Every national park handles dogs differently. Some let them on nearly every trail. Others keep them to the parking lot and a paved overlook. We have taken our corgis to more than twenty parks now, and this is where we keep track of what we actually found when we got there.
Each guide covers where dogs can go, which trails are worth the drive, and where we stayed nearby. If this is your first park trip with a dog, start with the planning guides.
Start here
- Visiting National Parks With Dogs
The overview we send people to first, covering how park pet rules tend to work and what to check before you drive. - Exploring National Parks: A Beginner’s Guide
What to expect on a first park trip and how to plan one that actually works. - Planning A Remote Working National Park Trip
How we fit park time around full time jobs. - Audio Guides: Your National Park Companion
The audio guides we run on scenic drives, which is where a lot of dog friendly park time gets spent.
Utah and Arizona
- Petrified Forest National Park
One of the most pet friendly parks in the system. Leashed dogs are welcome on most trails, overlooks and even backcountry areas. - Zion National Park
One hiking trail is open to dogs, the Pa’rus Trail, plus the scenic drive pull-offs. - Hiking Angels Landing at Zion
The chained ridge climb. Not a dog hike, so this one was just the two of us. - Bryce Canyon National Park
Most of the park is closed to dogs, but the rim path from Sunrise Point to Sunset Point is open to them. - Capitol Reef National Park
The Fremont River Trail takes leashed dogs and is the easiest place to stretch everyone’s legs. - Grand Canyon National Park
Leashed dogs on the South Rim roads and paved overlooks, with one North Rim trail if you make it up there.
New Mexico and Texas
- White Sands National Park
Dogs are allowed everywhere on the dunes on leash. The visitor center is the one place they cannot go. - Carlsbad Caverns National Park
Dogs stay above ground. No caverns, no unpaved trails, and not at the bat flight program. - Guadalupe Mountains National Park
The short Pinery Trail from the visitor center is the dog friendly option here.
The Rockies and northern plains
- Great Sand Dunes National Park
One of the few parks that is fully dog friendly. Watch how hot the sand gets on their feet. - Sand Sledding at Great Sand Dunes
Sledding dunes over 700 feet tall, and what the trip out there involves. - Grand Teton National Park
Dogs can be on the water but not in the lakes. Paved path at Jenny Lake and an off leash trail along the Snake River. - Yellowstone National Park
Dogs stay in developed areas and within about 100 feet of the road. The boardwalks are off limits. - Rocky Mountain National Park
Thin on dog options, so we made the scenic drive the day and saw moose and elk from the car. - Badlands National Park
Dogs are off the trails here, so we worked out where you can still get the landscape without them. - Glacier National Park Kayaking
What to do with the park when Going To The Sun Road is still closed for the season.
California and the Pacific
- Redwoods National Park
Howland Hill Road is the dog friendly way to get among the big trees. - Yosemite National Park
The major viewpoints have paved viewing areas, which makes them workable with a dog. - Sequoia and Kings Canyon
Trails are closed to dogs, but the paved areas and the walk at Grizzly Falls still make the drive worth it. - Crater Lake National Park
Restricted like most parks, but there are dog friendly areas if you plan the day around them. - Channel Islands National Park Kayaking
A guided sea cave paddle off the Southern California coast. - LA to Joshua Tree Day Trip
A full day trip from Los Angeles, start to finish.
The South
- Congaree National Park
Fully dog friendly. Every trail is open to them, including the boardwalk, and it is rarely crowded. - Hot Springs National Park
Dogs are allowed on all the hiking trails. The bathhouses are the exception.
We add to this page every time we make it to a new park. If the one you are planning for is not here yet, it is probably on our list.