If you’ve had a dog for a while, you’ve figured out your favourite route by now. Dogs are creatures of habit, after all, and so are we! But when the sun is shining and your day is open, it’s a golden opportunity to take your furry friend on a new adventure.

So if you want to shake things up a little bit, here’s some places you can take your dog for a walk in and around Nelson.

Side Note: We’ve marked the areas your dog needs to be on leash, and which they can free-roam. Subscribe so you don’t miss our upcoming articles on dog-friendly beaches and parks!

Walk Your Dog in Nelson

Here are some trails you can take your dog on that are right in town.

Lakeside Dog Park

🐕 No Leash Required 🚫

This is Nelson’s go-to dog walk, located right beside the Prestige Hotel. You’re almost certain to meet other dogs and dog owners here, on and off-leash. Your furry friend is free to play on the pathways, sheltered beaches, and in the water here. There’s a few benches throughout to catch a rest, and lakefront views all along the way.

The Great Trail

🐕 No Leash Required 🚫

The Great Trail is accessible from the very top of Rosemont. A wide, gently climbing trail through a younger cedar forest, this is a popular area for hiking and mountain biking has a network of side trails branching off of it. You could explore this area for weeks.

The trail eventually crosses Giveout Creek, and is a great one if you’ve got a fast pup who likes to run while you cycle along.

Art Gibbon’s Park

🦮 Leash Required ✅

This mixed-use park is really a great addition to this town. If you’ve got kids or teenagers, you’re probably familiar with it.

It’s got a skate park, a jungle gym, a bike park with several grades of difficulty (including a BMX track suitable for little ones), and a disk golf course.

It’s also got a mixed use trail that provides an easily accessible pathway that allows leashed pets. Pleasantly cool, even during Summer, the treed pathways branch through the park, offering a fun getaway for your pup right in town.

Rails to Trails

🐕 No Leash Required 🚫

We talked about the Great Northern Rail Trail in depth here, but it’s really a great place to take pups of all sizes. With no requirements concerning leashed pets, they can explore freely for as long as you can keep up!

Walk to Troupe Point beach, or out to Cottonwood Lake, if you’re into a real trek. Also an ideal place to take an energetic pup as you cycle along, this trail has several impressive trestle bridges and panoramic views that overlook Fairview and the lake. Good for a quick jaunt, or for a full day of exercise.

Dog-Friendly Trails Outside of Town

You don’t have to go far from town to find a trail that your furry friend will love.

Lyon’s Bluff

🦮 Leash Required ✅

Lyon’s Bluff Trail is a relatively new trail offering a challenge for you and your dog that pays off with killer views of Nelson and the Orange Bridge. Similar in difficulty and altitude to Pulpit rock, this 3.8km out-and-back is a great alternative on the North Shore for those who could hike Pulpit Rock in their sleep. It’s also fun to see Nelson from the “other side”, after a lifetime hiking Pulpit. Budget 1.5-2 hours to get to the top.

Pulpit Rock

🦮 Leash Required ✅

Nelson’s most iconic hike, this is a 3.5km trail that zigzags up 300m of elevation, ending at the iconic Pulpit Rock. From here you get scenic views overlooking Nelson and the Orange Bridge from the South side.

It’s worth the hike, but it’s a moderately challenging trek to get there. Your dog will probably outpace you though, so no worries there! Bring plenty of water for your pup (and yourself).

You’ll want to set aside 1 hour 45 minutes for the round trip. Also it’s mostly shady. Snow sticks around a little later than Lyon’s Bluff, but it’s nice and shady in the Summer.

Cottonwood Lake

🦮 Leash Required ✅

Walk, bike, hike, fish, swim, paddle, picnic. Cottonwood Lake really has something for everyone, and for dog walkers it offers an oasis just 10 minutes from town. There’s a beautiful, well-groomed trail around the perimeter, with several viewing platforms that overlook the lake.

Grohman Narrows

🦮 Leash Required ✅

Three minutes from town, Grohman Narrows offers a quick and interesting retreat into nature. Take your pup, check out the rich wildlife here (especially the turtles), and be back in Nelson within an hour.

Biodiversity aside, it’s a flat and easy jaunt around the pond, with an optional loop that takes visitors down to the shore of Kootenay Lake, and several picnic tables right beside the parking area that make a picnic lunch a breeze.

Sproule Creek

🐕 No Leash Required 🚫

Here’s a really fun one for you! This trail offers a 10k round trip that takes visitors up a historic wagon road up to an old mill site. An easy trek across a needle-strewn pathway that crosses no fewer than NINE bridges, Sproule Creek Trail is a puppy paradise! Follow along the creek on the main 5km trail to the mill site, or take the 2.5km Westside Loop for a quick outing.

Blewett Canal

🐕 No Leash Required 🚫

The Blewett Canal is another great walk if you’re looking to stretch your legs without working up a big sweat. Basically flat, this is great all year ’round, offering an easy jaunt even with a light snow covering. All dogs will love visiting here, and even small dogs can keep up with the straightforward terrain, following along the length of the canal.

Know of a dog-friendly trail that isn’t on our list? Let us know in the comments, or on social media.

Also, if you have a super cute pic of your pup on a walk you’d share with us, let us know! We’d love to feature your furry friend 🐶