dogboston

The Esplanade

Description: “It is a great place to bring your dog for a walk, jog (or swim). Legally they have to be on leash, but they do have a lot of great stuff going on down there during the summertime i.e. concerts, movies on Friday nights, festivals. And dogs can attend!” - Julianna

Directions: A common way to access the Esplanade is from the north end of Arlington Street at David G. Mugar Way, and walking across the Arthur Fiedler Footbridge over Storrow Drive. The famous Hatch Shell is to the right.

Castle Island Recreation Area (website)

Description: A perfect variety of things to do here from beach to wildlife to amazing views. It’s well worth the trip. Off-season it’s really quiet… if you enjoy that sort of thing like me. Good history abounds. Read up on Pleasure Bay and Fort Independence before you go.

Peters Park Dog Run, South End (website)

Directions

Description: This excellent off-leash dog park is located in the South End of Boston on Washington Street between E Berkley and Waltham Street.

Pope John Paul II Park (website)

Description: Formerly a landfill and a drive-in theater, this is a nice hidden gem not too far from the city. Completed in 2001 on the mouth of the Neponset River. Popular for Quincy and South Boston residents… 65 total acres, 2 miles of biking and walking paths, lots of people flying kites and playing sports (especially soccer).

The Boston Common (website)

Description: The starting point of the Freedom Trail. The Boston Common is known to be one of the oldest public parks in the country. The park is almost 50 acres in size. Today, Boston Common is the anchor for the Emerald Necklace, a system of connected parks that winds through many of Boston’s neighborhoods.

Location: Bound by Tremont, Beacon, Charles and Boylston Streets.

Jamaica Pond (website)

Description: Jamaica Pond is a kettle pond, part of the Emerald Necklace of parks in Boston designed by Frederick Law Olmsted. The pond and park are in the Jamaica Plain neighborhood of Boston, close to the border of Brookline. The pond itself has an area of about 68 acres, making it the largest body of fresh water in Boston. There is a 1.5 mile path around the pond.

Stony Brook Reservation (website)

Description: Open year-round, dawn to dusk. Enneking, Dedham and Turtle Pond Parkways wind through extensive tree covered hills, valleys, rock-outcroppings and wetlands; past Turtle Pond and into Hyde Park. Stony Brook Reservation contains 475 acres of scenic landscapes and a variety of recreational facilities.

Ten to twelve miles of hiking trails and bicycle paths meander through the quiet, forested portion of the reservation. Sunfish and Perch swim in the fresh waters of Turtle Pond, an easily accessible spot for fishing. In the Reservation’s southern section are soccer and baseball fields, tennis courts, picnic areas, an ice skating rink, and a pool.

Belle Isle Marsh Reservation (website)

Description: Saltwater wetlands situated north of the city - could be considered part of Revere… 152 acres, short walking trail. Dogs should be on leash. Marsh area. Gravel path area to walk whole area of park. Picnic tables & parking available. Lots of wildlife to see and photograph.

The Public Garden (website)

Description: This park is considered the jewel of Emerald Necklace which makes up the Boston city parks. This is the one with with Swan Boats (chronicled in Make Way for Ducklings)… Not a lot of room for play, but it’s a great people-watching spot with a lot of activity.

Highland Park, Fort Hill, Roxbury

Description: The four-acre Highland Park is on Fort Avenue in Roxbury’s historic Fort Hill neighborhood.

Mark Y writes “How about Highland Park on Fort Hill in Roxbury? I live on the park among many other dog owners. We have an amazing community up and would love some new doggies up here from time to time. Drive by and check it out!” I think we will!

Directions: via Google Maps

Christian Herter Park (website)

Description: A less crowded alternative to the downtown Esplanade attractions… home to Publick Theatre plays, easy parking, starting point for runners, rollers, and … of course… dog walking. This runs from the Eliot Street Bridge to the Arsenal St Bridge on Soldier’s Field Road.

Western Ave, Larz Anderson Bridge (website)

Description: A walk-worthy stretch of the Charles River Reservation in Allston. Two wide green lawns are divided by this walking path by the river’s edge. A very nice stone footbridge.

Commonwealth Avenue Mall (website)

Description: In Colonial times, this area known as Back Bay was literally that: an inland bay alongside the peninsula on which Boston was established. Twice a day the Atlantic tides would send cleansing waves up the Charles River to flood it. That is, until the 1820s, when an enterprising mill company built a dam along what is now Beacon Street.

Some 50 years later, the state finished the job with landfill. Commonwealth Avenue Mall became the spine of the elegant new Back Bay neighborhood and the crucial green link between the Public Garden and Frederick Law Olmsted’s park system.

Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park (website)

Description: A well-known dog and owner/human hangout for North End dog lovers. Off Commercial Ave between Commercial Wharf and Long Wharf.

The Back Bay Fens (website)

Description: If you can find parking, you’ll be rewarded with a nice 2 mile walk past the MFA, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, and lots of open grassy area and benches for both romping and resting.

Carson Beach, South Boston (website)

Description: Dogs allowed on the beach during the off season (from Labor Day through Memorial day). Please clean up after your pets, as usual. Keep the leash on.

Boston Harbor Islands - Deer Island (website)

Directions Area/Trail Map

Description: Inside Deer Island you will find the treatment plants that handle all of Boston’s sewage (?). As un-enticing as that sounds, the park has been nicely enhanced as part of the Boston Harbor Walk project. You can bring dogs, but keep them on a leash.

Thomas Park (website)

Description: Nice view of the city, always dogs around to play with and meet.

Carlton Court Dog Park, South End

Description: Carleton court dog park in the south end is an excellent small dog park. It’s fenced in and right on the southwest corridor. There are poop bags available, lots of toys, and there’s a mulch elimination area. Its a great park and there are usually at least a few other dogs enjoying the space. The park is not huge, so really large dogs may have a hard time (greyhounds or wolfhounds).

The park is located at the intersection of Carlton and Holyoke Street at the Southwest Corridor.

Most of the dogs will be there early in the morning and after 5 pm.

Olmstead Park (website)

Description: The park is a popular walking and bicycling route for many residents of Boston and Brookline, and is particularly well known to the many employees and students of the Longwood Medical and Academic Area which adjoins it. The park forms the western edge of the Mission Hill neighborhood of Boston.

Charlesgate Dog Run, Back Bay

Directions Picture

Off leash dog park in Back Bay. By the BU Bridge near Mass Ave and Beacon Street. Not in the best condition.