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 considered 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.
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.
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!
I have rated each hike with a score of 1 to 5 based on how much fun it is for a dog.
Coastal hiking route should not be done 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.
Trees such as oak, maple, hickory, ash and cork drop their 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 are evergreen and retain their needle leaves throughout the year. They also can have poisonous processionary caterpillar nests in the spring and summer.
Pine processionary caterpillar's are poisonous 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.
A dog will drink any water, but fresh running mountain river water is the best.
Lakes are popular with dogs because they can swim and find drinking water easily.
Hiking routes with waterfalls are popular with dogs because they can swim and find drinking water easily.
Some hiking routes involve ascents or descents via ladders up to 3m high or a scramble up steep 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.
A limited number of routes can include short sections of up to 50m along metal mesh walkways screwed into the side of the mountain or canyon. These mesh walkways are a problem for dogs because their paws 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.
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.
Often I will come across wild animals such as deer, Iberian Ibex, Rabbits, Hares, Boars and large 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 disappears for several hours and does not return on call.
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