Smyrna Dunes Park, New Smyrna, FL

This past Sunday, Andy, Fiji, Farley (Fiji's cousin) and I headed over to Smyrna Dunes Park, the locals refer to it as "the boardwalk". As we pulled into the park there was a security hut where we paid $3.50 to enter. We parked to our left, near the dog entrance. We started out on the sand walking alongside the boardwalk. Soon after beginning on the path there were access points to the beach, which were also dog friendly. We decided to veer onto the beach which lies on the intracoastal waterway. While walking down this area we found people sailing, fishing, swimming, or just enjoying the sun. We even found some sea life on shore. After running around the beach for a bit we decided to go back to the path. While we were leisurely strolling we happened upon some gopher turtles. They live on the beach and are not sea turtles. You will often see holes in the ground and a stick next to it marking a nest.
While walking the path we had a great view of the lighthouse which is a great spot to visit if you can afford sometime away from your pup. There are picnic tables along the boardwalk where you can get a short rest or have a picnic. We eventually ended up along the ocean side of the peninsula. Here we encountered many beach goers and surfers (New Smyrna has some of the best waves in Florida to surf). As we approached the jetty it was the end of the dog friendly zone. We hung out for a while watching some surfers and turned around.
Now, we went in the late afternoon, but the park is open from Sun-up to Sun-down. Dogs are allowed on the boardwalk from sunrise to 10:30am and from an hour before sunset until sunset. At all other hours they can be on the path right next to the boardwalk, which is just sand. When you get back to the entrance there is a nice new doggie wash station.
A great place to go after the beach would be the Flagler Avenue Coffee shop. If you go east from the park on Flagler Avenue you will see it on the right. Dogs are welcome out on the porch. They have a great selection of food and snacks which are made fresh everyday. They have water for your dog and treats for them too!
Fiji and Farley had an awesome time, I don't think their tails stopped wagging the whole time. The wind was in their faces, sand was on their paws and the smells of the environment made their visit a ton of doggie fun. Fiji gives this park/beach 5 Tail Wags!


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A is Smyrna Dunes Park
B is Flagler Avenue Coffee Shop



Link to Smyrna Dunes Park