents or descents via ladders up to 3m high or a scramble up steap rocks using a chain handhold to assist. These routes involve passing a dog up between people or using a dog harness and a short section of rope. This may influence your decision about doing a route if your dog is large and not easy to carry or lift.

Metal Mesh or Grill Walkways

A limited number of routes can include short sections of upto 50m along mettal mesh walkways screwed into the side of the mountain or canyon. These mesh walkways are a problem for dogs because thier feet are too small to walk on them so you will have to carry your dog along these sections. This may influence your decision about doing a route if your dog is large and not easy to carry or lift.

Farm Animals

In the foothills of most mountains you may find free grazing farm animals such as cattle, sheep and goats. you may want to put your dog on a leash if you see farm animals and your dog has not been trained to walk to heel on order.

Wild Animals

Often I will come across wild animals such as deer, Iberian Ibex, Rabbits, Hares, Boars and birds of prey. Usually these animals will run away but depending on your dog it may want to give chase which can be an issue if your dog dissapears for several hours and does not return on call.

Travelling with a dog on public transport

When travelling with a dog on public transport it is required to put a muzzle on the dog for Rodalies train services. For medium distance, long distance and high speed trains usually a pet carrier is required. See the Renfe travelling with a Pet page for more information.

Finally, in each hiking route, in the visiting section, I have written about completing the route with a dog.

Happy Dog Hiking and Exploring!