When people ask me back home if I like living in San Francisco, one of the first things I tell them about is the easy access to the amazing countryside.  The bitter-sweet of it, though, is that since getting a dog a lot of these areas aren’t open to us unless we leave Ada at home, which rarely seems fair.

So it was pretty disappointing to learn that Golden Gate National Recreational Area (GGNRA) are planning to restrict yet more areas, including two of our favorite spots Fort Funston and the Marin Headlands.

Other areas being affected include Stinson Beach, Homestead Valley, Oakwood Valley, Muir Beach, Rodeo Beach, Fort Baker, Fort Mason, Crissy Field, Fort Point, Baker Beach, Lands End, Sutro Heights, Ocean Beach, Mori Point, Milagra Ridge, Sweeny Ridge, Pedro Point.

The public will have 90 days to comment either for or against the report once it is released, and historically, anti-dog groups have been extremely vocal.  There are several motivating factors to the proposed changes, including environmental impact, safety, and annoyance to others.  But when it comes down to it only 1% of GGNRA is open to people with dogs as it is; the problems affect a tiny percentage of visitors, and could likely be solved with less sweeping changes.

I saw kids chasing birds on Stinson Beach yesterday, should we ban people with kids from the parks?

If you at all care about this, please help provide a more accurate perspective by responding to KQED’s Survey and filling out the official comment form.

The official documents about it are here, the entire proposal is very long (2400 pages) but if you’re interested, the Executive Summary, Chapter 1 (background and purpose), and Chapter 2 (details of the options) are pretty interesting.

Please pass along this information to people who may be interested and ask them to get involved.