Hitting the South Coast with your pup in tow? Here’s a local’s guide to exploring the best beaches, pubs and parks with your best mate.

Dog-Friendly Beaches

A perfect weekend for me involves a coffee, my kelpie and the beach. Luckily, the South Coast is home to some of the world’s most beautiful beaches, and some of my faves are also dog-friendly. Here’s a few I recommend:

Ulladulla Harbour North Beach

The closest off-lead beach to Ulladulla is a small cove north of the Ulladulla Harbour, aptly named Ulladulla Harbour North Beach. Head to the Lions Park, on the Princes Highway, where the road will lead you down to the boat ramp on the north side of the harbour. You’ll find a small and fairly sheltered beach, where dogs can roam off lead. Watch out for the fish cleaning station – there’s heaps of delightful smelling scraps for your dog to roll in … and you know he will 😂

Collers Beach

Further north, you’ll find Collers Beach in Mollymook. It’s a small bay, and the most popular spot for locals to let their dogs off lead. Because this small cove is usually calm, people will often bring their kids down to paddle, so do be mindful that it is a shared space.

Narrawallee Beach

One of the most popular surf and swimming beaches in the area, this beautiful stretch of beach is open to dogs at limited times.

• October – April: Dogs are allowed before 8am and after 4pm
• May – September: Before 10am and after 3pm.

Your dog is only allowed off lead in one section of the beach. You’ll need to access the beach from the Matron Porter Drive beach track, and be sure to only go as far north as the Un-named Island. (I’m aware these instructions read like something out of a sci-fi novel, so here’s a link to a handy map). I highly recommend grabbing a coffee from the Hello Huey caravan in the Matron Porter Reserve. These guys LOVE dogs and will treat you and your mate to a good chat and an even better coffee.

My fave off-lead beach

If you want in on the real local’s secret, head to Washerwomans Beach at Bendalong. It’s about a 30 minute drive north of Milton, but worth every cent of the petrol bill. This place is a little slice of paradise – dogs can roam off-lead, the beach is uncrowded, the water is ridiculously clear and it’s an excellent spot for an early morning walk and dip.

Heading south

If you’re heading south to Bawley Point, check out Cormorant Beach. It’s a wild little pocket of the coast where dogs can play, swim and run to their content. And Bawley is absolutely worth the visit. Grab a coffee at Luci’s afterwards or take the kids to jump off the Gantry and into the clear blue water below at Bawley Beach.

On-lead walking

You can also walk your dog on-lead at so many beautiful places in our town.

There’s a great pathway along Mollymook Beach which is super popular at all times of the day. You’ll get why locals call this path Pitt St mall – it’s a busy and beautiful track to follow, and one of my absolute favourote places to walk my kelpie at sunrise.

I also highly recommend heading down to Burrill Lake where you can walk a great loop over the bridge and out across the Lions Park to Dolphin Point and back.

In Ulladulla, I’d check out the One Track For All path on the northern headland of Ulladulla Harbour. It’s a beautiful cultural trail with information on native wildlife and local Aboriginal history. If you want to extend the walk, follow the concrete path down North St to the Geological Time Walk in Brodie Park. This short walkway and garden leads you through 500 million years of geological history of our local region. An epic local project, and one of only 7 known geological walks in the world. Pretty cool!

I also love the Ulladulla Wildflower Reserve on Green St. It’s a cool little pocket of native forest, managed by a local Aboriginal Trust. Dogs are welcomed on lead and there are a number of paths you can follow through the bushland. Best in spring to appreciate some of our beautiful native wildflowers.

Want to grab a bite or a beer?

In Milton, head to the Milton Hotel. The beautifully renovated building is home to local brewery Dangerous Ales, and a hatted restaurant inside. The back verandah and beer garden make a perfect spot for a sunset tipple with your pup.

Across the road, you can also sit outdoors at Small Town Provisions – a hole-in-the-wall wine bar with perfect aperitivo hour snacks. The team here are so friendly and the eats and drinks are exceptional. Stock up on drinks and snacks to take home while you’re there.

Further afield is a beautiful wholefoods cafe, Milk Haus. Book a table in the courtyard so you and your pup can enjoy their take on local produce. The whole experience at Milk Haus is gorgeous. Good food, good people, and a wander through their expansive veggie gardens, with the rolling hills of Milton behind you… well it makes for a very cup-filling experience!

In Ulladulla, head out to Cupitt’s Winery. Well-behaved dogs are welcome on lead in the garden (so that’s why you won’t see my kelpie there 😂) – and if you’re lucky to catch one of our South Coast sunsets here, you’ll know why we think this pocket of the South Coast is the very best.