Dog Beach

My California travels have shown me that the West coast is exceedingly dog friendly.  The city of San Diego especially with its dog friendly bars and dog friendly beaches left me full of envy.  Only in the past year has a dog beach in the Philadelphia/South Jersey region become available to pet owners like myself.  As the summer comes to a close, we took a weekend trip to make sure Harry got to experience the sandy salty fun.

The beach, known as Longport Dog Beach, is located in Somers Point right next to Ocean City, NJ.  Parking is available in a smaller lot preceding the beach.  Make your way through a jungle-like sandy trail and arrive in a puppy paradise swarming with happy go lucky dogs.  Retrievers are usually out in the water enjoying a peaceful swim while other water loving dogs play fetch in the waves.  

Harry's not a big fan of water as I tend to take all my dogs when they are way too young into my parents pool for "swimming with Mommy".  In the past three dogs I've raised, the experiment has always resulted in a water loathing animal.  Naturally Harry is an example of the experiment gone wrong.  He didn't mind trotting through the water following me and the fishy smelling shell I was baiting him with, but he wasn't in awe of the crashing waves or even the slightest sea foam that threatened his paws.

Checkin out the blonde babes...

What was enchanting for Harry was the unlimited opportunity for digging without consequences.  He'd start digging and as he got more voracious he'd smush his face into the cooler damp sand and promptly sneeze, observe, and repeat the process.  A park without boundaries is always a thrill for dogs who spend most of their lives in some form of captivity - home, backyard, dog park, leash.  When there's a huge open area to safely run free, Harry takes full advantage.

Taking Harry to the Longport Dog Beach was one of the highlights of my summer.  I love watching him have fun and of course he was super tired when we got home.  If you need to fill your Labor Day weekend with one last bit of summer, the dog beach is an awesome way to do it!