Very convenient park in Oakland that was near the Airbnb we're staying at. It was just enough for…read morethe kids and the dog to enjoy. It probably could use a little more upkeep but I did notice some people out trimming the area. They offer a dog park and some good equipment for the kids. A basketball court is also available. I would say more than one entrance point would be good!

The dog park part is nothing to write home about. It's a small fenced in area, that was very muddy…read morewhen I tried to go.

A sweet experience that's more of a nature walk than an actual hike, though it starts with steps…read morefrom the Monterey Boulevard side of things. It took about an hour and was mostly flat with a few slight uphills here and there. Plenty of off-leash dogs, if that kind of thing bothers you. It doesn't bother me as long as they're friendly, and they were.

Perfect trail for city folk or children. If your a real outdoors person or have needs for longer…read moretrails for physical fitness - there are better places. The trail is peppered with numerous trolls. Kids and young at heart adults would love this sort of thing. The trolls are made of all different materials and so have varied personalities. There were countless trolls but I took a few photos of my favorites. City folk would love this place. If you are cooped up in a tiny two bedroom apartment with no back yard and no privacy this is just the place to go. Even though I've got a massive private backyard diligently maintained with lush landscaping I still enjoy this place. Came around sunset and the way light filtered through the branches of soaring redwoods was majestic. Lots of shady paths but they were a bit muddy - so don't wear your favorite Dunks. The entrance is hard to find and parking is mostly street. People walking here were friendly and many took their dogs. Kids seemed to enjoy the swing area toward the back best. Rocky's market area would be a perfect place to park. Then walk up the hill and look for the public hidden staircases. Elderly might have trouble with stairs. Wheelchair people I didn't see here. Moms with strollers - I'm not so sure - there are lots of roots and hills and parking might be a little ways away. If your blind be sure and bring a person who can tell you how beautiful things are. If a person was blind from birth I wouldn't know what to say. I once met a person as such and had a hard time describing anything as there is no point of reference ever. If you want to recreate this kind of feeling in your own backyard do as I do: Plant narrow evergreens around the entire perimeter of your yard. Then add some bird of paradise and palm trees. Presto! every time you enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning in your yard you have privacy and even in the winter it is green and beautiful.

FYI: Google reviews and some reddit users call this Lower Bottoms Dog Park. No idea what the real…read morename is. This park is what you wish you had for a backyard, and probably do if you live outside the bay area. It's plenty of land to run, run, run, with some rolling landscape to make it a bit more interesting. You can see from one end to the other, but it's waaaaaaay over there. I love that they carved out this strip of land right next to the freeway...the soft lull/roar of the freeway can be heard, but it's not distracting or too loud at all. There isn't separation between small and large dogs...it's up to owners to figure out whether it's a good fit. My 67- and 53-lb dogs had some fun with a little dog today that looked to be about 15 lbs. In fact, the bigger one needs to shed a little pandemic weight (like her mom) and I think running around with those hecka fast little ones is just the ticket. I'll possibly give it 5 stars if I return a couple of times and all is still well. And yes...gopher holes are there. That just gave them something else to do...sticking their snuffles into the holes to sniff around. The gophers are too smart for them, though.

I love the quiet conveniency of this dog park. It's hidden…read morein the back of West Oakland Bart. Some days there may be lots of big rambunctious dogs, along with some cute little woofers; but most of the time when I stop it's just us. The park is alway pretty empty which is good, because my dogs tend to be a little timid and antisocial. It's so peaceful and relaxing when it's just us. The park provides poopy bags. I think most people just bring their own though and leave them, I do sometimes for whoever may have forgotten their own. Whatever the case we practice on keeping it very clean by picking up our pets waste. As for parking it's usually some street parking always near....one more thing on the side gate of the park there is a fence with lots of cactus and sweet fruits I like to enjoys every so often also.

@ Lower Washington Park 1300 8th St…read moreAlameda, CA Okay, I fixed this Yelp listing! The Alameda Dog Park is in Lower Washington Park, near the small parking lot and tennis courts. Looking on a map, it would be near 8th St & Portola Ave. Exact address is 1300 8th St. I haven't seen other dog parks, so I don't how this one compares. I've been here a few times with a friend with a small dog. Also, I walk by alot as it's near the sidewalk. The Dog Park is one huge fenced in area, and a separate smaller area for small dogs. It's sand, grassy areas with some trees. There's water and some places to sit. I think it's cool that ARPD set up this dog park. (ARPD- Alameda Recreation And Park Department)

We went to the Alameda art and wine festival. So afterwards we needed a place to let the dogs…read moreloose, before the long ride home. This place didn't really have any new reviews,so I reluctantly decided to try it. First the good. There's plenty of parking, they have a big and small dog side. We decided to try the small dog side. There were people trying to separate some large dogs on the big dog side. Not a good sign. The small dog side has sand. Which personally I hate, because it gets in the dogs ears and eyes. Both causing irritation. We stayed for just a little bit. I had to be careful because I noticed people ignoreing their dogs and not picking up after their dogs. Won't be coming back

Defremery Park is deep into the inner city, it's the best maintained, relatively, of the bests i've…read morevisited. the amenities are the skate park, children's playground, the large green area, baseball, tennis , bbq areas, and the historical building on site. the park also denotes the "oak center historical district" mentioning the historical buildings nearby. it's also a frequent gathering place for community events given it's large space.

I come here about once a week for an outdoor skate season. The setup is nice and the skate park is…read morekept very clean. They also have an area for baseball, tennis, and a good old fashioned BBQ. I also love that Defremery Park does a lot to pour into the community (feeding the homeless, summer lunch programs for the kids, etc).

This was a nice Sunday hike around the Mills College at Northeastern campus in Oakland, CA. We had…read morea beautiful day and also visited the Mills College Art museum. You enter at the front gate 5000 MacArthur blvd. You'll Need to show ID. Dogs need a special permit- so most likely do not bring them. Parking and museum are free and everyone seemed welcoming. Now for the hike- I was confused where to go...but once I scanned the QR code on one of the trail posts, I could see the trail map. We parked at the museum and walked in a counter clockwise direction. Basically you are hiking along the perimeter of the campus - past sports fields, pool, chapel, farm, small cemetery, main quad area (called the oval). Part of the trail near Pinetop Hill was closed to us, but that was okay since we were ready to check out the free museum (featuring well known artists as part of the collection). If I wanted a peaceful getaway, with a new art exhibit , I would go back. It's a special gem in the area that I never had visited until today. Here's a link to the map: https://footpathapp.com/routes/efbdfeac-7ca1-48d4-8592-ac5535ebdbbd

"Peaceful, Hike, but Watch out for Beehives!"…read more Pinetop Fitness Trail is a scenic trail around the outskirts of Mills College in Oakland. The total distance is about two and a half miles, and it's an easy hike. Along the way, you hike through parts of the campus and see a cemetery, a community garden, and beehives. You can access the trail in multiple places throughout the campus. The security booth at the entrance to the college also has maps of the campus. However, the maps do not show the beehives. The day that I visited, the trail was unexpectedly blocked part way through. I had to figure out how to get back to the main road. This is a great place to visit if you're interested in a peaceful syroll through a beautiful campus. At the far end of the trail, near Pinetop road, there's a crest that you that has beehives. I'm pretty sure the bees don't like it if you get very close.

I was very sad the last time I came here, in 2017…read more The first time I came here, probably in 2005 or 2006, I was full of hope for a new job and also worried, probably even a bit scared. The job ended up being pretty scary, but I had another part-time job in Berkeley off and on from 2005 through 2013, and that job made me happy. I don't associate Ohlone Park West with either of those jobs, not really, but about six months before that sad day in November 2017, I saw someone riding a bike on Shattuck Avenue in Downtown Berkeley, and it really scared me even though she was smiling and even though--most importantly--she didn't notice me and probably wouldn't have recognized me even if she had noticed me. The park stretches along four ho-hum blocks from MLK Way to Sacramento Street. It's awesome that such a random park exists where it exists, and I'm sure many people wanted it gone before it was a proper park so they could develop the land and sell real estate, so I'm really glad the City of Berkeley held firm and allowed this public space to remain public space. But the City of Berkeley being the City of Berkeley, this park is a total mess, and anything the city does to improve it will inevitably make it worse or cost too much money, or both. I don't have any problem with cities spending money on things like public parks, but Berkeley is a dysfunctional city at best and a bastion for bad, expensive ideas 365 days a year. I love ramshackle parks; don't get me wrong. If the area and my state of mind hadn't been so dour in November 2017, I might be writing a totally different review right now. But it seems like I saw the same inconsiderate people doing the same annoying stuff every time I walked these four blocks, and after a while--especially when you're still dealing with the unexplainable sudden death of a good friend--I just didn't want to visit again. I guess the park could magically change and brighten my day, and I do love when my dire predictions are proven wrong, but the problem is that I'm usually right (it's definitely more than 50 percent of the time), and I just don't need more sadness in my life. It is a nice walk, though, and I can think of many worse ways to spend time while you're waiting for an oil change and have the stinking suspicion that the mechanic might be in the process of stealing your car. Why do I have so many strange experiences waiting for oil changes in Berkeley?

A long linear park that I wouldn't recommend. There is a dog park section but there is too much…read morerif-raf. Green areas are easy on the eyes but this seems to have become a place to dump trash and old couches. Just because of the trees and such I think it deserves a couple stars. Its fascinating how certain places evolve over time.

We were scouting the Ferry Terminal because we were planning on taking the Ferry to San Francisco…read morein a couple of days. We wanted to see the location, parking and the area in general. We had the Princess with us and as we were leaving mapped out the nearest dog park. Lo and behold, it was right next door! It's not a huge park but there's enough room to throw a ball and run around in. Parking is one the rocks right in front of the gate on Main Street. I suppose you could also park in the Ferry Terminal parking lot although I'm not sure if that's okay or not. There are two entrances to the park. The main entrance on Main Street has a dual gate entrance while the entrance on the Ferry Terminal side is a single gate. Dual gates are my preference because it adds a layer of safety should one gate accidentally not latch properly. We found a couple of dog toys and there were several bowls with water. There were also numerous gallon jugs with water in them. There is no water fountain nor restroom onsite, so it appears that other pet parents are taking empty jugs and filling them. The encampments and motorhomes that other wrote about in 2022 and 2023 are no longer there, so the area feels relatively safe.

Great little linear park. Near the main road and because of the length it makes for a decent size…read more This is near the water and a main road. Mostly clean. Biggest problem is that it is difficult to get to assuming your not living nearby. Alameda is such a drag to drive around in - I'd say its almost as bad as downtown San Francisco in terms of driving 1 mile will cost you 12 minutes. Lots of stop signs and tiny narrow streets. Crowded feeling. Your dog will love it. If he is cooped up in a tiny apartment there is space to run. Also important for your dog to socialize and do some flea swapping with the next dog. They love that.