TRAIL INSTRUCTIONS
Llamas share backcountry trails with many users. Like equestrians,
hikers, and mountain bikers, there are some rules of etiquette which pertain
specifically to llamas as well as general ones. We'll do a short
list of the general ones first.
wilderness basics
Go 100 yards away from the trail and/or any open water to take care
of toileting needs. Don't leave the TP! It will outlast the excreta
by years. Wrap it, bag it, burn it, but please remove it! Leave no
trash. On the way back, when you have empty panniers, do a trash
patrol and pack out the leavings of others. Don't wash things in
streams. Take the water 100 yards away, cleanup, then pour it out
into the soil. And by the way, use biodegrabale soap. Don't
bury food scraps; burn them. Break up campfire rings and turn the
rocks burnt-side down. Exceptions are those extablished campsites
which will be used regularly. (Popular trails now have fire rings
every 100 feet, which is an eyesore.) Stay on the trail. By walking
on the designated path, you help maintain it. Don't let your llama
walk in the brush by the side of the trail. And don't cut the switchbacks.
Cutting them creates shortcuts for water and rockslides, which can eventually
destroy the route.
water crossings
You can hop across rocks and manuever over logs. The llama would
rather wade at a wide, shallow spot, which might not be near your preferred
crossing. If the two are fairly close, you can use your hiking staff
or a second lead to extend your reach. Let the llama pick his way
in the safest manner he can; and if the only possibility is to jump, try
to give him adequate landing space on the other side. Make sure he
has adequate lead length so that he is not forced to jump before you are
clear. Try to keep your llamas from defecating in the stream.
This is harder than it sounds, because getting their feet wet seems to
trigger an elimination reflex -- we have used it often to "empty" them
before parades and indoor events. So manage the problem: get their
feet wet, lead them to a suitable spot, and let the whole string "drain".
Then cross the creek.
equine encounters
If you are on a trail frequented by horseback users, be aware
of approaching riders from either direction. Warn them about the
presence of unusual things ahead. Our standard line is "Has your
horse been acclimatized to llamas yet'" An experienced trail horse will
have few problems with them, but a green horse may be quite frightened
(as it would be by deer, cows, logs, mountain bikes, and anything else
new). It is best to lead your llamas off the trail a short distance.
Go downhill rather than up, if this is an option, since horses are more
afraid of danger pouncing from above.
boys & girls together
Another thing to remember if you are packing with llamas of both
genders, is the inherent truthfulness of llamas on the matter of sex.
If the person leading a male comes up behind a female, it is implied that
he is interested in her. Usually he is. Sometimes he already
knows she's not available and is cringing in every line as he moves into
the danger zone --- the handler oblivious, the llama obedient. No
matter the body posture: If he gets too close, a female will inform him
emphatically that she is disinterested. (Unless she really is interested,
which will take even longer!) She does this by spitting, and we're talking
cud, the stinky stuff. The handler is often in the middle of this
conversation --- a not-too-innocent bystander. So don't lead your
male up behind a female. Given this social context, spit happens.
leading a string
When leading llamas in a string, the best way to connect them is with
the rope as far back as possible. We have a aluminum loop at the
back of each saddle to which the spring-ling on the end of the lead can
be clipped. Any time you are leading more than one llama, you must
remember to keep an eye on the trail with multi-llama obstacles in mind.
For instance, if your route leads between closely spaced trees, take care
that the leader does not go around the trunk one way and the follower another.
The more llamas in the string, the greater the potential for hang-ups of
this type. Experienced llamas who are used to each other and
have worked in a string often soon learn to avoid such difficulties, but
it is always a good idea to check frequently. If the llamas must
jump an obstacle, work between boulders or cross a difficult stream, it
is best to lead them individually over that part.
Llamas have a very definite pecking order. We will give
you some guidelines as to which llama goes where, according to the individuals
you have rented, which will help greatly in arranging the packstring.
Usually the dominant male does not like other animals too close to his
behind. On occasion the dominant animal will insist on leading.
Shy llamas often will prefer to follow a special buddy. Understanding
the dynamics of packstring relationships will help you arrange the string
to your advantage. Besides, watching them "talk" to each other is
quite entertaining.
Overnight:
After your llama has carried your load to its temporary destination,
you can picket him or put him on a stake-out line. Then you may let
him graze, browse, or feed him from a bucket or feed bag. To picket
a llama, you merely tie him to a screw-in stake or a handy tree, if the
stop is a short one. Use their collar for this purpose; we do not
picket or stake out by the halter when the llama is unsupervised.
When he is attached by a collar it can rotate under tension and the rope
is lower. When working, use a halter for better control and
communication. Remove it when he is finished. Our leads have
a spring link at the end so you can clip one end to the collar before
you remove the other from the halter. We send along a stake-out
line if ample pasture is expected. This is a long rope, stretched
along the ground, knotted at strategic points. The lead goes from
collar to line, and the clip can slide along the line between the knots.
Adjoining llamas should be separated by enough space from knot to knot
so that they cannot cross their leads. If the line is anchored to
vulnerable trees, protect them by spacing the first knot too far for the
llama to chew on the trunk.
food & drink
Which brings us to feed. Some areas require packstock to
carry their own feed, especially early in the season before the grass is
well established. In general, the impact of a llama is the same as
a deer. The one exception is an animal who is tied to a tree and
is either very hungry or very bored. In the course of the night,
he can neatly strip the bark from a tender trunk. If he "girdles"
the tree, it will die. Long distance or very strenuous trips should
not be left to chance. We send along a high-energy pelleted feed
supplement in morning/evening ration packets (2 lbs per llama per day).
Feed each animal in a place where he is the only one who can reach his
share.
Although rare, llamas who are out in unfamiliar territory have
been known to consume poisonous plants. By and large, animals do
not eat poisonous plants because they taste and smell unappetizing, but
an individual animal who is very hungry for fresh grass or leafy browse
may not be cautious. Most will stop after the first taste, but some
plants are so poisonous, or some llamas so greedy, that a lethal amount
is consumed. This is not a major problem, but it is wise not to tie
animals near unfamiliar plants. We supply a small illustrated booklet
of good browsing plants for the areas we pack.
Give your llama the opportunity to drink when you cross a stream.
Sometimes he will, sometimes he won't. First time packers may be
afraid of rushing water. In any case, the working llama should have
access to water at least twice a day. As long as this is done, it
is not necessary to keep a bucket of water near them.
(excerpt from pacing a trip) Llamas come in different
sizes and shapes, and some of ours are superb athletes. These big
boys can do 10-12 miles a day under load when they are fully conditioned
(mid to end of packing season) but we limit the number of "ultimate workout"
trips we rent our stock for. (We can recommend suitable llamas for
purchase to those whose passion is hiking fast and far.) All of our
adult llamas are capable of doing a seven-mile day. Since they must
work all season, we like to keep the day's effort within the limits of
enjoyment for the llama as well as the handler.
Llamas hang out in groups. If you have one far behind the rest,
it will humm, get worried, and sometimes want to push past the handler
in order to rejoin the others. Sometimes, if the others are completely
out of sight and the llama didn't see which way they went, he will just
stop for fear that he is being led away from his herd. In the same
fashion, if the person leading the front llama tries to get too far ahead
of the rest, the llama will slow down or stop altogether. LLAMAS
ALWAYS GO TOGETHER. Pace your trip accordingly.
Your packstock is also a prey species --- vulnerable to predator attack.
That means that they don't like to walk after dark, when their best form
of protection, their vision, is limited. Although some llamas will
follow a trusted companion down a dark trail, most like to scope out a
spot before dark, settle down and stay put. So don't plan on walking
the forest trail at night. Your llama won't do it. (We know of llamas
who pack open terrain by moonlight, but we've never tried it.)
Footsoreness can be a factor in pacing the trip. The llamas--unlike
their handlers---are barefoot. We take care to toughen the footpads
of our stock, but there are some trails which involve miles of travel over
talus and scree --- the small, often sharp rocks left by a receding glacier.
When this is the case, stop and check the feet for signs of swelling and
soreness. you may need to reduce the mileage to accomodate his feet.
(This is one of the reasons we now check out all trails our llamas travel
before we rent them.)
Llamas are more agile than most packstock and can negotiate very tight
and steep trails. However, if the trail is a rugged or steep one,
the load should be taken into consideration. For very hard terrain,
reduce either the load or the distance. Good planning means that
the llamas will travel their furthest or steepest miles toward the end
of a trip, when the weight is down due to food consumption. Llamas
also know when they are returning to the trailhead and will want to go
faster on the way back.