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    Children's Forest

    5.0 (1 review)

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    10 months ago

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    McFarland Park - One of many views of the lake from the walking path.

    McFarland Park

    5.0(5 reviews)
    46.8 mi

    Photo taken 4/24/26…read more This is such a lovely place! We have been here several times, and we love it each time we visit. We've been here twice on field trips with my child's class, and several other times outside of that. There is an information center and plenty of outdoor activities. It's very well maintained, and the staff here are all wonderful. It's definitely a fun place for fishing or just simply walking around and enjoying nature. For those that enjoy birdwatching, this is also a great location to do so. The information center has quite a few activities for anyone interested in learning about any type of nature. You can ask for kits to inspect tadpoles or water creatures as well as binoculars for birdwatching. There's also a natural play structure for kids to explore. It's so peaceful and serene; this also makes it perfect for a picnic! There is a path that goes around the water, and there are also a few gazebos and benches for you to stop at to take a break or just enjoy the day.

    This is a really neat park north east of Ames. It's the home of the Story County Conservation…read moreCenter and a lot of classes and programming. There are some deceptively long hiking trails here that will let you traverse the various biomes of the state of Iowa. There are wooded, riparian and native prarire areas along trails immediately adjacent to the park and it also serves as a great launching point and connector for the Skunk River Greenbelt system of trails that continue to the north. There are primitive campsites and mutli-use hiking and biking trails. There is actually a lot to do outside in Story County, it's just not obvious & McFarland Park is a great place to get acquainted.

    Photos
    McFarland Park - This beautiful view is looking out over the lake from the conservation center deck.

    This beautiful view is looking out over the lake from the conservation center deck.

    McFarland Park - Warm January Sky

    Warm January Sky

    McFarland Park - Woods Walk

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    Woods Walk

    Spring Lake State Park - Open air skating rink with original wood floor.

    Spring Lake State Park

    5.0(3 reviews)
    36.1 mi

    What a fun place! One of the last open air skating rinks in the country .. in the world? Really…read morenice campsites and grounds. But, the skating rink! It is so cool!

    A beautiful campground, just the right distance away from home…read more Lots of electric sites with easy access. There is a Lake, there is two sides to said Lake. No matter which side you pick to camp on you are going to be close enough to walk to the middle. Or somewhere where there is water to fish in. In the middle is beach area. You can swim at the beach. You can get snacks at the snack house or you can get a paddle boat, kayak, or canoe and rent from the snack house. (They have ice cream too) There is a is even a wood floor skating rink! This was my favorite thing. I am a grown woman and I still love to skate. They pull up the window shutters and play music you can hear all the way out to your camper if you are on the waters edge. We took advantage of their Frisbee course. Its a smaller one, but it was set up nice and a perfect size to teach my parents how to play Frisbee golf. There is a golf cart that comes around in the evenings selling firewood and ice. What a fantastic idea. We only wished there was a little better signage or maybe another dump station. We only located one to fill up and dump for this big campground. I will be back. FYI- this was new. The local golf course was offering free golfing to campers. So it was purchase 9 holes get 9 free for the campers here. They don't have rental clubs yet, so you'll want to bring your own.

    Photos
    Spring Lake State Park - Snack bar.

    Snack bar.

    Spring Lake State Park - Campsites

    Campsites

    Spring Lake State Park - Open air skating rink with original wood floor.

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    Open air skating rink with original wood floor.

    Children's Forest - parks - Updated August 2026

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