The Conservation Park in Panama City Beach, Florida, offers 24 miles of pet-friendly trails and more than a mile of boardwalks on 2,900 acres, perfect for hikers, cyclists, and other outdoor enthusiasts. If you're looking for a great way to explore the outdoors with your furry friend, then Panama City Beach is the perfect destination. The trails are open to the public from dawn to dusk and dogs are allowed as long as they are tied up and under the control of their owners. Boardwalks are also ideal for exercising with your canine companion. The vast Blackwater State Forest is a great spot for serious dog walkers.
The main trail through the forest is the 21-mile Jackson Red Ground Trail; other long-distance backpacking trails include the 9-mile Juniper Creek Trail and the 13-mile Wiregrass Trail. Many segments of these trails are part of the Florida National Scenic Trail. One-day canine hikers can choose between recreation areas with less rigorous rates. Bear Creek is the most central of them, with a 3.5-mile hiking trail around the 107-acre man-made lake. This narrow trail stays above the coast for the most part, but it can sometimes be soggy.
You can see the lake almost the entire route. From the west is the Sweetwater Trail, which leads to a smaller lake in the Krul Recreation Area, just over a mile away. You can also take your dog along a two-mile connector with the Jackson Trail for a great day of canine hiking. A more remote spot for one-day hiking in the Blackwater River State Forest is Lake Karick, in northwestern Okaloosa County. The trip around this 65-acre reservoir covers nearly four miles, about half the trip down the Jackson Trail, again.
The star walk for canine day hikers is the Mounds Pool Interpretive Trail, which enters and leaves the forest around freshwater and saltwater marshes. In addition, there is a municipal ordinance that allows hotel and restaurant owners to allow dogs and other pets to enter their outdoor seating areas that you can access without entering the restaurant itself. Your dog isn't allowed to tour Florida Cavern, but he can find his own unique underground adventure on the Tunnel Cave trail. There is only foot traffic on the Boardwalk trail, but you can go for hours and not see another trail user in any of Pine Log's state forest systems. The main dirt path leads away from the parking lot to the wooded and primitive trails in the distance. For a real challenge, in the Apalachicola National Forest, there's a 13-mile stretch of the Florida Trail that cuts directly through the famous Bdwell Bay wilderness area.
The Old Sawmill Trail was developed for horses and the Crooked Creek Trail was built for off-road bikes, and while these long-distance trails are also open to your dog, most dog walkers will want to head to the Sand Pond recreational area first. The Leon Sinks trail system is a four-mile circuit that links the Sinkhole Trail and the Gunswamp Trail (sinks are formed by the underwater aquifer and swamps are created by surface water). The trail goes up briefly to a Florida bush community, where your dog can find some shade among sand, pine trees and shrubby oaks before ending up at the Gulf of Mexico beach. Farout Apps Comprehensive logistics and offline maps for the Florida National Scenic Trail (1500 miles), the Florida Keys Foreign Heritage Trail (108 miles) and the ECT Florida Connector (92 miles). The ancient sand dunes have been colonized by small oaks, saw palmetto and isolated groups of sandy pine trees that let in abundant sunlight along the trail.
In contrast, the Panama City Beach Conservation Park is located on 2,900 acres of land and is protected by using and managing water recovered from the city to rehydrate wetlands. Dogs are welcome on trails, at campsites, and in picnic areas but not on beaches or in cabins. Pier Park is also nearby as a great shopping destination for Panama City Beach as well as for all of Emerald Coast. If you're looking for an outdoor adventure with your pet in Panama City Beach, then you're in luck! There are plenty of pet-friendly trails available throughout Panama City Beach that offer breathtaking views of nature while allowing you to bond with your furry friend. The Conservation Park offers 24 miles of pet-friendly trails perfect for hikers, cyclists, and other outdoor enthusiasts alike.
Dogs are allowed as long as they are tied up and under control of their owners at all times while exploring these trails. The Blackwater State Forest offers plenty of options for serious dog walkers with its 21-mile Jackson Red Ground Trail as well as its 9-mile Juniper Creek Trail and 13-mile Wiregrass Trail. For those looking for shorter hikes with their pup there are plenty of options too! Bear Creek offers 3.5 miles around its 107 acre man made lake while Sweetwater Trail leads to Krul Recreation Area just over a mile away. Lake Karick in northwestern Okaloosa County offers an even more remote spot with its 65 acre reservoir covering nearly four miles.
The Mounds Pool Interpretive Trail is another great option that enters and leaves through freshwater and saltwater marshes. Finally Farout Apps offers comprehensive logistics and offline maps for those looking to explore further with their pup including 1500 miles along Florida National Scenic Trails. So if you're looking for an outdoor adventure with your pet then Panama City Beach has plenty of options available! From long distance backpacking trails to shorter day hikes there's something here for everyone.
