The park is clean and attractive. Also, you can reserve a shelter for your party. Dogs are also…read moreallowed.

Grossest bathrooms. We are on a cross country driving trip. Stopped for a picnic driving break. No…read morewaterfalls, lots of goose poop, most unclean bathrooms ever. No way I'd let my kids play here.

Had a delightful time exploring and learning. Great interactive displays and friendly staff. I love…read moreeagles, so the live-cam and seating area were perfect to view and enjoy. We even got to feel the Western Ratsnake! Excellent and varied walking trails.

This land has been close to my heart for most of my life. I…read moreremember my mom taking us on nature hikes, way back before I knew they were so cool. Now, it's one of my favorite pastimes as an adult. The Hubs and I had a rare day together that we decided to enjoy outside. He had never been here before, so it's just a hop from where we live. Seemed like an easy decision. Went through the nature center first, which is always a nice start. Fun to see the creatures and read about the past. Then we decided to do the longer hike. Great choice. Defined, clean paths. Not terribly busy, even though you are directly in the city. Plenty of wildlife, this time was smaller spring babies. Still a great reminder of seasons and the importance of protecting their environment. Overall, well worth a visit.

It was closed. The waterfall was a homeless porta potty, there have been multiple fires started…read morethat have destroyed the beautiful landscape that was there. Plus it has become unsafe and a dump where everyone dumps their trash! Yet if you go on their website it saids it's open and shows all the beauty that it used to be. Do not waste your time visiting' it's a huge disappointment! If I could choose no stars I would, but it's making me choose at least one.

This beautiful and scenic area exudes a real nature and woodsy forest feel. It used to be open for…read morescenic drives, but now it's blocked off to vehicles and has transformed into a stunning stretch for biking, jogging, running, or dog walking. If you know where to look, there are numerous off-road walking trails through the trees and brush. During the Christmas season, they reopen it for a drive-through Christmas lights exhibit. Personally, I find it nostalgic and beautiful, maybe even romantic, to walk through the fall or winter evening with a friend. It offers some of the most fantastic views in Kansas City. My favorite spot is to sneak to the top of the water fountain and light up a blunt!

Beautiful trail. I walk it every Sunday! Perfect for running, walking and biking! Quite a…read morebeautiful place

This is a beautiful walking and biking route. I thoroughly enjoyed my walk. The scenery makes it a…read morepeaceful and delightful walking experience. Looking forward to exploring it further.

This is a cool place to visit…read more Has an awesome view. I would say it is a good spot to fish also. I saw a few people catching good size fishes out here. And if you love wildlife for sure you're going to see some lizards on the sidewalks. It's also a good place to grab your favorite coffee or tea and watch the sunset or sunrise.

I had a lovely afternoon hike around Lower Rock Ledges Loop trail. Almost no one on the trail at…read more5pm on a Saturday in the Summer. One big tree has fallen over the trail before it splits to upper and lower trails, lakeside, but it's pretty easy to get around it and continue on the path -- except I needed my hiking app to see where the actual trail was. (The trail itself it not always marked, but the rut is fairly visible.) Saw some deer, a woodland giant wolf spider, several six-spotted tiger beetles, and generally enjoyed the ambient music from folks out celebrating Father's Day weekend on the lake.

We were looking for a place to let the kids get out of the car, explore and burn off some energy. I…read moreactually found Kaw Point park on Google maps and there wasn't much information. This place was a little gem on our road trip. It is tucked behind an industrial building and at first I thought we were lost. But once you get there the grounds are beautiful and there is some fun history behind it as well. We walked the trails, climbed and had a great view of Downtown KC.

We try to visit any Lewis and Clark sites in areas we visit and it 3as nice to find an important…read moreone here. They camped at this point for 3 days on their trip up the Missouri River. It's a nice little park, good signage explains it and a nice path down to the actual point. People mentioned having difficulty finding it. Our GPS brought us right here. When you see the big silhouette on the industrial building you are there!

This area was called "Monkey Mountains," because early settlers deemed the river bluffs too steep…read morefor even monkeys to climb. This place is as close to being out in the wild as you can get in the KC area. A little bit of a drive but worth it if you want a rugged terrain. It's perfect. Reaching the open meadow at the top is wonderful. Use bug spray and check for ticks.

Monkey Mountain is an 855 acre nature preserve in Eastern Jackson County, halfway in-between Grain…read moreValley and Oak Grove. The address I listed is the approximate address of the south entrance to the park, there is another entrance a little over a mile north off Old US 40 Hwy next to a softball field. The park is mostly undeveloped, which is what I love about it. You get to experience nature instead of a sanitized version of nature. There are two primary loop trails, one measuring 3.5 miles and one measuring between 2-3 miles depending on the route taken. Numerous smaller trails criss-cross between these main trails and branch out forming various side loops. You can spend hours hiking here and not see everything. The park caters to hikers and equestrians. I usually encounter a few other people at the park but only between long stretches of complete isolation. The elevation ranges from about 780 feet on the banks of Sni-a-Bar Creek to about 950 feet at the summit. There is a wide variety of terrain in the park: marshy lowlands in the north and northwest, thick woods and steep terrain covering most of the western half, limestone outcroppings along the ridge and at the south end of the park, a huge roiling meadow in the center, and farmed land along the eastern edges. Several ponds dot the landscape, and numerous tiny streams feed into Sni-a-Bar Creek along the western edge. There is even a waterfall in the park, but I will not reveal the location since it is both a fragile and a dangerous feature (especially in winter). Finding it can be part of your adventure. In the spring and early summer the park's meadows are filled with a wide variety of wildflowers, and wildlife can be spotted year-round. I've seen deer, foxes, turkeys, tortoises and turtles, all sorts of birds, and even evidence of some sort of wildcat. In the first half of the 20th century, much of what is now Monkey Mountain Park was part of a show farm called Sni-a-Bar Farms, owned by William Rockhill Nelson. The hillside and meadow were used for grazing sheep. Evidence of that can still be seen today in the form of farm remnants such as an old boundary fence running east-west through the middle of the park. If you hike the park, don't do it alone until you are familiar. Even though there are trails they are not always easy to see, and some portions of the trails can be treacherous. If your hike takes you through the northwest portion of the park you can expect to encounter mud pretty much year round so wear appropriate shoes. You will also need to carry your own water, there are no facilities at the park except at the softball field and an outhouse at the south entrance.

My husband and I Roeland Park, this nature sanctuary the day before Mother's Day. We had a heck of…read morea time finding it because the address was listed incorrectly. The nature sanctuary is on 12th St. and the connecting street is East St. Once we figured out where it was, we took our time on one of the trails I believe there are four trail options and the longest is 1.6 mile loop and the second is a 1 mile loop and the other ones are less than that. But it is a beautiful nature sanctuary with lots of greenery, woods, streams, water falls, and benches to enjoy the scenery. No pets are allowed since it is a nature sanctuary. There is a covered area off of one of the hikes that we went to that leads to some picnic tables. There's also several picnic tables by the parking lot. There are also bathrooms near the parking lot. The parking lot is next to the track and field belonging to the college. We really enjoyed our slow, meandering walk/hike and will definitely go back.

Hidden right by the bustle of downtown parkville, the parkville nature sanctuary has become one of…read moremy favorite places to do an easy hike. The trails are well maintained, and while there are some inclines at certain points, the trail is easy to follow and not strenuous. I love the various view points where you can stop and really appreciate natural beauty, like the waterfall or the butterfly pass. It feels like this is in its own little world despite being so close to the city. Be aware that the parking lot is pretty small so at peak times it may be hard to park.

I discovered this park in my search for a new hiking spot. We just moved to the area from St. Louis…read moreand I was in desperate need of a more "natural" trail. I'm glad I found this place! You'll first notice there's (what looks like) a nice sitting area with a bathroom, and that overlooks the fields leading up to the playground. I've always seen families on the playground, but I cannot personally attest to its cleanliness or stability. There was also a sporting event of some kind going on in the park's field this past weekend, so it's a family-friendly spot. The parking lot is pretty large. There are neat little secluded parking spots that have a nice view of the river--they would provide a cool picnic area. I always see couples, old and young, just hanging out under the trees, taking in the scenery. I also see lots of fishermen hoping for catfish. The actual trail doesn't have a name. This is the same trail that bow hunters take to get to the main hunting ground. I haven't come across a hunter on the trail yet, but I see them in the parking lot frequently. The trail itself is peaceful, pretty, and easy. No hills, no challenges, just a nice relaxing stroll. It's a great beginners trail and a good running trail. You'll find the trail head in between the yellow markers at the very back of the parking lot. Remember to wear bright colors during hunting season!

Olathe and Overland Park are lucky to have this trail head and this trail system. My running club…read moremeets here every so often and we can either run to mid American Nazarene university which is about 2 1/2 miles away or go in the opposite direction and run for miles and miles. Unfortunately there is no water here but there is a trashcan and a porta-potty. so if you're in the area be sure to stop by and use this wonderful trail for running biking rollerblading walking. it's great for everything.

Phenomenal runners trail in Olathe, KS…read more This trail is over 27 miles - great for walking, running, or biking. Great training distances / elevations for 1/2 and full marathon runners. One area terminates to a picnic area with fountains and bathrooms. It crosses some main roads in certain sections but also goes underneath in tunnels in others. What better way to up your mileage on your winter runs!