Pet Friendly Hiking Trails: Best Spots to Explore With Your Dog

From Coast to Coast, Hit These Top Trails With Dogs

There’s always something new to discover when you set out on a hike, but choosing a dog friendly trail so you can go hiking with dogs is sure to up your entertainment on any adventure. From all the unexpected sights to the exciting new sounds (and don’t forget a whole lot of fresh smells!), your favorite furry friend can help you experience a trail like never before. But not every trail is a dog trail! It’s important to do your research before you get out on trails with dogs.

4 Key Things to Know Before Hiking With Dogs

1. Where you’re going—and that it is, in fact, a dog friendly hiking trail

2. Any policies related to dogs on the trail, i.e. if it’s an on or off leash dog hike

3. That you and your big or small active dog are prepared for it—from the terrain type to the trail length

4. The weather for the day you plan to go hiking with a dog

Depending on the terrain, trail length and weather, another big part of prep when hiking with pets is to make sure you have the right essentials packed for your four-legged canine companion: leash, poop bags, pet first aid kit, plus plenty of food and water with a collapsible bowl. Wellness^® Puppy Bites are easy-to-pack treats for walks with dogs, and you might consider beefing up their diet for a little extra energy with Wellness^® CORE+ beef or Wellness^® Complete Health beef dog food.

Now, the only question is…where to go?

Top Dog Friendly Hiking Trails Across a Variety of Terrains

Here are a few of the top dog trails across the country—and various terrains—to get you going, whether you live close or are looking to travel with pets to some of the best places to hike with dogs in the U.S.

Through the Mountains: Hickory Nut Falls Trail

Location: Chimney Rock State Park – Chimney Rock, North Carolina

Length: 1.4-mile out and back

What’s to Love: One of many dog friendly trails in this scenic 1,000-acre park, but the one most traveled for its jaw-dropping views of one of the tallest waterfalls east of the Mississippi for you and your leashed hiking companion to enjoy

In the Grasslands: Long X to Maah Daah Hey Loop

Location: Grassy Butte, North Dakota

Length: 11.1-mile loop

What’s to Love: Some of the most unique terrain in the country for hiking with dogs, from grassy prairies to rocky peaks and plateaus, for you and your leashed pup to experience both the grasslands and the badlands

Among the Red Rocks: Lighthouse Trail

Location: Palo Duro Canyon State Park – Canyon, Texas

Length: 5.9-mile out and back

What’s to Love: Part of the second-largest canyon in the U.S., known as “The Grand Canyon of Texas”, this trail winds you through amazingly layered red rocks until you reach a large rock called the Lighthouse (you’ll want to take your leashed dog on the trail first thing in the morning to keep their paws cool, and be sure to bring plenty of water)

By the Water: Jordan Pond Path

Location: Acadia National Park – Mount Desert, Maine (a 4-5 hour drive from Boston, Massachusetts – another very pet friendly travel destination!)

Length: 3.1-mile loop

What’s to Love: Acadia is one of America’s most pet friendly national parks, with 100 miles of some of the best hiking trails for dogs including this path for leashed pups around one of the most beautiful areas in the entire park (just know there’s no swimming in the pond since it provides drinking water!)

Happy Trails—and Tails!

Whether you make it out on the dog trail this summer or any time in the years to come, we hope you and your furry BFF have the time of your life soaking up all the goodness that nature and a good dog friendly hiking trail have to offer. Remember to leave only paw prints—but take every memory on the path to your shared life of wellbeing!