Dog walking in Carbondale

Downtown Carbondale

While you are in Carbondale with your four-legged fur-baby, you can visit a number of places in the city where your dog is allowed to keep you company. You can chow down at Flame Bar and Grill, which has nine pet-friendly outside tables! If you're in the mood for some Southern-style BBQ, head to Bandana's Bar-B-Q. A great dog-friendly restaurant with ten tables where you and your pup can enjoy a meal is McAlister's Deli. Another restaurant that offers a more fast-food-ish menu is the S and Bs Burger Joint. These are just a few of the dog-friendly restaurants available in downtown Carbondale!

Southwest Murphysboro

Nine miles away from Carbondale, you can visit the Friends of Murphysboro Dog Park, which is a double-gated, fenced area where your fur-baby can sniff around safely. If you have a small or large dog that doesn't play well with doggies of different sizes, this place is pawfect for you since it offers separate areas for both. Waste baggies and places for disposing them are available at the park. Drinking water is provided at the park's water fountains. You'll find plenty of shade trees in the park to keep you comfortable on hot days. For the dog owners, there are benches for extra comfort.

North Marcum Recreation Area

Who doesn't love walking down a sandy beach in the company of their beloved pet? If you do and want to experience something like that in the vicinity of Carbondale, you should visit the North Marcum Beach, around 40 miles away from the city. The beach can be found in North Marcum Recreation Area on Rend Lake. The sand at this beach is gentle on your pup's paws. You should be aware that alcohol is allowed on the beach, and sometimes there are parties, but the beach is very big so you can probably find a quiet place. Showers and picnic areas are a plus of this pawesome park!

Central Cape Girardeau

Although it's a little bit further away from Carbondale than the previously mentioned places, the Dog Town Playground at Kiwanis Park is the perfect spot for socializing and letting your pup sniff around an enclosed area. Although the park is not big -- only 1 acre -- it has two separate areas for small and large doggies that have plenty of agility equipment to entertain pooches, such as tunnels and fire hydrants. In both of the areas, there are picnic tables for the doggie owners, water fountains with drinking water, and poop baggie dispensers for cleaning up after your pooch. There are also plenty of doggie toys provided.

Herrin

Herrin Park Dog Park is located in Park Drive, around 15 miles away from Carbondale. This park is a pretty large one and it's completely fenced with special sections for bigger and smaller pooches. There are three fire hydrants for dogs to mark and a lot of shade to shelter you and your fur-baby from the sun. You should bring water with you since it's not provided here. The place provides waste baggies and trash cans in both areas so you can contribute to keeping the park clean. You can bring a maximum of two dogs per person.