Hill Rise Park Dog Walking Area

Your dog will drag you up Hill Rise Park with considerably more enthusiasm than you'd manage alone. It's a proper dog-walking spot just east of St. Ives in Cambridgeshire - open grassland with the kind of space that gets tails wagging before you've even unclipped the lead.

The park itself is straightforward. Grassy slopes, open views, room to throw a ball without worrying about hitting someone else's spaniel. You're looking at anywhere from thirty minutes to an hour depending on how distracted your dog gets - and they will get distracted. The terrain's gentle enough for older dogs, though it's exposed if the wind picks up, which it often does round here.

This is absolutely for dog owners first, everyone else second. If you're staying at one of the nearby parks - Waterclose Meadows or Quiet Waters are less than two miles away - it's a useful spot to burn off some energy before heading back for the evening. Not worth a special journey on its own, mind you, but combined with walking the footpaths around St. Ives and a visit to nearby Wyton Lakes Holiday Park's facilities, it slots neatly into a Cambridgeshire break.

Bring a jumper. The exposure means it gets blustery. Free access as far as we can tell, though facilities aren't exactly elaborate. Your dog won't care. That's rather the point.