Mountain Lake Park Dog Play Area - San Francisco, CA
Mountain Lake Park Dog Play Area – A Neighborhood Favorite in San Francisco
The Mountain Lake Park Dog Play Area is a popular pet-friendly destination nestled in the Richmond District of San Francisco, California. This dog park is unique because of its open, unfenced layout surrounded by plenty of woods and bushes, offering an off-leash experience for dogs that respond well to voice control. Located at the corner of Mountain Lake Park, it’s a favorite for locals who enjoy spending quality time in a relaxed, natural setting with their pups.
The area features wood chip ground cover to keep things cleaner and softer for canine paws, a brand new water station, and an abundance of benches and picnic tables for dog owners to relax and socialize. While there is no fenced enclosure, the park enjoys a substantial setback from the street, and is equipped with amenities that make it wheelchair accessible and family-friendly. The park is well maintained and offers a nice blend of pet-friendly trails, shade from mature trees, and picnic areas—perfect for a sunny afternoon with your pup.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Are dogs allowed off-leash at this park? Yes, dogs are allowed off-leash within the designated dog area.
- Is there a fenced area for dogs? No, the dog area is not fenced, but there is a good setback from roads and traffic.
- Is there a water fountain or bowls for dogs? Yes, there is a new water station provided for dogs.
- Is there shade or shelter available? Yes, there are trees and wooded areas providing shade.
- Are there benches or seating areas for owners? Yes, there are several benches and picnic tables throughout the dog play area.
- Is the park wheelchair accessible? Yes, the park has a wheelchair accessible entrance.
- Is the park good for kids? Yes, the park is noted as being good for kids and offers picnic areas and open natural space nearby.
- What should I do if there’s an aggressive dog? Owners are expected to maintain voice control over their pets and respond quickly if any dog becomes aggressive. Leashing temporarily and separating involved dogs is a common local practice.
- How busy does the park get? The park can get busy during rush hour, so less crowded visits are likely during off-peak times (such as weekday afternoons).
Reviews
Pretty good dog park as long as you know what you’re getting into. I’ve brought my dog probably 50 times over the past couple years. At rush hour, you can guarantee (no exaggeration) one incompetent owner’s dog will start something with another incompetent owner’s dog. Inevitably neither dog will have any voice control, the usual shouting and running or fast walking will fire up, one dog will be placed on a leash for 5 minutes, no one will get hurt per usual, but it will all happen again next time. Today it was a big fluffy German Shepherd, but it could be any dog tomorrow. Though today was a bit special in that an unhoused and definitely mentally unwell person wandered into the park, tried to touch me (this is highly unusual), spooked the vast majority of the dogs into barking, and hung out for a few minutes at which point most people had intentionally scattered. Then a minute after the person leaves, a cop shows up warning people about the person being on drugs and dangerous. In a 15 minute window, this was my Tuesday after work at the neighborhood dog park. Have fun, and good luck to you and your dog. It will probably be fine.
Lovely place; forgot to take photos of the dog play area – it’s definitely great if your dog can be well controlled. There’s no fence to other area or to the street. A lot of woods and bushes. If the dog went on and chase other dogs, no visibility. Be careful. Otherwise, such a nice place!
Great group of people and pups! 🐶
– Wood chip ground cover
– Unfenced (good amount of setback from cars)
– Nice new water station
– Lots of benches and picnic tables for the humans
P.S. – @sutrobythesea says hello!!
Love this place, we go there to hang with dogs because we don’t have any. Last time we were there, we spotted this red shouldered hawk sitting in the tree keeping an eye on the lil pups
Small little un-fenced dog area (off leash permitted in this designated dog area) at the corner of Mountain Lake park. Area was clean with several benches, not too grassy, majority wood mulch. Came here on a Friday afternoon 2pm-ish, no other dogs here.