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Send me the listAcross a county with more than 20,000 acres of parkland, the Morris County Park Commission runs exactly two places where your dog can legally come off the leash. Everywhere else in the county system, it is a leash no longer than six feet, no exceptions.
That is worth knowing before you drive somewhere hoping to let the dog run. Here is where to actually go: the two county off leash parks, the town dog parks worth the membership, the trails where a leashed dog is genuinely welcome, and the breweries that will pour you a beer while your dog lies under the table.
The two off leash parks in the county system
Central Park of Morris County, Parsippany-Troy Hills
The dog park at Central Park of Morris County, 1 Governor Chris Christie Drive, is the big one: five fenced acres with separate areas for large and small dogs, benches, and bag dispensers, sitting inside a 420 acre park. The rules are specific. Two dogs per adult, current license tag visible on the collar, and your dog has to be responsive to voice commands. Children under 12 are not permitted inside the dog park at all. Open sunrise to sunset, seven days a week, and there is no membership or pass to buy.
Lewis Morris County Park, Morris Township
Lewis Morris County Park at 270 Mendham Road has the county’s other off leash area, a smaller four tenths of an acre, again split into large and small dog sections. Dogs need to be licensed with a visible tag, socialized, and responsive to voice commands. The trade is the setting: the dog park sits inside 2,213 acres crossed by 25 miles of trails, so you can run the dog off leash and then clip the leash on and keep walking. Sunrise to sunset daily.
The town dog parks
Happy Hound Playground, Denville
Denville runs the most controlled dog park in the county, and regulars will tell you that is exactly why they like it. Happy Hound Playground sits at Veterans Memorial Field on Zeek Road, and it is members only, behind a magnetic gate. A pass runs $35 a year for Denville residents and $50 for everyone else, plus a one time $10 fee for the gate key. To get one you submit an application with proof of a New Jersey municipal dog license, proof of current shots, and proof of a negative fecal test from the last six months, to Animal Licensing at the Denville Police Department, 1 St. Mary’s Place. It is more paperwork than anywhere else on this list, and it is also why the dogs inside tend to be healthy and vaccinated.
Randolph Township Dog Park
Randolph’s dog park is at 496 Millbrook Avenue and is open sunrise to sunset every day of the year, with no pass required. The township is upfront that it does not supervise the park, which is standard for municipal dog runs and worth remembering if your dog is still learning how to read other dogs. It is one of the easier stops to fold into a loop through town, and it is around the corner from most of what is in our local’s guide to Randolph.
Parsippany has a second option at Cameron Dog Park, 129 South Beverwyck Road just below Route 80, and Montville Township runs its own township dog park as well. Both are free and open to the public.
Trails where a leashed dog is genuinely welcome
Loantaka Brook Reservation, Morris Township
If you have ever wondered where every dog in Morris County goes on a Saturday morning, the answer is Loantaka Brook Reservation at 468 South Street. There are 850 acres and close to 10 miles of trail here, much of it flat and paved, which makes it the rare county park that works for a senior dog, a puppy, and a stroller on the same walk. Dogs stay leashed. Open sunrise to sunset.
Pyramid Mountain Natural Historic Area, Montville
For a dog that wants to actually work, Pyramid Mountain at 472 Boonton Avenue has more than 1,600 acres and over 19 miles of trails, plus Tripod Rock, the glacial boulder balanced on three smaller stones that is the most photographed thing in the county that is not a downtown. The posted rule is a six foot leash. Trails are open sunrise to sunset. The climb is real, so bring water for both of you.
Both parks are also on our lists of where to see waterfalls and where to see fall foliage in Morris County, which is a good excuse to go in October.
Breweries that welcome the dog
New Jersey lets a business decide for itself whether dogs are allowed in its outdoor space, and several Morris County breweries have said yes. These five are the reliable ones. Policies do change, so a quick call before you load the dog in the car is never a bad idea.
Fort Nonsense Brewing at 220 Franklin Road in Randolph is the clearest about it: dogs are welcome in the beer garden, not in the taproom. Glenbrook Brewery at 95 Morris Street in Morristown has a pet friendly patio a short walk from the Green. Double Tap Brewing at 50 Parsippany Road in Whippany has dog friendly outdoor space and sits close enough to Bee Meadow Park to make an afternoon of it. Twin Elephant Brewing at 13 Watchung Avenue in Chatham Borough has a dog friendly beer garden. And Jersey Girl Brewing at 426 Sand Shore Road in Mount Olive is the outlier in the best way, with dog friendly space indoors, which matters a lot in February. All five turn up on our roundup of the best breweries in Morris County.
The rules worth knowing before you go
In the county park system, pets have to be on a leash no longer than six feet anywhere outside the two designated off leash areas. Dogs are not permitted at all at the golf courses, the outdoor education centers, or the environmental education centers, so check the specific site before you go rather than assuming a county park means a dog is fine. Every park in the system closes at sunset. And every dog park on this list, county or municipal, requires a current license tag visible on the collar, which is the single most common reason people get turned around at the gate.
What did we miss
There are more of these, especially the town parks that never make a list. If your town has a dog park or a patio that puts down a water bowl without being asked, tell us where and we will add it.
Featured photo by Emre Photography via Pexels.
