Let the adventure begin

For two years, my dog Gracie and I have been frequent visitors to the off-leash dog park at Minto-Brown. Rain or shine you can usually find us there. Sometimes we're there in the early mornings when the fog is beginning to lift and you can only hear the geese overhead. Other times we're there at mid-day when parking is at a premium and have to take a number to get a spot in the parking lot. And in the summer months we show up as the sun dips behind the giant cottonwood trees.

The park has been a life-saver for me. Gracie is a rambunctious chocolate lab who needs weekly interactions with other people and, especially, other dogs.

I think we are very lucky to have such a large off-leash area in the heart of Salem. I have been "googling" other dog parks in the Willamette Valley to compare features and attributes. I have noticed that some dog parks have volunteer organizations responsible for the maintenance, sustainability and improvement of the park area. Seattle, for example, has a group called COLA (Citizens for Off-Leash Areas) that has been able to bring about significant improvements to their dog parks. Check them out at: http://www.coladog.org/

What kind of things could we do for Minto?

Many of you have spent your weekends spreading barkdust on the trails in an attempt to keep the mud at bay.

Some of you have influence at City Hall and the Parks Department and have been able to secure new gravel for the parking lot and a port-a-potty for the humans to use.

All of us have the capability to keep this off-leash area safe, clean and a fun place to play.

From time to time I'll be posting my observations and dog park stories on this site. If the opportunity comes up, I would also be glad to provide this blog as a forum for brainstorming and organizing ideas for keeping our dog park the happiest place in Salem (with apologies to Disneyland).

Let me hear from you.