This week, we're taking a break from our road trip series that we've been doing for the past month or two and we bring you a little bit of normalcy in our lives since the beginning of the pandemic. Since British Columbia's COVID-19 restrictions had been set, we've really only taken Markus outside our regular neighbourhood walks a handful of times.

We've been actively doing our part in practicing social distancing and for us, that means not straying out too far if we don't have to. This week though, we gave ourselves a little break by making a stop at one of our favourites spots in Port Moody, British Columbia - Rocky Point Park.

About Rocky Point Park

One of the biggest reasons why we love visiting Rocky Point Park is because it goes along the Burrard Inlet. This makes for a beautiful view basically anywhere you are along Rocky Point Park. When the tide is low, there are areas you can step down from the park towards the rocky beach areas, so you get a bit of park and also a bit of beach and water.

The park also features a beautiful wooden walkway for pedestrians to experience the view from the water. The park also has a variety of amenities that include a children's playground, swimming pool, a waterpark, a well-known ice cream shop (with its own doggie door and they serve kibble ice cream!) and some covered picnic areas.

Off of the side of the park, there's also an off-leash dog park, some trails for hiking and cycling and a number of popular breweries across the street including our dog favourite Yellow Dog Brewing Company, which ironically doesn't allow dogs unlike The Parkside Brewery down the street!

Visiting Rocky Point Park

• Type: Park

• Length: 2 km

• Traffic: Moderate to Heavy

• Route Type: Loop

Because of the pandemic, Rocky Point Park has closed their parking lot for some renovations. There are still plenty of parking along Murray Street. From here, there are a few entry points that lead into a trail that connects with Rocky Point Park. On one of these entry points, we noticed an off-leash dog park, but it had plenty of dogs in there, so we didn't stop in with our reactive dog. From there, it's just a few minutes walk to get to Rocky Point Park.

While we were at the park, we spent most of our time around the beach and dock area. That where the view is, so that's where we like to be. It was fairly quiet, but we also went early to beat the crowd. We spent some time hopping on rocks at the beach area and the surrounding grassy areas before heading back up towards the wooden walkway. This dock is made for pedestrians, though there are docks built along them that you can descend down to. Because of COVID-19, the walkway's been split into two one-way paths.

From here, we took a big loop around the park where they have one of our favourite fish and chips spots in Pajo's. We went by Rocky Point Ice Cream, but unfortunately they weren't open due to COVID-19, so we started to head out. As we were leaving the park, we noticed that the off-leash dog park was empty, so we brought Markus in to give hi a chance to burn off some energy.

Port Moody Off-Leash Dog Park

• Type: Off-Leash Dog Park

• Size: Medium

• Enclosed: Yes

• Doors: One set of double doors

• Traffic: Low

There wasn't too much happening at the Port Moody Off-Leash Dog Park. I mean, yes, we waited until there weren't any other dogs, but the park itself doesn't have too much in terms of things for dogs to do. They had trees and logs for dogs to explore and jump around, but aside from that, there wasn't much else as it was mostly a regular plot of land that they had just closed off and called it a dog park.

At first, we didn't know if the park was fully enclosed because the park actually dips at one point and then there are some trees so it's tough to see behind. Behind the trees, you can see that the park's technically not fenced all the way around because the enclosure actually uses the side of a building on the far side. That said, the dog park is fully enclosed, but it just doesn't use fence all the way around. At the entrance, there is one set of double doors. If your dog like to be crowded and there are dogs at the door, you'll have to wait.

Inside the dog park, when we walked further in close to the building on the far side, we discovered a smaller Off-Leash Dog Park within it (with its own fenced enclosure) that was dedicated for smaller breeds. I had never seen a smaller enclosure that's dedicated to smaller dogs before and I thought it was really thoughtful (though a bit hidden)!

Trails from Rocky Point Park

One of the things we didn't get to do, but look forward to trying in the future, are some of the trails that start around the Rocky Point Park area. There is the Rocky Point Trail and the Shoreline Trail, which curls around where the Burrard Inlet ends. We didn't get to try this trail this time around, but we'll definitely make an effort to come back here sometime soon. 

What we liked

• The views are incredible here!

• Being able to access the beach (though it's not very big) and walking on the wooden walkway above the water is nice and makes for some great pictures with scenic backgrounds.

• There's access to all types of things to do here including access to the beach, access to some trails and access to an off-leash dog park.

What we didn't like

• This park can get really busy with people and dogs. Even though we came here early in the morning and during COVID-19, so the park's likely to be busier during regular times.

Our Recommendation For Reactive Dogs

Markus didn't have any issues while we were here, though there were quite a few dogs even though there weren't that many people. The park and the beach are generally very open areas so if there are dogs on the same path, it's easy enough to step off and let the other dogs go by. None of these dogs at the main park were off-leash and the ones that were stayed at the off-leash dog area.

One other thing to note is that there were a lot of geese while we were there. Markus isn't usually interested in geese, but if your dog is one that likes to chase them, this is worth keeping in mind.

Disclaimer

Markus is a reactive, but not aggressive dog. His instinct is to avoid other dogs and he may growl, bark or lunge if provoked, but will not attack. We normally do not have issues with leashed dogs when both sides are controlled, but we will be on guard when an oncoming dog is not leashed. There are varying levels to a dog’s reactivity and only you can decide if this park, trail or hotel is appropriate for your dog. Our visits generally will not include off-leash areas; most experiences shared on The Markus Project are within leashed or undefined areas.

Please remember that our past experience visiting a park, trail or hotel may not be the same as your experience at the same park, trail or hotel. We have no control of who visits the park and whether they adhere to park rules - like leashing their dogs on leash-required paths - or not. Please use your discretion with the information provided and with your personal knowledge of your dog’s reactivity when visiting these parks, trails or hotels.