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Doggone fun
Don't leave your dogs out of summer fun. They deserve a getaway, too.
By Robert Strauss
For The Inquirer
Posted on Fri, Aug. 04, 2006
Ancient Romans noticed the hottest days of the year coincided with
the appearance of Sirius, the Dog Star, in the same part of the sky
as the sun. Thus, they became known as the Dog Days.
Still, these can be trying times for Fido and Rover.
Their tongues can waggle a lot slower and lower, and their brows can
droop precipitously as the heat does its number on them.
Summer can really be a time for a treat, and this region has a spate
of good places for their running pleasure. Sometimes, too, dogs can
use a little leisure, and there are great spots for that as well.
Here's a sampling of where to visit on a weekend.
Higbee Beach
Margate lawyer Bill Subin was understandably forlorn when the
family's 8-year-old dog, Lady Windsor, died of cancer this summer.
But he was really taken aback when his younger dog, 4-year-old
Griffin, started moping uncontrollably.
It was time for a special trip, Subin surmised, to a favorite run
down in Higbee Beach, Cape May County, so that both human and canine
mourners could let out frustrations.
New Jersey prohibits dogs on the beach in the summer, but just around
the bayside corner from Cape May, the 1,000-acre Higbee Beach
Wildlife Management Area allows dogs, primarily on leash, throughout
the year. The run along the beach is about a mile.
Subin usually parks his car in a lot near County Route 606 and
clambers over a hill to where Higbee Beach meets Sunset Beach to the
south.
"Griffin got a good run and got into the water and, I think, started
to forget his sadness," Subin said. "It's beautiful down there, and
to get in the water really refreshes a dog."
County Route 626 and New England Road, Lower Township, N.J., 609-628-
2103, www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/ensp/higbee.htm
Island Beach State Park
The sole dog-friendly summer beach at the Jersey Shore is state-owned
Island Beach State Park. The 10-mile spit south of Seaside Park was
donated by the steel-fortune Phipps family. It is pretty much in the
same pristine shape as when Henry Hudson, the first English sailor in
these parts, saw it in the 17th century.
Dogs are not allowed in the lifeguard areas, but that still leaves a
lot of beach to roam, especially south bordering the higher sand
dunes. The only caveat is to watch the nesting areas of endangered
birds such as the piping plover, but those should be adequately
marked.
The state charges $6 per vehicle on weekdays and $10 weekends. A
yearly pass is $50.
Route 35 South, Seaside Park, N.J.,
732-793-0506, www.state.nj.us/dep/
parksandforests/parks/island.html
Cooper River Park
The Cooper is really an estuary, an inlet from the Delaware River, so
it is rather calm and flat, offering a good waterside run.
The Cooper meanders with parkland on both sides for several miles in
Camden, Collingswood, Pennsauken, Haddon Township and Cherry Hill.
The south side has more structures, monuments, joggers and bikers.
The north side is more open, but it offers less shade. One thing to
watch for is the abundance of geese and ducks who call the park home.
They squawk a lot, but are fearless, so small dogs sometimes have to
beware. Beware, too, of their pellet-size droppings that dogs can
mistake for food.
A marina and a crew boathouse are about midway, so there are almost
always either shells or sailboats to view while on run breaks. The
river is a bit cloudy and trash-strewn, making it a poor place for a
dog to swim.
At the far eastern end of the park, Cherry Hill put in a fenced dog
run, which seems to be populated primarily by regulars who know each
other and each other's dogs. There are actually two runs, one for
dogs that weigh more than 30 pounds and the other for smaller dogs.
In the summer, dog fountains are operated.
The only way to get to the dog run is from North Park Drive, which
dead-ends nearby. For a slightly secluded walk along the river, go a
little farther east and under the old bridges. The path is narrow and
precipitous into the Cooper, so it is definitely a walk, don't-run
area.
North Park Drive, Cherry Hill,
856-216-2122, www.camdencounty.com/
government/offices/parks/pk_cooper.html
New Hope / Delaware Canal State Park
How about this for a doggie treat: inns that accommodate canines
overnight. The Wedgewood Inn and its sister inns, the Aaron Burr and
Umpleby, rent rooms that are pooch-friendly.
At the Wedgewood, first-floor rooms near exterior doors are most
often used by travelers with dogs. The inns prefer smaller dogs used
to traveling, which means they won't whine or bark incessantly. The
inns, all close to the Delaware River along Bridge Street, charge a
$20 cleanup fee.
Local writer Maria Gallagher, who has taken her English bulldogs, the
late Spike and the much-alive Spotty, to the Wedgewood Inn and the
Golden Pheasant north of town along the Delaware Canal, said that
while New Hope in general is dog-friendly, it is important for dog
owners to be friendly as well.
"Keep your dog leashed in public places, always ask inn and
restaurant owners before you bring the dog in, and bring dog bedding
with you. It really isn't polite to have a dog sleep on the inn's
good bedding," she said.
She has taken her dogs to the Triumph Brewery, which has an outdoor
eating area overlooking the New Hope and Ivyland Railroad. She
suggested asking for a dog-bowl of ice on particularly hot afternoons.
For a real run, go up to the towpath along the Delaware Canal just
north of the city. It is shaded, near water, and scenic for both
human and canine.
11 Lodi Hill Rd., Upper Black Eddy, Pa., 610-982-5560,
www.dcnr.state.pa.us/stateparks/parks/delawarecanal.aspx
Valley Forge National Historical Park / Pottstown Memorial Park
Jerry De Lena of Glocker Real Estate in Pottstown takes his dogs,
golden retriever Hollywood and 20-pound mutt Munchkin, to the lesser-
traveled western part of Valley Forge. Where Washington's troops
froze out that Revolutionary winter, Hollywood and Munchkin flit in
and out of the Schuylkill on a shaded gravel path.
"It's not as crowded as the asphalt path toward Norristown, so the
dogs can run and splash and not bother people on bikes and
Rollerblades," De Lena said.
He is particularly fond of the paths in Pottstown Memorial Park,
along West King Street. There, his dogs take summer swims in the
Schuylkill and its tributary, the Manatawny Creek.
Valley Forge, 1400 N. Outerline Drive, King of Prussia, 610-783-1077,
www.nps.gov/vafo.
West King Street and Manatawny Street, Pottstown, 610-970-6500,
www.pottstown.org/departments-parks.htm
Forbidden Drive /
West Fairmount Park
The Forbidden Drive is virtually vehicleless, so a marvelous place
for a good summer doggie run.
The accident waiting to happen here comes in the form of big
splotches of horse droppings, since this drive is also a well-known
bridle path. Give all horses a wide berth.
Nearby, the Valley Green Inn, which advertises itself
as "Philadelphia's last remaining roadhouse"
(www.valleygreeninn.com), has been dog-friendly for generations. The
only warning comes from Gallagher, who said the inn's cache of
friendly cats could be a canine distraction.
Not far from Forbidden Drive, the western reaches of pathways along
the Martin Luther King Jr. and Kelly Drives are pleasant diversions,
if sometimes crowded. Dogs all seem to love running near water, but
beware of ticks getting the better of the canines in the bushes near
the Schuylkill.
Bells Mill Road and Wissahickon Creek, 215-686-1776,
www.fairmountpark.org/TrailsRegs.asp
Swarthmore / Haverford Colleges
There is little summer school activity at these small suburban
colleges, so there's more room for hot pups to run.
Swarthmore professors and staff meet with their dogs on weekend
mornings, walking through the leafier parts of that campus. Avoid the
areas around the athletic fields, which are open and sunny - meaning
hot and dry - for dogs. It's OK if you are doing some Frisbee
catching, but that is more a spring and fall activity, less likely
for these Dog Days.
Haverford's arboretum area is particularly good for a summer run,
with lots of trees and solace while school is out. The open lakeside
area just off the main entrance along Montgomery Avenue is nice.
Watch out for the geese and ducks, who don't always appreciate dogs
chasing them.
Swarthmore, 500 College Ave., Swarthmore, 610-328-8000,
www.swarthmore.edu
Haverford, 370 Lancaster Ave., Haverford, 610-896-1000,
www.haverford.edu
Pine Barrens
One of the great hidden joys of backwoods New Jersey is heading into
a dirt road in the Pine Barrens and finding a new treasure. If it is
solitude and long trails you seek with your dog, then explore here.
The dirt trails are visible off Route 72 from Red Lion almost all the
way to Long Beach Island and County Roads 532 and 563, which cross at
Chatsworth, Burlington County, in the center of the pines. Another
good main road on which to find dirt offshoots is U.S. 206, just
north of Hammonton in Atlantic County.
Sometimes the dirt paths lead to abandoned cranberry or blueberry
patches with wild berry plants. Other times, they pass over and
around small streams with reddish water, residue from when this was a
bog-iron mining district 150 years ago. There are foxes, snakes,
lizards, and lots of bird and insect life for your dog to sniff and
bark at, with no one to complain about the sound or bother.
Both human and canine can revel in this vast chunk of land set aside
in what is otherwise the nation's most crowded state - an afternoon's
contemplation as the summer heightens and fades into fall.
4110 Nesco Rd., Hammonton, N.J., 609-984-0370, 609-268-0444,
www.state.nj.us/dep/parksandforests/parks/wharton.html
Doggie Hotels
The hotels below offer more than a walk in the park for weekend
guests and other travelers. Many of these inns prefer smaller breeds,
so checking in advance is recommended.
Brandywine River Hotel, 610-388-1200, www.brandywineriverhotel.com
Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia, 215-963-1500, www.fourseasons.com
Hotel Sofitel, 215-569-8300, www.sofitel.com
Loews Philadelphia Hotel, 215-627-1200,
www.loewshotels.com/philadelphia
Mazzu's Canine and Feline Hotel, 215-923-8326, www.mazzus.com
The Residence Inn Center City, 215-557-0005,
www.marriott.com/residenceinn
The Rittenhouse Hotel, 215-546-9000, www.rittenhousehotel.com
The Ritz-Carlton Philadelphia, 215-523-8000,
www.ritzcarlton.com/hotels/philadelphia
Sheraton Society Hill Hotel, 215-238-6000, www.sheraton.com
SOURCE: Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corp.
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Reserved.
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