This dog friendly off leash trail in Salt Lake is tons of fun for your furry companion. I love taking my dog Ernie here to run around and splash in the water with other dogs. It is a fairly easy trail that leads to a couple of spots along the river that dogs can get in and splash around.
I love that there is a water element, because it can get blisteringly hot in Salt Lake in the summer months. A lot of hikes in the canyons around the valley don’t allow dogs because they are watersheds for the city water that we drink.
This option allows dogs off leash and a place within the city that dogs can play in the water. Of course you want to make sure that your dog is friendly and is trained to come when called before letting them off leash.
There are doggie bags stocked in several spots along the trail so always remember to pick up after your dog. We want to keep this trail nice so they don’t take away the privilege.
I just hiked this trail in March and the water runoff is still pretty muddy, as you can see. however the water clears up in the late spring and summer.
The trail starts off in Tanner Park, which is a regular park with a baseball field and playgrounds. The trail is on the east side of the park. So you will want to park in the eastern most parking lot. You’ll go through a gate and down a hill to the bottom of a gully. This area does tend to smell a bit like dog pee, because dogs all mark their territory here. There are garbage cans and waste bags at the top of the hill, as well as at the bottom of the hill and I believe another waste station farther down the trail as well.
As you descend down the hill the smell dissipates. At the bottom of the hill there is an area for dogs to splash in the creek. Keep heading east to follow the trail along the creek. The trail used to have more areas for dogs to enter the creek but those have been fenced off for now. You will follow the trail to the end where there is a water culvert that funnels water underneath the freeway above you.
At this point, you have reached the end and there is a nice bench to rest on while your dog runs and plays. In the summer there is a bit of shade here down by the creek.
Heading back you can veer left to head back up the hill to the parking lot, or stay to the right and walk a short distance next to the creek. From here you can walk up the side of the hill on a narrow path back to the parking lot or you can follow the gravel path around back to the base of the hill.
This is a nice little easy hike/stroll and one that Ernie loves to go on. To make the walk longer you could consider walking around Tanner park west past the baseball field and make a loop in the park. However this part of the park it is preferred to leash your dogs.
Happy Spring, and Happy Hiking in SLC. Go get your furry friend out and about.
-Beck
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