Travel by Dog Park

[EllenEveBaz]

I'm dreaming of travel in a post-pandemic world.  Thought an interesting approach to a road trip would be to pick a destination that has a wonderful-looking dog park.  Here's two that caught my attention -- both a little far for a road trip for me, but a girl and her hounds can dream ...

https://walkiees.co.uk/dog-walks/london-greater/regents-park-london   Scroll down to see more pictures.  GT member Doc's Doctor lives in London -- wonder if she's ever walked her hounds here.

I've always wanted to visit Vancouver, BC.  Plusalso it seems like a very dog-friendly place.  Lots and lots of dog parks, each one with lots of reviews that say, "Best dog park in the city."  Here's one:  https://vancouver.ca/parks-recreation-culture/queen-elizabeth-park-play.aspx.  Wonder if the hounds would like to strap on skates for a little roller hockey.   

Where would you like to go?  

 

[Time4ANap]

We took Rocket to the Greyhound Hall of Fame on our way through Kansas once.  Got a great picture of him standing by his Grand Daddy's Hall of Fame Plaque (Gable Dodge.)  His Daddy was inducted a few years later but we never got back there to get another picture of that plaque. 

We also took him to Winslow AZ so that we could get a picture of him "standing on the corner in Winslow Arizona."  

Rocket wasn't a dog park kind of guy. Anytime we went to one he would just hang with the humans. Probably because people have treats. 

GRTB is coming up in October in Rehoboth, Delaware. Jeter and Milo would be celebrities there. Just sayin'.

[oldrunners]

Five-ish years ago, my daughter and her husband and their dog traveled from North Jersey to LA.  They took the southern route, and drove from dog park to dog park.  The only one I remember was the one outside of New Orleans, which had high wrought iron fencing, an elaborate gate, lush grass, and a fountain.

[MerseyGrey]

We have forthcoming trips to the Scilly Isles, the Arrochar Alps in Scotland, and the Northumberland Coast, and since two of these trips have already been rescheduled once, I will be happy if any of them come off.

If I was going somewhere abroad, I would likely pick somewhere in New Zealand. Dunedin looks beautiful and I think I would opt to spend a day at the cricket and sit with Buddy just beyond the boundary rope, rubbing his ears as he watches the progress of the game (he would make a good umpire I think).

Slightly unrelated, but there was an article in the newspaper yesterday about how town centre stores are becoming more dog friendly in order to tempt people back to the high street. I sense a Buddy and Mummy shopping spree ahead!

[DocsDoctor]

16 hours ago, EllenEveBaz said:

I'm dreaming of travel in a post-pandemic world.  Thought an interesting approach to a road trip would be to pick a destination that has a wonderful-looking dog park.  Here's two that caught my attention -- both a little far for a road trip for me, but a girl and her hounds can dream ...

https://walkiees.co.uk/dog-walks/london-greater/regents-park-london   Scroll down to see more pictures.  GT member Doc's Doctor lives in London -- wonder if she's ever walked her hounds here.

 

Yes! I lead walks for my local Women's Institute - with Tiger, and before him Ken, as mascot - and a while back we did a lovely one from Paddington Basin along the towpath of the Regent's Canal to end up in Regent's Park, with a couple of other dogs coming along too. It's a beautiful park with a very nice cafe, though dogs aren't allowed in the formal parts such as the stunning Queen Mary's Rose Garden. 

We are really lucky in London, with good public transport links to lots of wonderful parks and more and more nice walking trails too - it makes arranging the WI outings a lot of fun!  With Covid we have faced restrictions - no group outings, no non-essential travel on public transport - but now happily things are opening up again. For the next one we're going to walk a section of the Wandle Trail and then explore Beddington Park, which is  big and beautiful, and includes a Tudor manor house (now a school), an eighteenth-century dovecote, and a Victorianised medieval parish church. So dog-friendly is it that when I went to check it out Tiger was even allowed inside the church with me to check out the William Morris screen!  Volunteers were running a cafe with tables in the pretty churchyard which will make a nice coffee stop at the end of our walk. 

For the time being I'm happy sublimating my travel urges into arranging day outings like this.  We are lucky to have so much on our doorsteps to explore, and it feels too much of a hassle to arrange anything longer/further away when as MerseyGrey says I could well end up needing to cancel/ reschedule.

PS TIger wants you to know that last month on one especially exciting recent WI outing he and two other adventurous dog friends rode on a train, inspected art installations along The Line walk, flew high above the Thames in a cable car, and finally caught a Thames Clipper boat home!

 

[FiveRoooooers]

53 minutes ago, DocsDoctor said:

Yes! I lead walks for my local Women's Institute - with Tiger, and before him Ken, as mascot - and a while back we did a lovely one from Paddington Basin along the towpath of the Regent's Canal to end up in Regent's Park, with a couple of other dogs coming along too. It's a beautiful park with a very nice cafe, though dogs aren't allowed in the formal parts such as the stunning Queen Mary's Rose Garden. 

We are really lucky in London, with good public transport links to lots of wonderful parks and more and more nice walking trails too - it makes arranging the WI outings a lot of fun!  With Covid we have faced restrictions - no group outings, no non-essential travel on public transport - but now happily things are opening up again. For the next one we're going to walk a section of the Wandle Trail and then explore Beddington Park, which is  big and beautiful, and includes a Tudor manor house (now a school), an eighteenth-century dovecote, and a Victorianised medieval parish church. So dog-friendly is it that when I went to check it out Tiger was even allowed inside the church with me to check out the William Morris screen!  Volunteers were running a cafe with tables in the pretty churchyard which will make a nice coffee stop at the end of our walk. 

For the time being I'm happy sublimating my travel urges into arranging day outings like this.  We are lucky to have so much on our doorsteps to explore, and it feels too much of a hassle to arrange anything longer/further away when as MerseyGrey says I could well end up needing to cancel/ reschedule.

PS TIger wants you to know that last month on one especially exciting recent WI outing he and two other adventurous dog friends rode on a train, inspected art installations along The Line walk, flew high above the Thames in a cable car, and finally caught a Thames Clipper boat home!

 

Wowzer, Tiger! There is a book what comes to mind: Oh the Places You'll Go! You (and your mum) are doin' it rite!!

[cleptogrey]

ellen, how about an easy one- go to Greyhounds in Gettysburg this September. Fenced in small dog run(must wear muzzle) and a fun run for each dog where they are clocked by a speed gun? not that that far- just north into PA. lots of tours of sights at gettysburg(battle field), 3 days of events at the eisenhower and hundreds of our own kind(haha) everywhere! lots of places to eat outside w/ your pups. it's not the longest drive in the world from your home.

personally i try to stay away from dog runs unless they are pretty empty and watch the dogs for a while before i enter.

 the nude beach at Turo, MA is dog friendly and i've always let the pups run loose there. People are generally spread out and it's a pleasure. Dogs can run free at many of the Cape Cod Beaches- just watch signage and what's going on. All of the towns have always been dog friendly. we find the best time to go is off season- the fall at the cape is fantastic.

[MerseyGrey]

4 hours ago, cleptogrey said:

ellen, how about an easy one- go to Greyhounds in Gettysburg this September. Fenced in small dog run(must wear muzzle) and a fun run for each dog where they are clocked by a speed gun? not that that far- just north into PA. lots of tours of sights at gettysburg(battle field), 3 days of events at the eisenhower and hundreds of our own kind(haha) everywhere! lots of places to eat outside w/ your pups. it's not the longest drive in the world from your home.

personally i try to stay away from dog runs unless they are pretty empty and watch the dogs for a while before i enter.

 the nude beach at Turo, MA is dog friendly and i've always let the pups run loose there. People are generally spread out and it's a pleasure. Dogs can run free at many of the Cape Cod Beaches- just watch signage and what's going on. All of the towns have always been dog friendly. we find the best time to go is off season- the fall at the cape is fantastic.

The nude beach at Turo…people are generally spread out 

[MerseyGrey]

8 hours ago, DocsDoctor said:

Yes! I lead walks for my local Women's Institute - with Tiger, and before him Ken, as mascot - and a while back we did a lovely one from Paddington Basin along the towpath of the Regent's Canal to end up in Regent's Park, with a couple of other dogs coming along too. It's a beautiful park with a very nice cafe, though dogs aren't allowed in the formal parts such as the stunning Queen Mary's Rose Garden. 

We are really lucky in London, with good public transport links to lots of wonderful parks and more and more nice walking trails too - it makes arranging the WI outings a lot of fun!  With Covid we have faced restrictions - no group outings, no non-essential travel on public transport - but now happily things are opening up again. For the next one we're going to walk a section of the Wandle Trail and then explore Beddington Park, which is  big and beautiful, and includes a Tudor manor house (now a school), an eighteenth-century dovecote, and a Victorianised medieval parish church. So dog-friendly is it that when I went to check it out Tiger was even allowed inside the church with me to check out the William Morris screen!  Volunteers were running a cafe with tables in the pretty churchyard which will make a nice coffee stop at the end of our walk. 

For the time being I'm happy sublimating my travel urges into arranging day outings like this.  We are lucky to have so much on our doorsteps to explore, and it feels too much of a hassle to arrange anything longer/further away when as MerseyGrey says I could well end up needing to cancel/ reschedule.

PS TIger wants you to know that last month on one especially exciting recent WI outing he and two other adventurous dog friends rode on a train, inspected art installations along The Line walk, flew high above the Thames in a cable car, and finally caught a Thames Clipper boat home!

 

I love this! Tell me: is there enough time to drink a glass of champagne at leisure in the cable car? I can’t imagine doing it with Buddy though!

[EllenEveBaz]

In my dream trips, I would go to dog parks just to give them a break and find a place for them to walk on grass, in the shade, and so on.  I don't let mine off leash at a dog park unless it's empty, usually early in the morning.  Most of mine never run much, it's more of a trot-and-sniff experience for them.  Folks may remember pics from a Thanksgiving beach trip last year -- the beach allowed dogs off leash at that time of year; my niece's lab happily trotted off leash and stayed nearby while the greys trotted happily on leash, ensuring they stayed nearby.   

Those London urban adventures sound wonderful!  What did Tiger and friends think of their air cable car and the ship?  It would be so wonderful to have public transportation that allowed dogs, letting you get to all those terrific walkable places.  MerseyGrey -- the link to the cable car said that one-way times during rush hour were 5 mins and a few minutes longer off-peak, with longest times after 7 pm.  

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GRTB is coming up in October in Rehoboth, Delaware. Jeter and Milo would be celebrities there. 

Hey -- Jeter and Milo are celebrities here!  The whole neighborhood knows them by name.  People get their picture taken with them at the Farmers' Market.  The one bus route in town turns the corner at our place -- one of the drivers told me years ago that she always tells people to look out and see if the greys are sunning in the back yard.  

Even though Gettysburg is relatively close, I am just not a fan of big scheduled events.

[DocsDoctor]

Yes, the cable car ride is only a few minutes - it would have to be the London Eye if you want a champagne experience, MerseyGrey. I have been up in that at sunset and it was sensational, even without champagne. No dogs allowed however, except assistance dogs.

Our three were all very chilled about the various modes of transport, with Tiger in particular wanting to lie down and stretch out whenever there was an opportunity. All of them were tired by the end of the day - when the smallest dog happily jumped into her owner's bike basket for a ride home!

 

[MerseyGrey]

16 hours ago, EllenEveBaz said:

  MerseyGrey -- the link to the cable car said that one-way times during rush hour were 5 mins and a few minutes longer off-peak, with longest times after 7 pm.  

Sounds like a challenge…

The link says that champagne flights are £28, which means that I could do a London bubbles crawl - The Shard, the cable car and the Eye. God I sound like such a lush but I love a glass of bubbles in unusual places!

[EllenEveBaz]