Choose your distance. Stay on Boom Island’s open paths and turn back before adding the island connections. This gives you a flexible visit without committing to a full lake loop.
1.35 mi loop. This is the shortest published lake circuit in this guide. Compare the full distance with your available time; you can choose an out-and-back instead. Stay outside Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden, where pets are excluded.
For context, our Dog Walking Report found a median of 26 minutes and 0.8 miles across 341 recorded walks from 110 owner accounts. This is a community-wide sample, not a Minneapolis or Minnesota estimate, and it is not an exercise target.
If a full circuit is more than you want today, choose a turnaround on an open path and allow for the return. Use the dog walk calculator for a starting plan and record the actual outing with your phone.
A little help choosing
What kind of walk today?
Pick a spot for directions and the useful details.
Come for the falls, then choose how much walking you feel like doing.
Distance
Choose your distance
Surface
Developed paths; lower routes vary
Dogs
Keep leashed
Start on an open path around the developed falls area. Check access and terrain before adding a lower trail; return the way you came for a shorter walk.
Which Minneapolis dog walk is shortest on this list?
MPRB lists the Wirth Lake circuit at 1.35 miles. The other lake walks here range from 2.63 miles at Lake of the Isles to 3.1 miles at Bde Maka Ska. You can also make an out-and-back visit shorter by turning around along the same open path.
Pets are excluded from the garden; on-duty service animals are allowed. Leashed dogs are allowed in the greater Theodore Wirth Regional Park, so plan your walk outside the garden boundary.
