Standing Rocks Dog Park

The funny thing about weather extremes is that the locals do not let it stop them. Whether it is the wall of heat that seems to bake Arizona in the summer, the never-ending rainfall in Seattle, or the occasional flash floods in Missouri, people who live there soon learn not to let it stop them. 

Take Wisconsin, for example. The state is known for some of the coldest winter temperatures in America, and for ridiculously deep snow pileups. The kind of weather that, when you see a video of it, on you turn the channel. And yet, people live there, and they don't live their whole lives indoors.

Stevens Point, Wisconsin, is a great example of people enjoying the outdoors regardless of the weather. Stevens Point is surrounded by over 20 parks, including a 26-mile jogging and biking trail that goes around the city, an 18-hole golf course designed by Robert Trent Jones, the Schmeeckle Nature Reserve, and the Standing Rocks Park. 

The Standing Rocks Park is a huge 524-acre park that's open year-round and offers everything from snowshoeing and downhill skiing to mountain biking and camping. The park even offers both ice fishing and open water fishing. But one of the nicest details of the park is the off-leash dog park.

This is a large dog park with 32 acres, which certainly provides your dog plenty of room to run. The park is largely left as nature intended, with a few important differences. The Standing Rocks Park has a few trails that the county maintains meticulously. There are some water pumps in the park, and there is a meadow which is mowed regularly, but otherwise, the park is left in a natural state.

However, there is a lot that Standing Rocks Dog Park does not have. Standing Rocks does not have picnic tables, toilets, or an enclosure for small dogs. But what the dog park does have is strong fences, a secure double-gate entry system, and year-round access. If you have a cold-tolerant doggy, like a Husky or a Samoyed, or even a good quality dog coat, it can be a winter paradise!

If you take your dog to Standing Rocks Dog Park, and you should, because it is unusual for a domesticated dog to have an opportunity to answer the call of the wild, you should be prepared with extra water, poop bags, and $4 for the entrance fee.