Barley

Trail dogs are an important part of an outfitter crew. They offer security and companionship to crew, stock, and clients alike. Now one of those special dogs shares his story and his memories.

Barley is a little brown dog, just the right size for a bedroll. Although he’s retired now, he used to be a trail dog, working with Creel Canyon Outfitters in the Gila Wilderness of New Mexico. As a small puppy, he lived with a family and two other dogs, but eventually he goes to live with a man he calls Big Guy. Together they travel and take clients through the wilderness of the Southwest, from Pryor Cabin in the Western Gila Wilderness to Franz Springs in the Blue Range Primitive Area Wilderness in Arizona. Barley recalls tales from when he was in the prime of his youth and in the thick of having fun only a dog can have in the great outdoors.

Told from the perspective of a retired trail dog, this narrative presents fun and exciting tales of traveling in the wilderness of the American Southwest.