The staff at the boathouse are so friendly and helpful, especially the young handsome and strong…read moreman. He got my boat in and out the water lickety-split oh wow! I love visiting just to see his hard working fine butt pls give him a raise!

What a great spot! Feels like a million miles away from Bloomington. So calm and peaceful…read more We enjoyed the well marked hiking trails. Would love to return and get out on the water!

What an amazing park! Gigantic play structure with multiple slides, swings, climbing, balance…read morefeatures, fire pole, nice seating for parents, and bathrooms.

This is a very nice park that is tucked away in Bloomington. There is limited parking available…read morespread across 2 lots and another lot with just handicap and 15 minute spots. I guess you can park along the road as well. This park runs along Old State Road 37, has a canal that runs parallel to it and has a lot to offer. They have a couple of very nice shelters with a bunch of picnic tables, a fireplace, and a grill outside of them. They are really nice and can be reserved. They also have a couple of playgrounds in the park. There is a small playground by the larger pavilion with a swing bank with toddler, traditional and ADA swings. The equipment sits on a bed of wood chips, has a large paved trail that runs through it, and picnic tables nearby. The second playground area is across the street and much larger. It has a large red play structure, a bank of saucer swings, a sit and spin, a small playhouse, a pyramid net climber, a bank of traditional and ADA swings and small play structure for little kids. The equipment is in great shape. The large play structure has a bunch of gnarly slides, some bridges, a pebble bridge, and can be accessed from a large bridge. The small play structure just has a couple of canopies, a bridge, and a slide. It is much less exciting than its larger counterpart. The area has picnic tables and a bunch of benches around for caregivers to sit while their little's play. It is lined mostly with wood chips, but has some patches of cement and rubber surfacing mixed in. There is a bathroom facility over in the area as well. You will also find a sand volleyball court here at the park. It is a decent court and I do not know how much use it gets. The park features paved hiking/walking nature trails that are pretty nice. It is a scenic park and has a peaceful feel about it (the further you get away from the main road, the better), and is very scenic and picturesque. Along the main road is a portion of the trail that also parallels the canal, where you will find a bunch of picnic tables that are visible from the road. The park is home to a couple of desolate baseball fields that look abandoned and is closed off. There is a modest parking lot attached to the fields, but it is gated and closed off like the fields. The fields have potential and appear to have been an awesome spot to play ball at one point. Anyway, this is a very nice, low key park that has a lot to offer. It is well maintained, picturesque and soothing. I can not think of many changes I would suggest for this park other than more parking. You could easily spend a half a day here and not even know it. I recommend spending some time here and checking this place out.

Great park for hiking - lots of trails to choose from with varying difficulty. We picked Trail 3 on…read moreour last one, which goes right up the creek -- the trail is literally the creek, not next to it. A little confusing as it just kind of dumps out into the creek and you just keep walking until you find the trailhead again, but a really fun and scenic hike for the whole family, and you don't have to get wet if you don't want to. (At least with the water levels where they were on our visit -- may not be true after rainy days.) We had done Trail 5 previously, which is a fun one but no water. The kids were a little too scared of Wolf Cave, but it was a pretty hike nonetheless. Much preferred Trail 3 though.

If you are looking to get away from it all, go to a larger park. On both of our hikes, we could…read morehear nearby freeway traffic the entire time. There was also lawnmower noise from the park itself and diesel exhaust from the parks vehicles. I understand employees have to do trail maintenance, but electric vehicles should be used. It was noisier in this park than in my backyard. We went into the Inn to cool down for a bit and the ice machine in the lobby sounded like a Mac truck. There was no indication that the inn has exhibits or a wildlife observation room, so we missed that. When we entered the park, we asked the gate keeper which trails were the most scenic. We were directed to the waterfall and the fire watchtower. The water fall is all of ten feet. We climbed all 106 steps to the top of the fire watchtower only to discover that there is no view from the top. All you can see are the trees a few feet in front of you. The entire experience was underwhelming.

While exploring Greene County, I saw that there was a moderate 1.6 mile hiking path inside the…read moreDilcher-Turner Canyon Forest. So, I crossed the railroad tracks (heading west) and pulled into the small lot at the south entrance. There is the usual wipe your feet before you enter and the sign in to let someone know the park is getting used. The park is a bit on the primitive side: no restrooms, natural trails, and only a few benches. There aren't actual trail markers, but during the right conditions, it seemed the painting of white patches on trees to help the hiker orient on the paths seemed to work. I could see this being a necessity after the leaves have fallen and covered up the dirt path. Note that there were several dry creeks that I crossed along the way, but because of the 60' elevation change, I could see the need to cross over water or at least muddy ground after a rain storm. The trail does have a short cut for those not wishing to hike the entire distance. After walking up a mild incline for .2 miles, there is a split in the path with a laminated map showing you where you are and the distances around the paths. I recommend snapping a photo of this since there is only one other map posted on the trails. The outer trail to the left (West) is the one with the best views of the canyon. Deep greens and rocky descents are seen and there is a bench to relax and just listen. No immediate access is available here to the canyon floor. However, the trails do gradually reach the lower portion of the canyon to the east, though never quite reaching the bottom, and certainly not near the viewing area on the west end. Along the way, there are a lot more rock outcroppings that have shallow caves. While observing a squirrel who had run into a fallen log, a deer ran by me within 30 yards to the crest of the hill, and then back to where it came from as I followed the path upward. Note: I wouldn't recommend going off trail here unless you have some high tech equipment or are just a bit crazy. The white trail patches are small and are only painted on the side that you can see them from the trail. If you wander off, you will need a lot of luck to find the markers again. If you are unsure, just stop and look to see the next marker before proceeding. They are there....just use patience. Overall, it was an enjoyable hike. I made good time on my trip, including stops to take photos, taking about 45 minutes. Review #1587

My fathers side of the family and me would come here pretty much every year when I was a kid (going…read moreon 26 next month). All of the memories come rushing back. We've stayed there for weekends and short stays in a slew of different campers and RVs, as well as coming for day trips where we would set up a cookout at the reservable building across from the swimming beach. My papaw and I would then go down the nearby ramp to fish. Enjoyed it every time. Considering taking the wife and camper up there from Kentucky this October for our anniversary, let her see where a lot of my childhood was. Will update with photos, etc if we do go.

Everything at the boat rental. Before you leave the dock…read morewhen renting a boat check all items so make sure they work there's no tears rips any damage of any kind.

We had the best weekend getaway here and are so happy to have found this spot through a friend of a…read morefriend. This forest has many camping sites, but they don't let yo reserve any before arriving. Our friend recommended arriving before 2pm to hopefully get a spot. We arrived then on one of the busiest most beautiful fall weekends and scored the LAST spot. Woohoo! We were allowed two tents on our camping spot, which came with a bonfire set up and cooking rack. There was a wooden bathroom only a few steps away and a lake within walking distance as well. The bathrooms didn't have sinks, but there was a water spigot down the road if needed. Most people camping here came for four or five days at a time and had awesome RV or airstreams set up on their camping sites. Therefore, most people went to bed quite early and we weren't bothered by anyone being too loud. Everyone had great fires going and we liked not being the only ones out here. The building where you pay for your campsite also had $5 log bundles you could buy, so we got a couple of those. There were tons of sticks and leaves around that we used to build up our fire as well. This spot is only a fifteen minute drive from Nashville, IN, so is such a great spot. Go check it out!

This review is specifically for the Jackson Creek trail…read more Overall rating: DNR - Do Not Recommend! Sure, there are some scenic views but the trail is pretty poorly marked. It is an "interpretive" trail but the interpretative markers don't have any description. Let's hope you took a picture of the map at the trail head! This could be a lot nicer with some TLC.

Very neat trail. Has numerous observation areas. Trail is flat and easy. Went in the winter and it…read morewas all iced over, can't wait to see it in the spring.

If you want to really appreciate the natural beauty and diversity of Indiana, take a hike through…read moreBeanblossom Bottom Nature Preserve. It will take your breath away, especially if you visit in the spring, summer and fall, when things are blooming. This is a wetland preserve, so there are swamps all around. You'll see wildlife that like to call swampy, marshy land their home, like frogs and dragonflies, and you might even see a snake, although we didn't on our visit. You'll also see lots of beautiful greenery, trees and flowers. This is one of the most unique nature preserves I've visited in Indiana, because the hiking trail starts off on dirt, but then it turns into a raised, plastic boardwalk. Because the boardwalk is plastic, it can be slippery after a rain, so just be aware. On the boardwalk, you're literally walking right over and through the swamp, so you can get an up-close view of everything. The hiking trail is about 2.5 miles, but it felt shorter. This nature preserve seems to be popular with birders, because we saw several during our hike. When I did some research, I found out that Beanblossom Bottom Nature Preserve has been designated a state Important Bird Area by the National Audubon Society. So that explains why we saw so many birders! Speaking of birds, we saw a Great Egret swoop down in front of our path and into the swampy water. They're so big! It was like seeing a dinosaur. This nature preserve was closed for a while because a tornado went through it and damaged a lot of the trail. But a renovation was completed in spring 2019, and the trail loop has been completely restored. Parking is at a premium at Beanblossom Bottom Nature Preserve. There are exactly eight parking spaces in the parking lot, but you can also park along the side of the road if the parking lot is full. There are no restrooms or other services, so plan accordingly.

Large park, lots of things to do, kept my son busy for over an hour…read more Clean facilities and clean park.

This park is amazing. It is a gem located in Bloomington. It is a Rails to Trails pedestrian…read morethoroughfare and was once an old rail switchyard. It spans 65 acres and was opened in 2019. By the looks of it, I though that it was opened more recently. This park has everything you want in a park and much more. This is a modern park and I was really felling it. There are two decent sized parking lots for you to park your vehicle. What amenity that brought you to the park will determine the lot that you will use. The park features a dog park with separate areas for large and small dogs. There is seating for pooch owners to sit in each area, as well as lots of green space and a few obstacles for the pups to play. There are a few picnic tables in between the two dog areas. The park also has a ton bright green picnic tables in a plaza area just off of one of the parking lots and a very nice shelter with picnic tables under it, a fireplace and a grill. This area is also where you will find the restroom facility in this area. There is also a low-key splash pad in this area, but it was shut down for the season during my November visit. This park is also home to an awesome outdoor amphitheater with lawn seating. It looks pretty impressive. There is also an 11,000 square foot pavilion with overhead doors, making it an indoor/outdoor event space. Both spots are available for rent and are prime spots to host your next event. They are used to host special events such as 5K runs, farmer's markets, and You will also find a skate park that could easily be a stand alone park itself. It is a concrete park with bowls, rails, and a snake run. Graffiti, tags and stickers are prohibited in the skate park area, but you will find some nice tags just outside of it. The park's playground is first class. It is a huge area on a mud-free rubber/artificial grass surface. There are benches, walls and glider swings for caregivers to sit while their littles play. The area's equipment includes saucer swings, tunnels, a rock climbing wall, slides, some traditional swings, wall net climbers, a pyramid net climber, and xylophones. The equipment is very modern and looks relatively new. On the other end of the park is where you will find a very nice full basketball court, a bocce ball court, and 4 pickle ball courts. There is a large patch of green space on this side of the park as well that is suitable for picnic, playing catch, or tossing a frisbee. A Bloomington police also has a station at this entrance to the park. Even though their is a police presence on site, the park contracts with a security company to assist with park patrols and safety. The highlight of this side of the park though is the outdoor fitness area. It is a circular area that has equipment that includes a chest press machine, a shoulder press machine, a strider, a dip machine, sit up bench and pull-up bar. In the shadow of the workout area is a community gardens, which feature 39-foot by eight-foot raised garden beds that are available for rent. A 3.1 mile trail, the B-Line Trail, passes directly through the park. The Trail is nicely paved, completely accessible and well illuminated with LED lighting. If 3.1 miles is not enough for you, it connects to the Bloomington Rail Trail, thus adding 2 more miles. This is a nice park that has everything you could ask for. It is well maintained. I will not that there are a few urban campgrounds on the outskirts of the park and you will find transients sleeping on park benches and using the restroom there, but they are not aggressive and just keep to theirselves. I highly recommend checking this park out. You can easily spend a half day here.