Swim meet review:…read more The actual pool is lovely! If you park when you drop your swimmer off, you might get a spot that's not a hike. I dont mind walking, but swim meets often happen in winter and it's cold and windy here, and space inside is very limited. If you're here for a big meet, there will not be enough space in the stands or the gym. The home team might not have enough people to be timers and will ask for volunteers. The bathrooms are old, and the swimmers say the locker rooms are also meh. The gym is also very small and unless you grab a spot right away, there will be nowhere for you to sit, not even on the floor.

- attended the 2025 Central Zone 14 & under swimming championships event held at the Rochester…read moreRecreation Center - web site says seating at the pool area accommodates 1,294, but a person attending their orientation was told 800 by site personnel - it was a crowded mess - limited parking, so we took an Uber every day. Some people were told to park in a lot that was a 15 minute walk away. - construction mess was going on while we were there - overall, the event seemed pretty disorganized. - they ran out of wristbands on day 1 - very limited concessions - very limited seating in the gym to view swimming heats via video (for people who couldn't/wouldn't use seating in the pool area; the seating in the pool area was tight, and for this event, was inadequate) - simply LOVED (not) the woman sitting immediately behind me screaming in my ear. Next time I'll remember ear plugs. - no event t-shirts day one; T-shirts not available to purchase right away starting on day 2, and, up a flight of stairs of course. Moved downstairs starting on day 3. Limited size selection being sold. - quite a few stairs to climb for access to pool seating area - rules not enforced (many times people got away with standing at railing blocking view of pool contestants, even though the railing was marked "no standing"). People perpetually went down the up stairs and up the down stairs. - during several heats you couldn't see the contestant in lane # 1 from the stands, due to the line of people standing at the pool edge down below. - narrow/tight seating (packed in like sardines). I've never been bumped and knee'd in my back so many times as I was at this venue. - no handicap access to seating area that I could see. - loud speaker announcements hard to understand/make out - helpful friendly personnel ("Tom" in particular) - EXTREMELY LONG line to get in on day 1 - nice pool - Rochester itself was a good city to hold the event in (easy to get around in, lots of restaurants to choose from, everything a short drive away, nice hotels, friendly people) - I appreciated the National Anthem at the start of day one, and at the start of day 2's late afternoon relays. I may have missed any others there might have been. - overall, I think the Rochester Recreation Center could have been better prepared for the event, and in my opinion, was overwhelmed by the number of people attending.

Well, I'll say this much - it's certainly the best covered bridge I've ever been on. Looking at the…read moreinformation packets later, there are photos of this in the last decade with snow having totally collapsed the roof to be flat - it's wild to see how you can't even tell now. The bridge is all wood, with new supports after being moved around a lot. It was a nice time walking down it. I didn't expect a thrill ride, but I got what I was expecting! It is, historically speaking, pretty neat that they kept it. Great theme for the whole town. The park itself is huge and expansive, tons of space, some amazing trees, a great river, and when we were there, a very nice display of flags for Memorial Day. A genuinely huge park space, and a huge fun-looking castle-themed playground for kids, too.

Minnesota's only remaining functional covered bridge, it has been restored to authentic condition…read more The town lattice truss design spans the Zumbro River. It was completed in November 1869 and sort of looks like a barn. It is 116 feet long and the roadway is 15 feet wide. It is NOT open to vehicular traffic, having been moved about 100 yards from its original location to keep it available for viewing for posterity. You can walk or bicycle across the bridge and see it from both sides. The bridge is the centerpiece of the park and there are restaurants and such nearby. There is parking and several captions that provide history and context. [Review 20718 overall - 130 in Minnesota - round number 1700 of 2023.]

First off, this is our first visit to Eau Claire. What a beautiful surprise! It is so refreshing…read moreto see a city and downtown area that is revitalized. Many older industrial buildings are repurposed and remodeled. Downtown is vibrant! Parks are just too cool - Phoenix Park, Owen Park too many to mention. Tubing, kayaking, on and on - just an absolutely fun and beautiful town. This was really just a stop on our way to southern Illinois, but we have decided to spend a week here in the fall. Shout out to the city managers and government. Great job!

We camped here on our road trip back to MN. It was a great experience! I was a little nervous given…read moreall the cuts to funding lately and stories of state parks not having enough staff to keep the parks clean and safe but that was not the case here. The staff were all very friendly and available to help throughout the weekend. There was running water, bathrooms, and showers available. We would definitely stay here again.

Black River State Forest is chock full o' awesome things to do!…read more You can bike, hike, snowshoe, ATV, ride horses, dive, swim, camp, paddle, fish, among many other options. The staff at the main office at the Castle Mound Campground are friendly and helpful regardless of where you may be camping or recreating. I frequently camp with my paddling groups at Castle Mound prior to paddling the Black River. The sites are well laid out, and if you reserve sites 12, 13, or 35, you are closest to both the outhouses and the wood house. Racks of wood are available for $3. Just load up the handy rack located next to the shelter, and deposit your $3 in the collection box. Each site has a fire ring with a cantilever grill grate. Be sure to bring some aluminum foil if you want to cook right on the grate! The showers located near the main office are fairly clean and easy to use compared to those at many other state parks. They have a good potable and non-potable water station you can hit on your way out for the day's activities. The group campsite at the north end of the State Forest is very spacious. They only allow a relatively small amount of people to camp there, considering the space could host a county fair. It used to be a horse camp. Now it hosts group sites with large pads for RVs and campers. The rangers we dealt with at this location were very friendly, and the one high school kid who was assisting was a great help in finding where to access some of the local trout streams (a challenge in this watershed because almost every stream is in a box canyon). The only drawback to camping at the group camp, the East Fork Campground, or the indoor group camp (which I want to try this winter) is that they are pretty far from the paddling locations we use. It's a hefty drive from the Interstate to the north end of the State Forest. If you're in the area and the timing is right, stop in at the Ho-Chunk Pow Wow which takes place on the northwest edge of the State Forest. It's quite an experience, and the announcer is hilarious: "We're doing the same thing tomorrow. The same... damn... thing."

My brother and sister-in-law have been going to Lakeview for the past several years and this year…read morewe joined them. I give high marks to Brock and Michelle, the owners, for always being on-hand and available should you need anything! I think we ran into Brock every day we were there. The cabin, pontoon, and grounds were very clean. There was a nice picnic area where we could all meet up for dinner, drinks and a bonfire. We had a great time and will be back next year.

From the owner: Lakeview Resort is a fishing and recreation resort located in Chetek, WI…read more Since its opening in 1972, Lakeview Resort has shared with its guests a love for the outdoors, many family memories and an obsession with fishing on the Chetek Chain of Lakes. Our mission has been to exceed the expectations of our customers by providing exceptional hospitallity in an atmosphere of relaxation and comfort. If you enjoy pan-fishing, the Chetek Chain of Lakes can't be beat. Walleye, Northern Pike, and Bass are also plentiful in the lake system. Resort is well kept. and owners are present.

I started seeing the billboards around town and looked up more about Crystal Cave. We decided to…read moremake a visit and were pleasantly surprised! It's about a $$$ rating on cost, but is really well organized with a variety of things to do. They have picnic areas, mini golf, trails and gift shop. Not much for concessions so bring your own food if looking to eat. We did the cave tour and gem mining. Tour was about an hour, advance reservations recommended. I had two 6 year olds and they had a blast, they got cold but not too bad. The tour guides do a great job explaining the history, what you're looking at and all kinds of cave facts. It's big inside, there are low spots but you don't really feel claustrophobic if that's something you're concerned about. Gem Mining was a good time, kids were super excited about the treasures they got to bring home. If you're looking for a different activity to do with the kids, adults or family then you should check it out "!

This side quest was time well spent. Caves are always fun to explore, especially on a hot day when…read morethe cave temperature is in the mid-50s. Lots of fun information about the history of the cave, and a very fun tour guide.

My fav place to be on rainy crappy days like today. Its so huge you can spend hours here, nice pool…read moreand exceptional work out areas. I take classes too once in while. but not always.

Has a full basketball court, a long course swimming pool, and two ice rinks with skate rental…read moreavailable. Conveniently located near several restaurants/bars for pre-hockey dining or a post-game beer. Also located on one of the several bike trails in town.

This place is still great after 35 years. They used to bump Gloria Estefan and UB40 when I…read morepractically grew up at this place.

I remember when I worked there when I was younger. It was known as skate America and moulton. A lot…read morehas changed. I can't believe that after paying for entry, rentals, renting the handles for young kids learning to skate, food and games that they make you pay for wrist bands to play in the play place. Im here right now and they just kicked out all the kids from the play place. It is completely empty now. we paid to enter we paid to play. weather is the rink, the arcade or the play place. We definitely will be going somewhere else next tim.