If you want to get a little closer to nature, but aren’t sure how to do so with your dog, here’s a few pointers…

In the ACT, dogs are prohibited in all National Parks as well as several significant Nature Reserves (Black Mountain, Callum Brae (Mt Mugga Mugga), Crace Grasslands, Dunlop Grasslands, Goorooyaroo, Gungaderra, Jerrabomberra Wetlands, McQuoids Hill, Mullangarri Grasslands, Mulligans Flat and Rob Roy).

However, you can still walk your dog on lead amongst the trees, shrubs and grasses of many other top quality Nature Reserves that are part of the Canberra Nature Park network. These include O’Connor/Bruce Ridge, Mt Ainslie/Mt Majura, Tuggeranong Hill, Wanniassa Hills/ Farrer Ridge/Mt Taylor, Red Hill and several other Nature Reserves. Simply click on the picture, and that will take you to a Google map that we’ve compiled, which will give some notes for each one, as well as links to the Environment ACT maps.

Territory and Municipal Services are now offering advice at “Where Can I Take My Dog?“. The number one point is to always keep your dog on lead, and the number two point is to clean up after their number twos. We don’t want to lose that privilege.

During the warmer months (and especially when it has warmed up after a cool spell), be on the look out for snakes (another good reason to keep your dog on lead!), and steer clear of them when you spot them.

If you are after a bit of a climb, the following Nature Parks boast the best elevations and vertical distance (min 100m):

Nature Reserve	Comments	Max Height (m)	Climb (m)
Mt Majura	From Antill St at back of Hackett	888	265
Mt Tuggeranong	From Tharwa Dve	855	235
Mt Ainslie	The same from Philip Ave or back of War Memorial	843	225
Wanniassa Hills	From Appel Cres to Mt Wanniassa	890	215
Mt Taylor	Max climb from Colquhoun St	855	215
Mt Mugga Mugga	You can park to the right of the Dog Shelter entrance	812	160
Mt Urambi	From Tuggeranong Ck	713	165
Red Hill	Start at Kent St and walk to Mt Davidson	750	150
Cooleman Ridge	Start at Kathner St and walk to Mt Arawang	765	125
Farrer Ridge	Start from Athllon Drive	755	125
Mt Painter	From either side is the same climb.	743	125
Isaacs Ridge	From Buntine Cres	810	115
Aranda Bushland	Start at the snow gums on William Hovell Dve	680	100

(For your trivia-night answers, Black Mountain is 812 metres, with a climb of 232 from Parkes Way, and the highest peak in the Nature Park is Mt Rob Roy at 1094m and uncertain public access. Both are NO DOG zones)

All the maps for the Canberra Nature Park are available at the Territory and Municipal Services website