Dog-Friendly Colorado Springs: Trails, Patios, Parks & Services

Colorado Springs city code requires dogs on a leash in every city park and on every city trail, with exactly seven exceptions: three unfenced dog runs where voice control is allowed, and four fenced dog parks. Garden of the Gods has a designated run east of Rock Ledge Ranch and south of Gateway Road; the Upper and Lower Dog Loops at Red Rock Canyon sit south of the main lot; Palmer Park's Yucca Flats is the third. On any other trail in those parks the leash goes back on.

Fenced parks, licensing and getting around

The fenced four are Cheyenne Meadows, Palmer Park's old ballfield, Rampart Park and the Downtown Dog Park in Antlers Park. El Paso County adds Bear Creek Dog Park, 25 fenced acres with a small and senior area. The city's rule for all of them: dogs must be inoculated, licensed and not in breeding condition. Licensing runs through the Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region for dogs over four months, $20 a year altered or $35 intact. For fine amounts, check the city's current page.

Mountain Metropolitan Transit takes pets only in a secure, approved carrier, so plan on driving to trails near Colorado Springs. At 6,011 feet the city is cooler than Denver but higher, so give a flatland dog an easy first day. Afterwards, Goat Patch Brewing at Lincoln Center allows leashed dogs inside the taproom, and Pub Dog Colorado is built around dining indoors with your dog.