Highfield Country Park

Highfields Country Park is another of the great dog walking locations we have within the Manchester area. With less facilities than some other local parks, Highfield Country Park is meant to be a more natural green space where nature is allowed to take over. This might make it less popular with families, who may want toilets and a cafe. Your dog however is likely to prefer it as it feels less ‘sterile’, the terrain is more varied and there are lots of smells of wildlife and nature to attract your pooch. Your dog’s sense of smell is after all between 10,000 and 100,000 times more acute than humans.

Highfield Country Park – Getting There

This 70-acre park is located to the east of Levenshulme and there are a number of possible entrances. On the park’s west side the entrances include Fallowfield Loop, Broom Avenue and Bowler Street. The south of the park has the Cringle Road entrance and to the south east there is the Nelstropp Road entrance. Finally there is also an entrance in the north of the park, namely Highfield Road.

There isn’t really a dedicated car park for Highfield Country Park but many of the entrances mentioned above will have free on street parking for those that intend to drive here.

Highfield Country Park For Dogs

The main focus of this article is to look at what Highfield Country Park has to offer for dog owners. There are a handful of dog waste bins but they are not as plentiful as in some other parks. It’s a great park for letting your dog off lead. Once in the park you really feel out of the city. I don’t worry about my dogs chasing a squirrel and running across a busy road, you feel away from the hustle and bustle here.

There are so many different paths to explore. Leaving the main paths will often lead you into woodland. Many dogs love a wooded area and it can offer some much needed relief in hot summer months. In winter however these side paths can become very muddy. The main paths are less prone to mud but it’s something worth noting. Having said that it’s not easy to find parks with great winter drainage in Manchester, we do after all live in a city known for its rainfall.

For the most part it’s other dog owners that you are likely to meet in Highfield Country Park. There are less distractions here to tempt your dog, whether that’s families having picnics or cyclists. There are a couple of picnic benches within the park but you don’t get the sense that this is a park trying to attract those who enjoy a summer picnic.

There are no toilets or a cafe but this is not something that will bother most dog owners who will only be visiting for an hour or so at a time. There is a bee sanctuary within the park but it’s not likely you or your dog will encounter it or be stung visiting here.

Summary

In summary I feel Highfield Country Park has a lot to offer when it comes to somewhere to walk your dog, particularly if you live in South Manchester. I’d be interested to hear the thoughts of other Manchester dog owners, is Highfield Country Park one of your favourite locations? What other locations in Manchester do you like for walking your dogs?