I love this park! The first visit we had was to shoot photos showing the beauty of Minnesota and to…read morepotentially include in a calendar. As we walked the trails with our dogs - on leash - I had some reminiscing about riding my horse on the other side of the lake and sailing with my father. Wonderful memories. Lake Minnewashta Regional Park is a 340 acre park on the shores of Lake Minnewashta. Facilities include a swimming beach, bathhouse, off-leash dog area, reservable picnic shelters, sand volleyball courts, creative playground (which looked like a regular playground), paved boat access, paved bike trails, turf trails for walking and skiing, ski/snowshoe rental, and vending machines. If your dogs are good at dog parks, this is one to visit! The Off Leash Dog Area is fenced-in off-leash dog area at Lake Minnewashta Regional Park. This 18-acre site has a separate area for small dogs and approximately one mile of trails. To get in to the off-leash dog area you'll need either a $6 daily or $28 annual vehicle permit. Both are able to be purchased through the honor box at the park entrance by the gate house. Definitely worth visiting!

***This is a review about their off-leash dog park.***…read more Even though I've only visited a few dog parks, Minnewashta's must rank amongst the top! Essentially, Carver County dedicated a small forest to everyone's favorite four-legged friend, where plenty of tall trees, fresh water streams, gigantic leaf piles, paw and foot friendly trails, sizable grassy green spaces, and speedy squirrels for them to chase exist. In other words, dog heaven resides in Chanhassen. Also, don't worry about your pup running away, because there's a huge fence that wraps around the entire park. Aside from the park itself, prior to entering, there's a little area with a water fountain and hose. Visitors can use the hose down your pup, before loading him or her into the car. For $24, you can purchase the annual pass. Otherwise, like me, you'll have to pay $5 per visit. From what I heard from another dog owner, though, no one mans the tollbooth after September, so the park relies on the honor system for payment. Once you arrive, drive slightly past the tollbooth, and open up a metal lid that holds paper envelopes. Put your $5 in and write your name on it. It's a bit of a cumbersome process to enter, but seeing the biggest smile on my dog's face was well worth it.

This is a small park situated in downtown Shakopee along highway 101. It connects with the State…read moreTrail along the Mississippi River. There is a little outdoor amphitheater in the center with ample seating where they currently do movie nights on Fridays and Saturdays. Bathrooms are well-lit and clean. There is a water fountain to refill your water bottle as well as a soda pop vending machine. A large picnic area has a roof covering over it. A goodly-sized playground for kids to enjoy is made of wood with physical challenge elements like monkey bars, climbing wall, and balance ropes, as well as lots of swings. It is very charming. The ground consists of old crumbled up rubber tire bits so your kids won't hurt themselves if they fall. There is a parking lot directly beside the playground.

This is one of our favorite Waconia parks! The road closure bypass is how I found it in the first…read moreplace. Excellent play structure for all ages, picnic table for snacks, trash can for snack wrappers, large grass area with plenty of shade and a walking path. The neighbors all seem to have their dogs contained so no worries about aggressive strays.

The Landscape Arboretum is another one of the Twin Cities treasures that is overlooked or taken for…read moregranted. It was founded in 1958 and has 1200 acres located in Chaska. It is different experience depending upon the season and what you choose to do. Today I went to their annual pancake breakfast, highlighted with their own maple syrup. They also showed how maple sap is collected (there are plastic tubes running between trees leading to collection bags), to the process of reducing the sap into syrup. They also process Black Walnut and Birch syrup, with tastings of each. At other times, highlights include a three mile drive that loops through the forests, variety of shrubs and plants, sculpture garden, and heads to a farm with a variety of displays. You can also take a narrated shuttle trip. Seasonally, the tulips (40,000 tulip bulbs!), roses, and daffodils are amazing and worth a visit just for that. In addition, there are miles of walking trails, and surprises around every corner. In their library there is even a collection of Nakashima furniture, from a world-famous furniture maker. There is something that will delight every age from toddler to grandparent in this everchanging environment. Tickets are a bit on the expensive side ($20 for 16 and older), but free for under 16 with an adult. If you are going to make multiple visits within a year, you might want to consider membership, which entitles you to unlimited free visits, plus a discount in their gift store. You can apply your paid visit to the cost of an annual membership. Pro-tip: Although they have a cafeteria, it's not their strong suit. I recommend eating before hand, or bring a picnic if the weather is nice and warm.

I was a member of the arboretum many years ago and enjoyed walking here, but on a more recent visit…read moreI noticed (and was reminded of) some significant issues. First of all, for those who do not have a membership or who are from out of town the admission cost is $25 per person (not per car). We had three people in our group so we paid $75 to walk a frozen albeit beautiful landscape, (with some paths not entirely cleared of ice). In the summer it might possibly have been worth that much to spend a day here, when there would have been better access and gardens in bloom. We were "greeted" on our visit by an unpleasant woman at the gate post. She asked if we had been there before and I said a very long time ago. She then informed us of the price per person (and peered into our car...to make sure we weren't hiding anyone?!) and took our money and waved us on. No welcoming utterance or thank you or asking if we had any questions. I asked for a map after she tried to wave us through without any further information and she told us to go to the customer desk because "they have everything" there. We didn't plan on going inside first so that was completely unhelpful. But this woman was done and offered no further help or what we might want to see. There was no one behind us waiting in line so I am not sure why she was so impatient. I thought the park would have the same layout as when we last visited, but it did not. We started walking where we used to walk, only to be stopped by a sign that said walkers were not allowed on the Three Mile Drive (the main route through the park). We turned around and went back towards the beginning of the path, and found out that now there were two options for touring the grounds: the Three Mile Walk (new to us) and the Three Mile Drive. The Three Mile Walk was a rerouted pathway through the park utilizing the sidewalks and attempting to keep walkers away from the road. We walked most of the Three Mile Walk until I ran out of energy (having not eaten breakfast) and we found an old shortcut that we remembered that led back to the visitors center. (Make sure to eat something before walking, as I didn't do!) At the visitors center we discovered the cafe had just closed (it was shortly after 3 pm on a weekday). So we traipsed downstairs to the gift shop and purchased several yummy snacks...and there certainly was a good collection of trail mixes and chocolates.... So I would recommend this park with some reservations. It is a beautiful place to walk but I would not go during the winter unless you decide to become a member. The visitors center also showcases cool artwork, the gift shop is fun to browse, and there is a cafe open during limited hours...but I haven't had good experiences with customer service (outside of the gift shop) and admissions is very pricey without a membership.

Very nice park. Variety of entertainment for kids, as an adult love the musical parts of it...read more

Looked like an open course but the placement of baskets makes this a very fun course to play. Good…read morejob on layout of course! Several long with great technical shots.

Perfect little park reserve with a lot of info about the area. Picnic tables are placed in great…read moreareas, trails are nice, fishing dock is great (and includes a canoe/boat placement), and of course they have a nice sized area for events with covering and bathrooms.

Fantastic park that's a bit hidden which makes it less busy. Large playground area, many benches…read morefor picnics, walking/biking trail and baseball fields. Lots of parking too. We are glad that we found this park that is close to us!