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| Photo by Will Rochfort |
And if you are a long-time reader or friend, you know that Tals is my baby. I’ve owned her for over 6 years and this crazy mutt comes everywhere with me: backpacking, hiking, camping, mountain biking, road trips, and even to work on occasion. This doesn’t mean she is an angel of a pet; in fact, she is far from it! She is terrible on a leash, needs ridiculous amounts of exercise (do NOT get a herding dog!), barks at anyone that comes within 10 feet of her mother, and seriously needs to stop chasing rabbits when I am biking her. However, none of that matters to me: I love her to pieces and I take gear very seriously when it comes to purchases for my pup.
Ruffwear contacted me during the summer and allowed me to choose a few items to test out with Tals. Yes, my dog is a gear-testing wonder dog! I’ll save my opinions on the Highlands Bed and the Bivy Bowl for another day; instead, I want to chat with y’all about the Palisades Pack.
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| Photo by Will Rochfort |
The Palisades Pack is a larger dog pack that is intended for multi-day trips with your pup or when your dog’s carrying capacity is of the utmost importance. Tals has been spoiled for a long time because I’ve never found a pack that we both agreed on; as a result, I have always carried her food and water with me while backpacking. Y’all, this is no bueno because my dog drinks water like a fish!
Tally tested the Palisades Pack out on multiple trip over the past few months, and I finally arrived at the following conclusion: I seriously love this pack!
Here are a few of the noteworthy features:
1. The third chest strap is clutch!
We previously owned the smaller Approach Pack and while sturdy, it had a tendency to slide around Tally’s rib cage. Tals must have really hated it because she eventually chewed off the buckle one night, rendering the pack useless (I told you she was a demon in disguise!) However, the Palisades Pack has an additional third strap that wraps around the more narrow part of Tally’s chest. I’m not a scientist, but this third strap seemed to work wonders: she didn’t mind wearing the pack and I didn’t have too many issues with sliding. Win-win.
2. The pack comes with 2 1-Liter collapsible water pouches that fit snugly inside the two saddlebags.
I thought this was genius! The two pouches have their own pockets inside the saddlebags and the weight dispersion is pretty spot-on. Tals truly didn’t mind carrying her own water, and even better? I think the collapsible pouches are useful too! I plan on using one myself for our upcoming winter backpacking trip!
3. Removable saddlebags.
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| Photo by Will Rochfort |
This is pretty self-explanatory, but I think it is a feature worth noting. The saddlebags attach to the chest harness via clips, and it is super easy to unsnap the clips in order to remove the bags if needed. I took them on/off Tals a few times when she was splashing around in some deep water or running up and down a mountain (like photographed above). It was always a smooth process to get them back on securely.
4. Safety Handle.
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| Photo by Will Rochfort |
I’m not sure if it’s really called a safety handle, but the top of the harness has an accessible handle that rests on the top of Tally’s back. My friends and I jokingly call this the “Oh, s**t handle” because I had to grab onto it when Tals saw a porcupine! Additionally, it allows me to provide Tals with a little additional support when crossing deep water or snow. I like knowing that I can pull my baby girl out of trouble if need be.
At $129.95, the Palisades Pack is obviously not the cheapest dog pack out there, and I understand the hesitation at shelling out so much cash for a piece of dog gear. However, I feel comfortable recommending it to other dog owners who regularly take their dogs into the backcountry. The pack is very sturdy and most importantly, Tals didn’t mind wearing it at all! In fact, I think my little furball started to strut around the trails with an inflated sense of importance while wearing that red pack!
Ruffwear provided me with the Palisades Pack at no cost to myself. However, as usual, all thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own.