Gualala Point Regional Park and Beach

Tucked away in a corner of Sonoma County, California, is a stunning coastal park which is a great place to take your fur buddy for a hike. The Gualala Point Regional Park is crisscrossed with short trails which have pawsome ocean views and also run alongside the Gualala River too.

The park is spilt into two parts by Highway 1 which intersects it. One side has coastal bluff walks down to a dog-friendly beach and the river estuary. The other part of the park is forested and has a campground. Both sections are interconnected by the trails, so it doesn't matter which side you choose to start hiking with your pup, you can get from one side to the other easily to explore some more.

You can access the park from Highway 1, and the first thing you'll come across is the fee station where you'll need to pay a $7 charge for parking. It's a short drive from there to the parking lot, and once you've got your four-legged hiking buddy leashed, you'll be ready to set off. Don't forget to grab some clean up bags to take with you so that you can pick up after your pup. These aren't long trails, but hiking can be thirsty work, so take some water for your pup too.

From the bottom end of the parking lot itself, you can get directly onto the River Trail which is an unpaved path running through forest land. From the top end of the lot near to the Visitor Center, you'll find another unpaved pathway which will take you down to the beach area, or you can cut off onto the East-West Trail to get to the Bluff Top Trail.

The Bluff Top Trail has puptastic ocean views, as well as a special point where park visitors go to whale watch. If you take binoculars with you, you'll be able to do some bird spotting too. Enjoy that Sonoma County fresh air with your furiend!