North Turramurra Dog Park

The North Turramurra Dog Park is the fenced off-leash run inside Sandakan Park on Du Faur Street, and locals treat it as one of the most secure enclosed dog spaces on the Upper North Shore. Ku-ring-gai Council manages the reserve, the enclosure is fully fenced and open around the clock, and the single large grassed field gives dogs genuine distance to run rather than a token pen.

The dog setup

Inside the fence, Ku-ring-gai's off-leash rules apply: effective voice or hand control at all times, a maximum of four dogs per handler, leads back on the moment you enter or exit the perimeter, and no chasing or threatening other park users. Cleanup is enforced seriously, with a $275 fine for unremoved waste; bags and bins are usually stocked, but carry spares. There is one caveat with the setup: it is a single large space with no separate small-dog section, so little dogs do fine in quiet hours but busy periods mix sizes. Water is available on site, and the surface is natural grass that goes muddy after rain.

Worth knowing

Shade and seating are minimal inside the enclosure, so a folding chair and a hat earn their place on summer mornings. The park sits close to Bobbin Head Road, and the fencing is the reason nobody worries about the traffic; if your dog is a committed jumper, keep the recall honest regardless. Stay within the designated off-leash zone and clear of sports fields when games are running.

Getting there and parking

Take Bobbin Head Road and turn into Du Faur Street, where free street parking lines the park entrances; access also works from the Kirkpatrick Street side. By public transport, catch a train to Turramurra station and a bus to North Turramurra, then walk. Weekday mid-mornings and early weekend mornings are the quiet windows; weekday afternoons after school pickup are the busy ones.

Close by with the dogs

St Ives Showground Fenced Dog Park is the big alternative fenced run to the east, and the South Turramurra Dog Oval serves the other side of the suburb. For coffee after, Replay Espresso in Turramurra is a short drive. More runs are listed under NSW dog parks and the North Turramurra guide.

Max: One huge fenced field and nobody worried about the road. I ran laps until my legs filed a complaint.