About Nova

The Mountain Dog

Nova isn't your average trail dog. She's a golden retriever who reads terrain better than most humans, who finds the efficient line through talus fields, and who leads the way up ridgelines with the quiet confidence of an animal completely in her element.

Based in Washington State, Nova's home range spans from the Olympics to the Central Cascades. She lives for the cold morning air at a trailhead, the smell of wet earth under old-growth canopy, the sound of wind across an exposed ridge. The hikes, the scrambles, the alpine lakes, the ski tours — it's all just a dog doing what she was made to do.

This site documents that life — every adventure tracked and written up, for anyone who wants to explore these places with their own dogs.