Many hikers who own dogs have a question: Which trails around Tucson are open to my canine companion?
Short answer: It’s complicated.
Land-management agencies — Saguaro National Park, the Coronado National Forest, Arizona State Parks and Pima County — have a variety of policies pertaining to pooches on trails.
Factors taken into consideration include national-park status, environmental-area designation, trails that get very heavy use, and sites with special restrictions such as the bighorn sheep management area in the Catalina Mountains.
What follows is a guide to policies regarding dogs on trails — along with a list of some popular dog-friendly trails.
A key point to keep in mind: Dogs must be leashed on all trails.
SAGUARO NATIONAL PARK
Dogs — with the exception of service animals — are prohibited on all trails in Saguaro National Park’s units east and west of Tucson.
Park officials and the park’s website outlined some of the reasons for the prohibition:
- Pet safety — Rattlesnakes, cactus spines, scorpions, open mines and extreme heat pose a threat to dogs.
- Safety of trail users — “In areas where dogs are allowed on the trail, hikers have been threatened and bitten even by friendly dogs and those on a leash,” the park’s website notes. “Some people hike in national parks to avoid dogs.”
- Impacts on wildlife — Native animals can be displaced and disturbed by the scent of dogs, which the animals perceive as predators.
“Dogs are welcome along roadsides, including the interior dirt roads, and picnic areas as long as they are on a 6-foot leash,” said park spokeswoman Andy Fisher.
CORONADO NATIONAL FOREST
Two areas of national forest lands near Tucson are strictly off limits to dogs, said Heidi Schewel, spokeswoman for the Coronado National Forest.
“Dogs are prohibited in Sabino Canyon due to the potential for water contamination and associated risks to human health,” Schewel said. “The bighorn sheep management area of the Pusch Ridge Wilderness in the Catalina Mountains is also closed to dogs because bighorn sheep view dogs as predators and it affects their behavior.”
The management area is where bighorns have been brought from elsewhere in the state in an effort to rebuild a herd here.
Trails closed to dogs in the area include the Finger Rock Canyon, Linda Vista, Pima Canyon, Pontatoc Canyon, Romero Canyon, Sutherland and Ventana Canyon trails.
Schewel emphasized that many other forest trails in the Catalinas are open to leashed dogs. Among the trails popular with dog owners are the Aspen, Marshall Gulch and Butterfly trails.
People who take dogs on trails where they are prohibited face fines of up to $5,000 for individuals, $10,000 for organizations, or imprisonment for up to six months — or both, Schewel said.
ARIZONA STATE PARKS
State park trails generally are open to leashed dogs, but there are some exceptions, State Parks spokeswoman Ellen Bilbrey said.
“Dogs are allowed on leashes on the trails” in most parks, including Catalina State Park north of Tucson, Bilbrey said. “But they’re not allowed in the bighorn sheep habitat area” on the eastern edges of the park.
“Red Rock State Park — an environmental area — doesn’t allow dogs in the park,” she said. “Tonto Natural Bridge State Park allows dogs on leashes but not down on the lower river trails. Slide Rock State Park doesn’t allow pets down in the swimming area.”
PIMA COUNTY
“The rule of thumb is if signage doesn’t prohibit dogs, they are generally welcome on trails on a leash,” said Kerry Baldwin, natural resources division manager for the county. “All county trails and parks that allow dogs require dogs to be on a leash at all times.
“It is really only Tucson Mountain Park (except for the Robles Pass area) where dogs are prohibited at all times — other than dogs in campgrounds or service dogs,” Baldwin said. “So the vast majority of designated county trails are open to dogs on a leash. With all the natural resource parks and river park trails, that gets up into the hundreds of miles of trail across the county.”
Baldwin emphasized the importance of keeping dogs on a leash — not only to protect the dogs but also to keep them from chasing wildlife or scaring hikers on the trail.
“We get calls all the time from people that were, in their opinion or perception, aggressively approached by off-leash dogs that the owner probably felt, ‘My dog wouldn’t ever hurt someone,’ ” Baldwin said. “For the people that are not trusting of dogs, those off-leash incidents can quickly ruin what was otherwise a great hike.”
A HIKER’S PERSPECTIVE
Hiker Dave Weeks likes to take his dogs, Aspen and Onyx, on trails where they are permitted.
“For me, my dogs are part of my family, so I love taking them out,” Weeks said. “They get exercise, and they have fun out there.”
He said it’s important for dog owners to be on the lookout of animals, including snakes, that might be harmful to dogs — or harmed by them.
It’s essential to keep dogs leashed and in close control, “because some people you encounter just don’t want to deal with dogs on the trail,” Weeks said.
