Best places to walk your dog in Harrogate

Great Places to Walk Your Dog in Harrogate

From scenic woodlands to open parkland, Harrogate is packed with fantastic places to walk your dog. Whether you're training a new puppy, working on recall, or just looking for peaceful routes to enjoy together, there’s no shortage of great local spots.

As a professional dog trainer based right here in Harrogate and working across North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire, I’m always recommending these walks to my clients — not just for exercise, but for real-world training too.

Here are some of the best dog walking locations in and around Harrogate:

🌳 1. The Stray

Right in the heart of Harrogate, The Stray offers over 200 acres of flat, open parkland. It’s perfect for lead walking, general obedience practice, or just a good runaround. It can get busy, so it’s ideal for training focus around distractions.

Trainer Tip: Use a long line to practise recall in open space without losing control.

🌲 2. Valley Gardens

This beautifully maintained park blends formal gardens, woodlands, and wide paths. It’s a great place for lead manners, trick training in a public space, and exposure to other dogs and people in a calm environment.

🐾 3. Pinewoods & Harlow Carr

Just beyond Valley Gardens, the Pinewoods trail leads out toward RHS Harlow Carr. This shaded woodland walk is ideal for dogs who enjoy sniffy walks or need a quieter space for confidence-building and focus work.

🚶 4. Nidd Gorge

For a more adventurous walk, Nidd Gorge offers riverside trails and woodland paths that feel a world away from town. It’s brilliant for working breeds or high-energy dogs — and perfect for structured hikes where you reinforce recall and calm behaviour.

🌾 5. Crimple Valley Nature Reserve

This quieter spot is a hidden gem. With open fields and peaceful walking paths, Crimple Valley is ideal for practising engagement, long-line recall, and relaxed, structured walks away from the crowds.

🐶 Final Thoughts from Jack

Every walk can be a training session — if you approach it the right way. Whether you’re working on recall, lead manners, or socialisation, Harrogate has all the environments you need to help your dog improve while enjoying the great outdoors.

If you're based in Harrogate or nearby towns like Knaresborough, Ripon, or Wetherby, and need support with your dog’s behaviour or training, I’m here to help.

I’m Jack — your local dog trainer at Northern K9 Company. I work one-to-one with owners across Harrogate to build calm, confident dogs using reward-based, balanced training. Let’s turn those everyday walks into real progress.

Get in touch With Jack

Let me know how me and the team can help with your dog's training and I will personally respond with an email, text message or I will arrange a phone call. Even if you just need some simple advice I'm happy to help.

why should you Get in touch?

Hi, i'm jack, I treat every dog I train like my own. I seriously do, I love all dogs regardless of their breed or history. Every training session is a lesson learnt for both me and your dog, I try make every session as fun as possible, Although I believe in pack leadership I don't believe in showing dogs "who is boss" I believe in showing dogs that I am pretty cool to hang around with, and feeling safe in my presence which is why I also try to make every session an adventure for us both. One of my favourite things about this job is seeing how exited dogs get when they see me. Dogs really are Angels sent from heaven.