While visiting Terre Haute, the first park I visited was Deming Park, and I knew I would return…read more The park has multiple amenities, including a full disc golf course, a swimming pool (during season), horse shoes, tennis, the Clark-Landsbaum Holly Arboretum, several art installations, a mini train "the Spirit of Terre Haute", and, oh yeah, a very cool playground. There are 177 acres at this park and that allows visitors to find quiet places as well as the hustle/bustle of the playground area. Shelters are available throughout the park and with many paved roads winding through the park, access to the shelters is easy. The playground was busy with families playing on the multiple pieces of equipment. I liked that there was plenty of shade close to the playground and that the picnic tables have roofs on them. During the season, a mini-train ride is available for a small fee. Just look for the colorful mural by Becky Hochhalter painted on the train shelter to know where to board. (Tickets are available at the nearby Torner Center during the season). There is also a nice garden near the playground entrance called "Jackie's Garden". It features a bronze sculpture of a seated little girl who is watching butterflies. The arboretum is a plant garden dedicated to preserving the varieties of holly. The entire hillside is covered with mature plants and each has been identified with markers to assist visitors. Nearby, a 14' tall stainless steel sculpture called "On the Wings of Flight" by Simonis (2015) can be found too! The park is a great place to spend some time if you are wanting to get outdoors and play. Review #892

Huge playground for the kids. One area is for the bigger kids and another area for 2-5 year olds…read more Tons of shade for the parents to watch the kids at play. There is a train that goes around a small track for $1.25 each passenger close to the playground. Haven't checked out the restrooms for cleanliness but they have them here and a water fountain in case you forgot to pack drinks. Lots of covered picnic benches great for a family picnic. There Is a community pool open in the summer close to the playground too. It's $2.75 for kids and $3 for adults. They have a diving board and water splash area for the younger ones. I wasn't able to see if the pool has a baby pool as it's not open until noon.

We are retired. Nice place to bring your lunch, watch the Canadian geese, and dads trying to teach…read moretheir kids to fish!!

This is a nice nature park. It has a couple of ample sized parking areas, three to be exact. There…read moreis a nice calm 3 acre lake in the park with picnic tables and picnic shelters with tables under them and grills just outside of them. Fishing is allowed in the lake, but with limits. You will definitely need a fishing license to fish here. With every nature park, there is some green space to play filed activities such as soccer, football, catch, kite flying or other activities. This park is no exception. There is a decent amount of green space by the playground area. Some of the shelters are in desperate need of repair though. A couple has sections of the roof collapsing in. There is a small playground at this park with older traditional equipment laid on a wood chip bed. Some of the playground equipment includes a some traditional and toddler swings, A tall spiral slide, a decent sized jungle gym with slides, a see-saw, and a large truck tire. It has benches and picnic tables on the perimeter of the area where parents can sit and watch their littles. There are a couple of small accessible piers on the lake that you can walk out on. They do not go too deep into the lake. I would say about 10 to 15 feet from shore. You will find a nature center and Native American Museum here at the park, along with some awesome wooded trails. It you are not feeling adventurous and are intimidated by the wood trail, you can just walk around the lake. I saw a bunch of people doing that while I was there. Additionally, there is a nice bike/running trail that goes past the front of the park. All in all, there are approximately 3 miles of trails which will take you past restored wetlands, through pine woods, old growth and second growth forest as well as a 25 acre State Nature Preserve. With visits to the Nature Center, native American Museum, Lake, playground and trails, you could easily spend a half a day or more here. I wish that the playground area was a little bit more robust, but it will do. This park has a peaceful vibe and is very relaxing. It is a destination park and hopefully you will get to visit it in the near future.

Sharing the location with the Vigo County Schools' Aquatic Center, this location has some…read moregreenspace, a playground, a basketball court, and the main feature: A large skate park! Unlike most skate parks I have visited, this location has the dedicated bowl with ramps and also has an extended terraced area that allows skaters/bikers to build some speed. On the day I went, the mix of bikes and skateboards seemed to be getting along well, so I assume as long as the crowd is relatively small, the problems of different methods of mobility are too. If you like skating, this is the place to be! Review #902

Great park. Love taking the dogs to walk around the lake on a nice day! Area around the lake is…read moreflat and easy, but the trail through the woods is challenging so you can get anything you want. Views are amazing, especially at sunset!

Note: Review is for the park only, not the campground…read more This east side park is lush and green with several shelters, playgrounds, and Burns Lake. The lake has numerous fishing docks. An Amphitheater with stone seating faces the lake and has a small "stage" area at the base. The rest of the park has a paved path on the east side and other trails that wander around the lake. One of the key points of interest along the path is the Kenneth E Smith Memorial Labyrinth which is a recreation of the one "in the floor of the Chartres Cathedral in France in 1220." There are 34 changes of direction before you reach the center. If you stay on path, it totals 0.58 miles if completed. Of course, since it is simply inlaid without barriers, you can walk off anytime you choose. Most of the areas I walked were clean, but some natural debris, like fallen limbs, was around. A large tree had fallen into Burns Lake near one of the fishing docks. Shelters seemed clean and came with numerous picnic tables and some grills. Overall, a nice place to hike and play on a day trip. Review #2691

Anaconda Park is a fenced park with a basketball court and a small, old school playground. The…read moreplayground has swings and a climbing structure that has a center piece that "snakes" through the center. I'm not sure if the park gets its name from the equipment or not, but either way, the name is much cooler than the actual park. There is no lot for parking and there aren't any benches or picnic tables around. Review #911

Great family-friendly museum with tons of hands-on learning!…read more We had such a great time at the Terre Haute Children's Museum! My kids are 2 and 3, and we easily spent about 2.5-3 hours exploring. There was SO much to do that we actually ended up spending most of our Terre Haute day here instead of making it to the other places I had planned. What I loved most was that the exhibits weren't just fun -- they encouraged kids to learn through play. There were opportunities to pretend to be construction workers, veterinarians and farmers, dig for dinosaur bones, explore engineering and physics, learn about seasons, and so much more. My kids especially loved the construction area, sand table, water play, pretend-play areas, Amazing Airways and the giant bubble you can actually stand inside! They also have a two-story treehouse, toddler area, Fit Gym, Fresh & Fit Market/Kitchen, and their new Wonders of the Wabash water exhibit. There are three floors, so there was plenty to explore. I also really appreciated that there were activities for different ages, although some features -- like the ropes course -- have height requirements. My kids weren't tall enough for that yet. Admission is very reasonable at $9 for ages 2+, with children under 2 free. They're also part of the Access Pass Program and offer Toddler Tuesdays. If you're visiting Terre Haute with kids, I would definitely put this on your list! We could have easily spent even longer here.

Great 3-story children's museum. It has a lot of quality interactive fun exhibits. Some need…read moremaintenance or updates but overall it was a great time. We especially loved the construction section. It had great hands on tasks dedicated to the trades- electrical, plumbing, tile laying, painting, wall framing, and brick laying. It was really cool. There is a nice farming section. A really big water table. Also a large tree house climbing structure and for the bigger kids a harnessed rope course. It was easy to spend 2 hours here. Great resource for the Terre Haute area.

UPDATE: My crew had a great time as always, I wanted to mention a young, exemplary employee--Billy…read more He was so friendly and worked his behind off. He was also super thoughtful. He saw I had a bunch of kids, and cut our pizzas into sixteenths. That may sound silly, but I appreciated that. He did that without me asking. And even though he was the only one available at times, he did his best to make sure my kids could do the attractions when they wanted. So, special shoutout to Billy! I just appreciated his friendliness and thoughtfulness. AWESOME place! My boys had an absolute blast here, and it has something for everyone from the littles to the bigs. Lots and lots of attractions from an "American Ninja" course, to slides, basketball, laser course, climbing wall, zip lines, trampolines, giant enclosed play area, toddler play area, and more! The prices are excellent as well. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!

The kids (6 and 12) had fun for hours. The pretzels with cheese were so good that I'd almost go…read morejust for that. The place looks a little rough because of the exposed plywood, but my kids were still plenty safe. The employees were really polite even though they were busy.

One of the newest parks (2011) for the area is a 25 acre nature park with a lake in the middle…read more For enthusiasts, there is a boat launch for boats using a trolling motor. Fishing is allowed for those having the proper licences. For everyone else, the park has a shelter and covered picnic tables, a great paved hiking path that loops around the lake, and a small playground on the west side of the park. Everything seems to be well maintained and there is plenty of parking on the south side of the park (Maple Street). Review #908

Very nice area with the exception of a large amount of broken glass along the perimeter of the lake…read moreclosest to parking area. Definitely needs remediation!

This park/campground has a lot of potential, so that is shading my review a bit higher than I would…read moreotherwise give. While there (I visited just after Labor Day '19), the beach was closed for restoration, the covered bridge was closed for restoration, and the pioneer village was open to walk through, but I missed the pioneer festival that would let me walk into the log cabins. But even without all those features unavailable, the park is lushly wooded with hiking trails, a central lake (Ruble), and campsites along the eastern edge of the water with great views of the lake. There were shelters and a playground available for campers too. I didn't stay overnight, so I can't say how good all those amenities are, but the park looked clean and it seemed those who were camping had plenty of room. The guard at the entrance to the park was friendly and helpful. He provided a map and let me know about which features were under repair. No charge either since it is a county park for those just visiting. Only fees charged are for overnight campers. Although listed as Terre Haute, it is about 7 miles south of I-70. Review #2956

great park nice lake need to do something about family of raccoons before someone gets hurt!…read moreincluding my tent i know of 2 others that the raccoons tore into with campers inside of them also left with a bunch of stings and bites from the red ants after raccons tore the hole in my tent!

The main feature of this park is the softball. There is parking along the west side of the park…read moreand a concession stand on the north end. There is also basketball, tennis, and a playground for visitors. Near the concession stand, there are restrooms and bench seating under the shade of nearby trees. The park is one of the newer parks in the system having been built in the 1980's. The ballpark seemed to be in pretty good shape, but I didn't go inside the area to look too closely. Review #912