Lyons hikes: where dogs are allowed, and where they are not

Three land managers own the trails around Lyons, and each writes its own dog rule. Boulder County’s open space regulations name Hall Ranch and Heil Valley Ranch among the four County properties where dogs are not permitted at all. The City of Longmont, which owns Button Rock Preserve as its watershed, prohibited dogs there from May 15, 2023. That leaves Rabbit Mountain, where the County allows pets on a leash, and the Town of Lyons parks, which hold the only off-leash area in town. Trails and the river describes the trails and the river gauge; this is the dog answer, with each manager’s distances, hours and parking from its own page.

Area	Manager	Dogs	Hours	Parking
Hall Ranch	Boulder County	No	Sunrise to sunset	64 spaces in 2 lots; 8 at Antelope
Heil Valley Ranch	Boulder County	No	Sunrise to sunset	25 at Picture Rock; 59 at Wapiti; 19 at Corral
Button Rock Preserve	City of Longmont	No	Lot open 1 hour before sunrise to 1 hour after sunset	60 vehicles; closed when full
Rabbit Mountain	Boulder County	On a leash	Sunrise to sunset	38 spaces
Town parks and river path	Town of Lyons	Off leash only in the fenced dog park at Bohn Park	Dawn to dusk	Paid lots at LaVern M. Johnson and Bohn parks; free on 2nd Avenue

No dogs: Hall Ranch

A mile west of town on Colorado 7. The County’s Hall Ranch page says dogs are not allowed because of wildlife concerns. Trails: Bitterbrush, 3.7 miles, difficult; Nighthawk, 4.7 miles, moderate to difficult; the Nelson Loop, 2.2 miles; Antelope, 1 mile; and the Button Rock Trail, 2 miles. The main trailhead has 64 car spaces across two lots, 3 accessible spaces, a restroom, a 50-person group shelter and 3 horse-trailer spaces; the Antelope trailhead has 8. The Nelson Loop prescribed-burn window runs January 15 to April 15, and the park closes on ignition days.

No dogs: Heil Valley Ranch and Picture Rock

The Picture Rock Trail, 5.2 miles and moderate, is the Lyons side of Heil Valley Ranch, and the same rule covers all 6,231 acres. The County’s Heil Valley Ranch page says dogs are not allowed because of wildlife concerns, and that the ranch is on-trail use only because of critical wildlife habitat and the danger in the Cal-Wood Fire burn areas. The other trails: Wapiti, 3 miles; Wild Turkey, 2.9; Ponderosa Loop, 2.6; Overland Loop, 2.3; Grindstone Quarry, 1.4; Lichen Loop, 1.3; Schoolhouse Loop, 0.9. The Picture Rock trailhead has 25 car spaces and a restroom; the Wapiti trailhead, 59 spaces, can be closed in the summer monsoon season when flash flooding is forecast.

No dogs, no swimming: Button Rock Preserve

Button Rock is the City of Longmont’s watershed around Ralph Price and Longmont reservoirs on the North St. Vrain, about 7 miles west of Lyons: 4 miles west on US 36, then left on County Road 80 for 3 miles to the gate. The City’s Button Rock Preserve page says it prohibited dogs from May 15, 2023, for watershed, ecosystem and wildlife health, and its rules list reads no dogs, no bicycles, no horses, no boats or floating devices, no swimming, no camping, no fires and no drones. The preserve is walk-in only; the dam road reaches Ralph Price Reservoir after two miles, and fishing there needs a City permit. The lot holds 60 vehicles and closes to more until cars leave; parking along the road can get a vehicle ticketed or towed. The City’s rules page opens the lot one hour before sunrise and closes it one hour after sunset. The northwest corner, including the Cook Mountain Trail, is closed December 1 to March 31 for wintering elk.

Leashed dogs: Rabbit Mountain

The Ron Stewart Preserve at Rabbit Mountain, north-east of town off Colorado 66, is the one County area here that lists “Pets On Leash” instead of “No Pets Allowed”. The County’s Rabbit Mountain page gives three trails from one trailhead: Eagle Wind, 2.5 miles, moderate; Indian Mesa, 2.2 miles, easy; and the Little Thompson Overlook, 1.5 miles, moderate. The trailhead has 38 car spaces, 3 accessible spaces, a restroom, a 30-person group shelter and 4 horse-trailer spaces. Prairie rattlesnakes are on the County’s wildlife list for the preserve.

The County’s leash rule applies wherever it allows dogs: on a leash and under the owner’s physical control at all times, with the waste carried out. Parks and trailheads close at sunset, and vehicles left after dark are ticketed or towed. A ranger is reached at 303-441-4444.

In town: six parks and one dog park

The Town of Lyons maintains six parks, open dawn to dusk daily: LaVern M. Johnson Park, Bohn Park, Sandstone Park, Lyons Valley River Park, Steamboat Park and the Dog Park. The Dog Park is a fenced ten-acre area at the south end of Bohn Park, reached by a short trail due south from the paid lot at 199 2nd Avenue, and the Town calls it the only designated off-leash area in Lyons. It is free, open dawn to dusk unless closed for maintenance, and Town ordinances are enforced inside it: dogs leashed through the first gate in and out, no aggressive, ill or in-heat dogs, three dogs a person. The Town scheduled a dog-waste composting pilot there for April through September 2026. It warns that online maps often send drivers to a private road off 5th Avenue; use 199 2nd Avenue.

Everywhere else in the Town’s parks, including the river path between Sandstone Park and LaVern M. Johnson Park, a dog is on a lead: the Dog Park page says leash laws apply as you approach and leave the off-leash area, and the fenced ground is the only place in town designated for a dog off one. LaVern M. Johnson Park closes its gates when it reaches capacity, often by noon at weekends.

The Town’s parking page charges at LaVern M. Johnson Park, Bohn Park, Black Bear Hole and the 2nd Avenue lot every day of the year: $2 an hour on weekdays and on weekends from October to April, $3 an hour on weekends from May to September. Non-residents can buy a season pass for $80 a vehicle at Town Hall (the Parks and Recreation overview still says $75).