Rotary Dog Park

Ellensburg, Washington is a college town. The city has just over 20,000 permanent residents, but it also has Central Washington University, with 10,000 students so during the school year, the town's population increases by 30%. So it should come as no surprise that there is a lot of space in this town to accommodate so many people, even if they are temporary residents. So it should come as no surprise that one of the parks in town, Rotary Park, is over 100 acres. 

In many ways, Rotary Park is the heart of the town of Ellensburg. The park hosts a lot of events such as concerts, barbeques, and the annual 4th of July fireworks. The park has everything you would expect, including playgrounds, walking trails, basketball courts, picnic areas, soccer fields, even a BMX bicycle track. And now, as of late 2016, Rotary Park has a dog park. The Rotary Park Off-Leash Area is very generously sized, at nearly two acres. 

The park is new, having only opened in 2016, and like any other new park, people are excited about it, and rightly so. The fencing is in perfect condition, and the fountains for people and for dogs are practically still gleaming. There are plenty of fresh benches, and a picnic table in the main dog section; however, humans are asked not to bring in any glass or dog treats. Both sections of the dog park have benches and some agility equipment.

The equipment is appropriately sized, meaning that the small dog enclosure has lower hurdles for the little dogs to jump over and narrower tubes for them to wriggle through. The main enclosure also has a hoop jump and weave poles. There are no trees near the dog park, so both sections of the park have shading for summer days. In addition to the shading, both sides have poop bags and trash cans. There is a dog wash station just outside the park, so you can make sure that your puppy isn't bringing home a lot of mud.