Dog-Friendly Hiking & Paddling Trip in Arietta, New York

ericamargaret5
6 hours ago
4 min read

Spots & Brindle is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

By the middle of our hot, humid DC summer, I had had it. I wanted to get outside and enjoy some cooler weather. My husband already had plans and agreed to watch the puppies (Gussie & Cheeze), so I booked a cabin, scooped Porter, and headed up to the Southern Adirondacks.

I had never visited this area before but the weather apps told me that temperatures were in the 50's in the morning. The cabin I had booked had trails out back and maps of the area showed lots of lakes where I could potentially take Porter swimming (and where I could potentially go paddling). Since my family lives on Long Island, I texted them too to see if anyone wanted to come out, but there was a big chance Porter and I would be on our own for this trip. Not my favorite, but that is usually the situation when I decide to do something last minute (which is almost always).

I loaded up the 4Runner with an inflatable stand up paddle board, a hard top paddle board, Porter, all of our combined crap, and hit the road. The drive itself was uneventful minus the stretch were I got stuck behind a horse and buggy. (Apparently, there is a big Mennonite community in New York that I had to pass through on my way to Arietta.)

The cabin was in an area with no cell service so I had to take screenshots of the directions beforehand and ended up driving past the cabin a few times before figuring it out by matching the picture of the listing to the houses I was driving by.

That was a bit unnerving, especially since it was getting dark, but I found it and got settled-what a cool spot. In my original cabin search, I was just looking for something dog-friendly, budget-friendly, and near a lake. What I learned when I got to Arietta was that I had inadvertently booked a place inside a town that is 95% state forest...my favorite! There was lots of dedicated hiking all over the place! The cabin was also located on the local snow mobile trail so Porter and I had our pick of walks.

The first morning, we explored the snow mobile trail behind the house. This was rooty and unkempt but Porter loved it. Every morning I put Porter on a long lead and we walked 2-3 miles on the snow mobile trail.

These are our photoshoots from the snow mobile trail:

After the morning walk, we would eat breakfast and relax and then I would leave Porter at the house and go paddle somewhere. Little Stoner Lake was right down the road so I usually paddled around there, but when my family arrived from Long Island, we took a drive out to Caroga Lake and paddled there. (I used my SUP and my family rented kayaks.)

In the late afternoon, after paddling, I would take Porter hiking somewhere. We had so many beautiful options and I mostly found the hikes by driving around town and looking for signage. Back when I took this trip, I wasn't planning on writing about it, so I didn't keep records of our hikes-I just know there is plenty of dog-friendly hiking to be done. Everywhere I turned, there was another sign, so Porter and I would just poke around in the afternoons.

These posts are from the hikes Porter and I completed around the cabin. He loved all of the swimming.

Porter and I stayed at the cabin for around a week and my family popped in for around three days. We paddled on Little Stoner Lake, Caroga Lake, and we rented a pontoon boat one day to pontoon around Canada Lake. (This marina was also the closest grocery store to the cabin.)

Having the family there was a little too much for Porter, but it made me happy.

Overall, I felt comfortable being in this cabin by myself and enjoyed the cool air. The only thing I did not like was the noisy trucks barreling down the road while I was trying to sleep. I don't like car traffic so this is always a sticking point for me, but there was plenty of room when my brother, uncle, and cousin got into town to hang out. There was only one bathroom which I was little worried about with all of us there, but that ended up being fine as well.

If you are looking for a hiking and paddling filled getaway and want to bring your dog, this is a great place.

Lodging