Dog's Excellent Beach Adventure!

This week's big adventure was a trip to dog friendly Gardiner County Park and Beach in Bay Shore, Long Island.  Bay Shore is also the town where you can take the ferry boats to Fire Island.  We love Gardiner's, it's a beautiful neighborhood park that allows dogs.  It's a real hidden gem for dog lovers on Long Island!

Taking the dogs on a road trip to Gardiner County Park and Beach in Long Island NY  #dogfriendly #dog
We're Off on an Adventure!
The park itself is lovely, with an open grassy field and several short trails to walk along, but the real draw of Gardiner Park for dogs and their people is the fabulous dog friendly beach at the end of it! 




It's a long walk to get to the beach, about a mile down a beautiful wide path with lots of shade trees.  The path itself is a great walk with your dog.  It's an easy walk, great exercise for both people and dogs. There are lots of interesting things for dogs to sniff along the way too!

Beautiful walking path down from the park to the beach area at Gardiner County Park and Beach
At about a mile each way, the walk down to the beach is a great outing in itself for people and dogs.  There are lots of shade trees along the way.
Once you get to the end of the walking path, it opens up gloriously right on to the shores of the Great South Bay.
  
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Dog friendly Gardiner park and Beach is a great place to take your dog on a fun adventure.  #dogfriendlbeach #dogfriendlypark #dogs
The park's walking path opens up to the shores of the Great South Bay
It's so beautiful!  The water is nice and calm with very gentle waves for dogs to swim in.  It's not as pristine as most Long Island beaches, but for a dog friendly beach, it's terrific!


Gardiner County Park and Beach is dog friendly!  #dogfriendly
Phoebe posing along the shore of the Great South Bay in Gardiner Park.  She's wearing her adorable lobster harness!

Icy waded into the water just to her belly, she's not really a swimmer - yet.  Phoebe dipped her tiny paws into the water just to cool off, but she wasn't as adventurous as Icy wading into the water.

Gardiner County Park and Beach in Bay Shore Long Island, NY opens up to the Great South Bay  #dogfriendly
Icy got her feet wet in the bay.  You can see the bridge that spans the bay, the Robert Moses Causeway, in the distance.
We walked the dogs along the shore where they explored and sniffed every nook and cranny!  

Icy and Phoebe exploring the shoreline of dog friendly Gardiner Beach!  #dogfriendly #dogs
Icy and Phoebe exploring the shoreline of Gardiner Beach!
In the background of some of the photos, you see the bridge that spans over the bay.  It's the Robert Moses Causeway, which leads to Robert Moses beach and the famous Jones Beach.  No dogs are permitted on those beautiful beaches, unfortunately.  

Jones Beach is super popular and super crowded.  Robert Moses is not quite as crowded because it's a couple of miles further East.  Many people come from the city, about 30 miles West, to hit the beach. They usually prefer to stop at Jones Beach rather than continue the extra few miles on to Robert Moses.  I hope some day these beaches will have some access for dogs, but for now I'll take the shores of the Great South Bay at Gardiner's Beach for Icy and Phoebe!


Along the walking path there is a nice little pond.  The dogs didn't want to jump in it, but Icy didn't mind posing at the edge for a photo!


On the way out of the park Icy discovered a bunch of logs and decided to pose on one of them.



It was a really fun day for all of us!  The four of us pretty much crashed when we got home; with all that fresh air, sunshine, and walking we were pooped!  We all needed a nap.

What do you think of dog friendly Gardiner Park and beach?  Do you have a dog friendly beach or lake near you?  Leave us a comment and tell us, we LOVE hearing from you!

Sharing is Caring, so if you enjoyed reading this, we'd appreciate it if you'd give us a Tweet, Pin or other social share!  If you liked this post, you may also enjoy these:

💜 Beautiful, dog friendly, Belmont Lake State Park in Babylon, Long Island NY

💜 Planning to head out on the water with the dog? Check out these Boat Safety Tips For Pets 

💜 Awesome, dog friendly vacation in the breath-taking red rock region of Sedona, Arizona

Although this is a post from 2017, I'm participating in the 2018 APPRECIATE THE MOMENTS blog hop hosted by The Everyday Dog Mom!

22 comments:

The Daily Pip said...

Oh gosh, you are so lucky to live near the ocean. We live near Lake Michigan, but it is just not the same. We do have a dog friendly beach near us, but it is usually SO CROWDED that we don't go. Though Ruby also doesn't like water AT ALL.

Lifewithmutts said...

This looks like SUCH a fun day! I love finding dog friendly places for the pups to swim and play. There is a definite shortage of them around here where the dogs are allowed to be off leash. The mile walk to the beach looks nice too! I bet the walk deters some people and prevents the beach from being even more crowded.

♥♥ The OP Pack ♥♥ said...

That does look like a great spot to have a nice day. Wish we lived near some nice water areas like that.

Woos - Lightning and Misty

M. K. Clinton said...

Thanks so much for joining the Pet Parade! I hope that we get to take the boys to a beach soon. Of course, after Hurricane Harvey is through with the Gulf coast who knows!

Cat and DOG Chat With Caren said...

That DOES look like it was a pawesome adventure and what a great way to celebrate National Dog Day!
DakotasDen

Beth said...

That beach looks ideal, I love empty or nearly empty dog friendly beaches! Do you and John go in the water? I think Icy would follow you in, even it meant swimming. I can see why you all needed a nap.

Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them said...

We have a lot of water around this island. We have open ocean to the South, the LI Sound and bay area beaches. Most aren't dog friendly but some are thankfully. Sorry Ruby didn't get in the water this Summer - maybe next year!

Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them said...

LOL! You're so right, the long walk does deter a lot of folks. It's rarely crowded - on this day we had the beach to ourselves!

Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them said...

It's one of our favorite beach areas. We've gotten a list of a few great dog friendly places that we go to regularly. The dogs Love it.

Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them said...

Thanks for co-hosting this blog hop Melissa! Ugh Hurrican Harvey is just devastating, I pray you are not impacted my friend.

Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them said...

Icy and Phoebe think EVERY day should be Nat'l Dog Day, and we try to make them feel like it is! This park is so awesome, we are so thankful to have it.

Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them said...

It was so great! I was mad at myself for not bringing my beach shoes so I could get in the water, I definitely think Icy would follow me in! We still have some warm days ahead, so I will do that for sure!

jank1961 said...

What a beautiful place, and so much fun for everyone!

FiveSibesMom said...

So pretty! I love the beach...brings back so many memories from my childhood. I just love all your beautiful beachy pics! :-) Sharing with my family who still lives on the Island so they know they have some great places they can take their pups!

M Dawson said...

This is a lovely post Cathy. It is SO COLD here that I am loving the sunshine and the beach pictures!

Little Miss Titch said...

Yay for Beach days!I love the beach too!xx Speedy

Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them said...

Me too! I'm so glad Summer has finally arrived - beach days abound!

Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them said...

It's so weird, I can't even imagine it being so much colder down in NZ! Come on back, we'll hit the beach together!

Anonymous said...

This looks like a lovely place to spend time with our pups. Beach days are always a good day!

Amanda Yantos said...

Your photos are beautiful, Cathy! My kids love the beach!

Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them said...

Thanks Amanda! I've seen your beach photos on the visits to California, I can see Wynston loves the beach. We'll definitely be getting lots of beach time this Summer.

Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them said...

It's one of my favorite places to take the dogs every Summer!

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