Where Can I Take My Dog?

BARC's Recommended Places for You and Your Dog

While currently, in Beverly, there are no designated public off leash areas (or even onleash areas in summer), where dog owners can meet, exercise and socialize their dogs, there are many other places where dogs are welcomed.

The following list is a work in progress some great places to go with your dog. Please be extra diligent in keeping these places pristine, and for those off leash places, be sure your dog is well-trained for offleash activity, so dogs will continue to be welcomed in these areas, and hopefully more places, for years to come.

If you have suggestions, additions or corrections, please send them to wooff@beverlybarc.com.

Dogs must be leashed.

Dogs may be offleash!

Watch for ticks!

1. Beverly Conservation Area   This beautiful 150 acres of wooded area is part of the Essex County Greenbelt, a nonprofit land trust dedicated to preserving the open space heritage of Essex County. There are many paths and foot trails to follow here, with your dog, including portions of Wenham Lake, and the remains of an old mansion and gardens. Parking is limited. Trail guides are available from Essex County Greenbelt. The conservation area is off Route 97 just past the Beverly Airport entrance.



2. Sally Milligan Park, Beverly This is a 40 acre wooded park off Cross Lane. The City Council and Parks Department have suggested this area as an offleash area. While this is a GREAT place to take your dog, it is not a viable solution for everybody, due to parking limitations, safety concerns, rough terrain and ticks . However, there are lots of foot trails to follow and you may even meet up with another dog walker along your journey. Off of Common Lane.



3. Singing Beach, Manchester   Now THIS is a gem! From October 1 to May 1, Manchester-by-the-Sea welcomes dogs to romp along the beautiful and pristine shores of Singing Beach. One of the most beautiful beaches on the North Shore, dogs are (be still my heart!) welcomed offleash, provided they are under good voice control. Parking is available and the city even has a box where you can take or contribute bags for pickup. Check out their welcome sign too. This is a treasure, and a model that BARC would love to see created in Beverly. From Manchester Center, follow Beach Street to the end.

   UPDATE: Unfortunately, this is not the gem it used to be. Manchester-By-The-Sea has recently enacted sticker parking at Singing Beach. This means you need a Singing Beach sticker to park there, or you face a $25 fine. Sadly, Manchester doesn't appreciate the business Singing Beach access was bringing to the area. (My wife and I would buy coffee there on the way into the beach, and do grocery shopping there on the way back.) Write to the Selectman and Singing Beach Committee at 10 Central Street, Manchester-By-The-Sea, MA 01944 if you would like to voice an opinion on this new policy.




4. The Breakheart Reservation, Saugus MA   A wonderful expansive wooded reserve. It features miles of paved trails for leash walking, a lake that dogs are allowed to swim in (seasonal), and best of all a dog park! It is located off of Route 1. One of the latest additions to Breakheart is Bark Place. An area where dogs can run free and socialize. Built as a cooperative effort between the MDC and the Friends of Breakheart by reclaiming an abandoned parking lot, Bark place provides a safe dog play environment in an area surrounded by tall hemlocks. Benches are provided for weary owners along with Mutt Mitts for pickup of doggy deposits and even a fire hydrant! Bark Place is located directly across from the Pine Tops picnic area. An easy walk from either park entrance. Here is a link with complete information: http://www.saugus.org/FOBR/



5. Dogtown Common, Gloucester   Dogtown is a cool place! With 3,000 acres of trails, you'll find the remains of an old abandoned town, with cellar holes, stone walls and a lot of history. It's called Dogtown, because as the town decayed, the few remaining residents were widows and the dogs they kept as protection. As the town gradually became a ghost town, all that remained were the dogs. During the Great Depression, Roger Babson commissioned workers to carve huge "inpirational messages" on large rocks throughout the woods, which are fun to hunt for. This is a great place to explore with curious kids, as you can make your outing a treasure hunt. Guidebooks are available at the Gloucester Tourist Center at Stage Fort Park. To get to Dogtown, take exit 11 off 128 to 127/Washington Street North. Right on Reynard Street, Left on Cherry Street, Right on Dogtown Road.



6. Maudslay State Park, Newburyport   Newburyport is a pretty dog-friendly town, even though it's a busy tourist center. We like to visit friends in Newburyport and take the dogs walking downtown, then grab some ice cream and hang out with them on one of the town center benches, where they are guaranteed to get their fill of attention from the visitors to town. But for a real afternoon stroll, check out Maudslay State Park, a 476 acre estate, complete with gardens and meadows. This is a fun trip, no matter what time of year you visit. Pine Hill Road (follow the signs).



7. Boston Common, Boston Yes, that's right, THE Boston Common, has offleash hours for you and your dog. A highly successful pilot program started in 2001, has led to 5-7 am offleash hours in the heart of downtown Boston. Dogs are allowed in the park onleash all other times. Hey, if they can do it... we surely should be able to here in Beverly!
   
   
8. Public Garden, Boston   Right across the street from the Boston Common is the absolutely beautiful Public Garden, the jewel of jewels, the one with the Swan Boats and Make Way for Ducklings. And you can bring your onleash dog here. These are true gardens and full of visitors, so be sure your dog is calm and well behaved here. Also note, in Boston Common and the Public Gardens, there are often horses, so be sure your dog is not afraid of them!

P.S. Want even more ideas for places to go? The Dog Lovers's Companion to Boston, by JoAnna Downey & Christian J. Lau is a wonderful book, listing all kinds of places to go and things to do with your dog in the Boston area. With many listings for the North Shore, you'll have a list of places you want to check out whenever the opportunity arises. Highly recommended! Available online through Amazon.com and in bookstores.