Dog-friendly Sonoma County: parks, hikes, beaches, patios and groups

Updated Sept 24, 2026. Checked with the park, business or organizer etc before you go as this isn't a perfect list and rules change over time.

Jump to: Off-leash · Hikes · Beaches · Patios · Meet other dogs · Borrow a dog · Where dogs can't go · Fall events

For an off-leash morning: Doyle Park's lawn, 700 Doyle Park Dr, Santa Rosa. Unfenced and off-leash, 6–8am every day.

For a fenced park in Santa Rosa: the city runs ten fenced dog parks, open sunrise to sunset. Dogs enter and leave leashed, three dogs max, no kids under 10 inside.

For a small dog: Ragle Ranch in Sebastopol sets aside small-dog hours every day, 11am–noon and 3–4pm, in its fenced dog park, which also has a small agility course. Parking is $8.

For a fenced park elsewhere in the county: the county parks have fenced areas at Ragle Ranch, Andy's Unity Park (Santa Rosa), Sonoma Valley Regional Park (Glen Ellen) and Ernie Smith (Sonoma) (county parks). Per Sonoma County Tourism, there's also Rocky Memorial Dog Park in Petaluma (7.8 acres), Badger Park and Villa Chanticleer in Healdsburg, David Smith Memorial Park (formerly Pleasant Oak Park) in Windsor, and Rohnert Bark in Rohnert Park.

For a dog who isn't ready for a busy park: rent a private yard by the hour. Joy Ridge Sanctuary in Occidental books out 2+ fenced acres of redwoods and gardens to one party at a time, with water, toys and an indoor restroom. It's on Sniffspot, which lists more private yards around Santa Rosa.

County regional parks welcome leashed dogs on the trails (county parks). Most state parks don't, so start here. Parking is usually $8, free for Regional Parks members.

State parks mean paved roads only. At Annadel, dogs stay in developed areas like Channel Drive, not on the trails (California State Parks). Armstrong Redwoods is the same: the main paved road and developed picnic areas only, no dirt trails or roads. The exception is Jack London State Historic Park, where leashed dogs can go in the Beauty Ranch area and on the trail to the Wolf House ruins, but not on the other trails.

For a hike with a winery at the end: Bartholomew Estate in Sonoma welcomes leashed dogs on its 3-mile trail, past a duck pond and a windmill through oaks, madrones and redwoods. Trail hours are 10am–6pm, no entry after 4:30pm, and dogs are welcome in most tasting areas.

For the coast: Sonoma Coast State Park allows dogs on Marshall Gulch, Carmet, Schoolhouse, Portuguese, Duncan's Cove, Wright's, Furlong Gulch, Shell, Blind and Russian Gulch beaches. Locals ask that dogs stay clear of the harbor seals at Goat Rock, next to Blind Beach.

For county coast parks, on leash: Doran in Bodega Bay, Pinnacle Gulch, Stillwater Cove, the Sea Ranch coastal trails and Gualala Point (county parks).

For the Russian River: per Sonoma County Tourism, Monte Rio Community Beach (sandy, west of the bridge, leashed), Steelhead Beach, Sunset Beach River Park and Forestville River Access.

For off-leash sand: locals head just over the line to Dillon Beach in Marin, which is private and charges for parking.

Checked with the business:

For a dog menu: per Sonoma County Tourism, Howard Station Café in Occidental serves dogs on its front porch, with a bow-wow burger and kibbles and gravy on the menu. It's down the road from Joy Ridge.

On Sonoma County Tourism's brewery list and Visit Santa Rosa's dog-friendly guide (call ahead; these lists change):

For shopping with the dog: per Sonoma County Tourism, The Barlow in Sebastopol (12 acres of outdoor shops and eateries), Cornerstone Sonoma, Swede's Feeds in Kenwood (garden and pet supplies), and the downtowns of Railroad Square, Occidental, Duncans Mills, Guerneville and Windsor.

For a puppy: two free puppy socials run every Saturday, with a trainer on hand.

For a small dog: Ragle Ranch's small-dog hours (daily, 11am–noon and 3–4pm) are the closest thing the county has to a small-dog playgroup. Regulars say weekends are the liveliest.

For the same faces every week: