Howarth Park is truly one of Santa Rosa's gems! It's amazing how much this park has to offer, and there really is something for everyone. Families can enjoy the large playground, with climbing structures and slides. There are also paid attractions, which are seasonal. My family has enjoyed the miniature train and carousel, plus pony rides and the Animal Barn, where kids can meet and pet the animals. Then there's beautiful Lake Ralphine, where you can fish or rent paddleboats, kayaks, and canoes. The lake is also a peaceful place to sit, enjoy the scenery, and watch the wildlife. For those who like to stay active, Howarth has miles of hiking, walking, jogging and biking trails, with connections toward Spring Lake and Trione-Annadel State Park. There are also tennis and pickleball courts, which are currently under construction. It's also a wonderful place for birthday parties, picnics, field trips, summer camps and group activities. And I love that you can have a completely free, relaxing day walking the trails, enjoying the playground or having a picnic, or add some of the paid attractions for an extra-special family outing. Whether you're looking for outdoor exercise, family fun, nature, fishing, boating, playground time, or just a beautiful place to spend the day, it's hard to beat having all of that in one park read more

We love Howarth Park, it has many outdoor activities. The kids love the play area along with fishing, feeding ducks, feeding chipmunks, riding boats, feeding the animals at the little barn, after they can go on a little train ride or miracle round. It also nice for walks and runs, the trail has different exercises you can get into. Theres a fishing doc here along with plentiful places to BBQ. Multiple playgrounds and the list goes on. It's always packed so parking gets full. But with our mind state we serendipity get lucky- as we come into the park, someone always leaves at the right time for us to park! Definitely a gem in Santa Rosa. read more

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This is a great park for families. There is a nice play area that has many different activities for all ages. They have po ore rides, a train ride and a carousel. That also rent out paddle boats and canoes. There are many hiking trails that hook up with a spring lake and Andel park so you can walk as far as you want. It's a great place for birthday parties as well. Many tables. Parking is rough sometimes on a busy weekend. read more

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Great park! Fun, accessible playground. We came during the winter season so some things were closed - would def come back during better seasons to enjoy the carousel and petting zoo within steps of the playground, sandbox, and climbing station. Easy parking and restrooms available. Also within a few min drive of restaurants & shopping (ie Montgomery Center) and lodging (ie Flamingo Resort) so a convenient activity in between other plans. read more

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What a beautiful park with things to do for everyone! Play structure with lots of variety for young and big kids, train, carousel and horse rides! Felt like we didn't have enough time with all the things to do and will be back. If making a trip with kids to Sonoma make this a stop for sure! read more

Cute park with tons to see and do! The park itself has lots of things like rock climbing, slides, monkey bars etc. There's an area for big kids and toddlers. Also like a pretend city area for kids with an imagination. Lots of photo ops! Then, there's a train ride which is cute. Keep in mind there is a tunnel where everyone gets noisy so if you're child is sensitive to noise, prime them for that! There's also a carousel and lots of petting zoo animals. Also there's a pony ride!! Tons to do! If you bring lunch, you can sit at a picnic table by the water and watch the ducks and boats. The ducks will get close! Lol but they're harmless. Bathrooms are clean and parking is plenty. We went on a weekday. I hope to come back! read more

I've been here before for the NAMI walk. I really explored this visit and was surprised at this truly magical park. It is excellent for families, great playground for kids. I'll have to bring my granddaughters. I enjoyed being a kid again by, riding the train, going through the petting barn and a spin in the carousel. Delightfully impressed with every park employee being so nice. Teenagers in the pet barn were especially easy to talk to, very personable and informative. The carousel was a little fast for me, but the kids loved it. Be sure to visit this GEM of a park. PS I went for a hike and added all the other stuff. I didn't want to leave. read more

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Whenever someone asks for the best park in town I send them here. The park itself is huge with so many things to do. During summer and weekends there is a train, merry go round, pony rides petting zoo and pond with paddle boats and ducks. The pet store down the street even sells small bags of duck food you can take and feed the ducks. There is also walking, biking and hiking paths that go all the way to Spring Lake. Howarth Park has a small lake that is a perfect short walk for small dogs and young kids. They also do many community events such as movies in the park, trunk-or-treat, and many walks and events for non-profits. I can't think of anything to not like about this park besides it gets so busy during events and weekends it can be hard to find parking but other than that this is a great park that I highly recommend to everyone. read more

Adding a note to my already 5 star review because since my last testament to the awesomeness of this park they've replaced one section of tennis courts to be 4 permanent pickleball courts. The real beauty of their courts aside from our awesome community is Howarth offers lights! So night play and early morning are always an option here! This park really has something for everyone, it's free, it's clean, it's a local treasure! read more

I went for an enjoyable 5-ish-mile hike from Howarth Park through Spring Lake Park and back again today. There was no parking when we arrived, which was fine as we had taken public transit to get there. Plan ahead on weekends when the weather is nice because it seems like it gets super busy. There were tons of families and people of all ages having fun. One section of the tennis courts is for pickleball, which looked super fun. There's a climbing wall and playground for children. There are plenty of picnic benches and tables, too; the area by the lake seems like a lovely place for a picnic. The paved trails were packed. I haven't been on such a busy trail in years. We brought our dog, who thoroughly enjoyed the hike. We ran into many other people with dogs, and every single dog was on leash. That alone gives this park five stars in my book. read more

This park has so much to offer! We stopped by for a quick picnic and was surprised to see all the different activities here. We ended up renting a paddle boat for 1 hr for $12, which I think is a great price and plenty of time to paddle around. There was a waitlist during the holiday weekend but you can walk around and explore while you wait for their call. Get the paddle bait with the shade if there's availability! There is an upper and lower lot for parking, both free. Did not have an issue finding a spot. Lots of picnic tables but they are a little dirty so bring something to cover the table or extra wipes. This park has a train ride, carousel, trails for walking or biking, tennis courts, playground area, a boathouse for rentals/fishing, and so much more. Good for all ages to visit! read more

Howarth Park - Parks Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

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Played pickle ball there then went for a nice walk around the lake. We really enjoyed seeing the wildlife there as well! read more

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Born and raised in Sonoma County , I can tell you this is quite a gem of a park. Great place to come hang out with friends, BBQ, Canoe on the lake (where you can also fish here), bring your kids to play and, all in all, take in nature with its beautiful lakes, trails, and surroundings. I especially enjoy the multitude of trails available to walk, run, or bike. They have trails with asphalt and dirt/gravel, some uphills and downhills, lots of benches and shady areas. Restrooms are available throughout howarth park and spring lake area. read more

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Now this is a PARK!! On the weekends, there is a carousel, little choo-choo train and boats for rent for the large pond there. Fun experiences for such little money! Bring your kids or the kid in yourself!! Tons of picnic areas available for reservations and they do get reserved! It's a sprawling park connected to another lake. Lots of paved walkways, lots of offroading bicycle trails and long horse trails. It's a good walk/bike mecca as it goes for a while and has lots of winding ways. read more

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Such a great park to take the grandkids. They have pretty much everything the kids could want. Playground - merry-go-round - picnic area - ducks - paddle boats - even a kids train. It's great! read more

What a great park for kids, older and younger! Our kids are 3-12 so it's great to find a place that accommodates all of them. I'm impressed by the creativeness of this park and the different themed play areas. The entire park is an Old West theme, with a downtown area/pretend shops, tepees, railroad type play structure; it's really a lot of fun. I'm sad we didn't get to walk the trail, but I hear it's stroller accessible! There were a lot of happy dog owners strolling through the park as well. There is a carousel (closed, winter). There's a rock wall climbing area which is very cool! I walked the dirt trail around one of the lakes and the kids loved it! read more

Howarth Park - Parks Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

Where can one go on the weekends for under $20 a person and experience a carousel ride, mini train ride and rent a canoe for 30 minutes! There is a snack shop near the rides. If not, the long trails, parking, bird watching, parking, playground and nature are FREE! A popular park to reserve large picnic areas. Some picnic tables and benches dot the expansive premises read more

Howarth Park - Taking a train. - Parks Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

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Definitely a gem of a park in this area! I feel like I spend so much time wine tasting and eating out here that I often neglect visiting this area for other reasons (such as hiking, recreation, and nature walks). Welp, this park definitely has all of that! From your easy to moderate hiking trails, to spacious grassy fields, to super relaxing rest benches that overlook the beautiful duck filled lake; Howarth Park seems to truly have something for everyone to enjoy. I actually ended up here by way of some friends. We had just finished a day of.... yep, you guessed it; WINE TASTING! Story of my life! We needed a place to unwind after all of that vino. Howarth Park was the perfect place for that. There's plenty of parking, lots of recreational space, and tons of picnic tables and benches all throughout the park. The views of Lake Ralphine are truly stunning. We saw lots of people on paddle boats and in canoes traversing the lake. Although there were quite a bit of people there, everyone seemed to maintain their distance. It was actually quite peaceful. The ducks swimming in the lake. The wind rustling through the trees. Just a very enjoyable place to truly relax. I didn't hike any of the trails, but I did see many of them in the distance. There are trails here that climb through ridges and small forests, and trust me; it's on my list of to-try hikes. There's also a nice walking trail that runs pretty parallel to the lake. Also saw a small pier/deck that looks like it may be used for fishing (can't confirm this though). It's really a wonderful little spot. If I were a local here, I'd def be hitting this spot up on a regular basis. I'm grateful that my friends exposed me to this beauty. Once I get over this wine tasting addiction (HA!), I'm hoping to come back here to explore those beautiful looking hiking trails. read more

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It's off season but it's very nice clean and rustic but the equipment is up to date and engaging. It's more like a Roy Rogers Park. We met his widow and they would have approved. The workers seemed to be around but visible security might be a good idea. Lots of single moms and kids after school goofing around on electric bikes. read more

Crowded space when alot of people visit. Parking is an issue. Out doors a plus clean bathrooms nice barbecue pits. A lot of people visit on the weekends. Still a beautiful place to visit. Pony rides and train ride for kids and the young at heart read more

Excellent park for hikers, boaters, children, families. Lots of picnic tables and benches and large parking lots. Tennis court, climbing wall for kids , an imaginative playground. In the warmer weather there is a merry go round, train ride, petting zoo at reasonable prices. The lake is beautiful with lots of shore birds. Paths that lead you to Springlake Park. Lots of bike riders. Nice place to also read a book and enjoy the lake all for free. read more

I've never been to this park before and was pleasantly surprised with how large it was!! It wraps around a lake and there's a bunch of trails!! The only downside of this park and all their different types of playgrounds are the massive amounts of poison oak!!! Unless you stay on the concrete trails, the dirt trails that are made up have poison oak along both sides of them. I am highly allergic to poison oak so I kept in the middle of the concrete walkways. I love the old fashion playground with a pretend town that looked like the old country/western days! How nostalgic for these young technology-based children to see how the Western days were! Hee read more

Howarth Park - Parks Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

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The best $12.00 spent! I often take a 26 minute around the lake with my 5 year old granddaughter. We have ended our adventure with a $12.00 paddle boat adventure. We bring our back pack and have a picnic in the middle of the lake. Just think if you utilized all 4 seats, that's $3.00 a person to cruise on the lake! As a bonus, they even take Apple Pay. read more

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Nice and warm weather perfect to take kids to Howarth Park. Kids loved it, and adults were loving too. Very clean train. read more

Howarth Park - Train at Howarth Park is fun to join with kids. - Parks Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

Huge park with a nice playground and beautiful trails. Parking may be a problem in the summertime when the park is a little more crowded. read more

Howarth Park - Parks Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

Review #105 - 2020 After we spent almost 2 hours at Bees N Blooms, I guess the kids were still not tired enough so we decided to take them to the park to play some more. We showed up at around 3:45 PM on Friday, June 19th. The kids were super excited to see that there weren't any yellow caution tapes all over the playground, as we've seen at other places. However, they did post a sign that says "avoid high contact areas". We saw a bunch of other kids around so I just let the kids play. I'm not an inconsiderate person, but I'm also not a sheep. If you're scared of getting sick, stay home! Don't force the rest of the world to stop living because of your fear! After the kids played for about half an hour, I suggested we take a walk so I could get some exercise in as well. We stopped at the lake to feed the ducks for a little while. I was surprised to see other people there feeding the ducks as well; a few were fishing, while others were having a picnic/BBQ. After we ran out of crackers, we decided to take a quick hike along the trail. We saw a good amount of people hiking and riding their bikes on the trail. It was nice to see people being "normal" for a change. read more

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I went here as a kid and it was fun to take my sons. My older son loved the playground and the sand with the trucks. The train and the carousel are also fun things to do with them to (although cost extra). I loved all the big trees for shade. Definitely a great park! read more

When I bought my home in Santa Rosa, I wanted to be near this park. Now I can bike here in about 10 minutes and come here often. Sometimes to bike ride, sometimes to hike. The park is bigger than it looks and offers several walking/hiking experiences. Since I'm retired, I generally use the park on weekdays. read more

Howarth park is a great place to take the whole family. They have two large lakes where you can kayak, I've also seen people fishing. It's dog friendly and they have many trails, some that are designated for horse back riding that take you towards the backside of the mountain off trial and patched paths that intertwine and loop around to the front of the large park. This is a gem and a beautiful, safe place to workout and breath in the fresh air! read more

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Great park - plenty of parking most days, there are some cool shorter trails as well as a long trail that goes all the way around the lake. Massive kids play area with climbing, various slides for different ages, fake turtles, little bridges, it's set up like a small town with a bank, a post office, and a jail with little facade's to help kids imagination. They recently put in a new climbing tree surrounded with sand. There's also a good sized grassy field out in front. Baseball Diamond, Tennis Courts, Boats to rent - row boats and paddle boats. They also have a Merry Go Round and a Train in the summer with bathrooms stations spread to all different places to cover all of the active areas. Certain weekends in the summer they have horse rides for the kids. They're walked in a small circle that goes down the hill. I love to see the kids with their wide eyed faces so excited to be on top of a horse. Many people have picnics because there are grills everywhere you look with accompanying picnic tables. I do a short loop through the wood by Camp Ta Wan He (which is set up like an open theatre) and above that area is an archery target station. Last of all there are ducks and beautiful swans to watch & feed. All ages love feeding the birds and they are entertaining to watch. read more

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Nice clean park with ample tables and a few large public use BBQ pit. In addition,the restrooms are fairly clean but avoid the soda machine as the few we got were beyond the expiration date. The play ground structure was pretty big, clean and adventurous. You do have some people partying here so expect some loud music to interrupt the tranquility. Park also has a nice biking/walking trail and a short distance from downtown Santa Rosa. read more

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A park with a lake and ducks with a variety of trails to go on walks on is a dream come true. It's surrounded by so much greenery and has a trail that takes you to Spring Lake which is an even bigger lake than Lake Ralphine in Howarth Park. Just be sure you wear the right shoes when going on walks on the trails. I love this park. read more

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Went mid-week when school started so it was fairly empty. There's a boat ramp to launch small boats and kayaks. The park is well maintained and I'm looking forward to do some fishing in my kayak soon. read more

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Howarth Park has a lake and a whole lot of experiences. A park is full of adventures for your little one or your furry 4 legged one. A man made lake centers the park where people fish by themselves or with their children. Bordering the park is a playground, 2 in fact. One is located up closer to the lake with sand. While the other sits closer to the entrance on Summerfield with no sand. This is a great park to have a child's birthday party. In addition to to playgrounds there is a snack shack and a train that you can ride (check schedule) and they used to have pony rides, not sure if that still continues? There is a number of trails that weave and connect together. You have the option for taking a short walk or if you're feeling more ambitious, take the longer route that connects to Spring Lake and back. You can take a dirt trail or stick to the paved path. Dogs are welcome as long as their on a leash. read more

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It is so important to preserve our access to nature and include a variety of exercises as well. Have always found the park to be well maintained with great trails for walking and cycling. They have picnic tables, pickle board courts, boat rentals and much more. One of the trails brings you to Springlake allowing for an amazing walk that will get you to your 10000 steps goal. During my last visit there were several families of baby ducks and geese roaming the parking lots. Both lakes allow fishing and are well known for bird watchers. Great place for the whole family. read more

Howarth Park - Parks Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

I have been coming to this park for 20 years and love it for many reasons. It's a wonderful place to escape to for a run on the trails, it is a perfect spot to let the kiddos run off some steam and a relaxing spot to enjoy a walk with a friend. The park boasts great walk paths, various playgrounds for the kids to enjoy, a train, carousel, and pony rides( in the summer months). As well as a pond for feeding the ducks, or a place to enjoy a picnic. read more

Howarth Park - Morning; view of lake Ralphine - Parks Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

I absolutely love this park! There are activities for people of all ages. Sports lovers have a verity of options to Choose from. I have had the privilege of training for my half marathons here as well as kayaking on the lake. Celebrating my baby shower and my daughter fist birthday was enjoying and stress free. If you haven't been you are miss read more

I've loved this park since I was a little kid. I remember going to birthday parties under the great gazebos and the excitement of getting to ride the train and maybe catch a glimpse of special celebrity frog in the pond. The concession stand and the pony rides were great (not sure they still have pony rides though!) Now, as an adult without children (actually I really don't like children), I come here to feed the ducks and relax at the lake. The ducks are fat off bread so I go down the street to the pet store and buy them actual duck food and throw that instead. Sometimes the Canada Geese come over too. This last visit we saw buffleheads, several big white swans, cormorants, a great-blue heron, some egrets and titmice in the trees above us. The path around the lake is an easy, short walk and very beautiful. If you're feeling more adventurous there are paths that connect Howarth Park to Spring Lake park and that park has a lot more trails and another small lake. If you're really adventurous, Spring Lake technically connects to Annadel park and that is GIANT with various levels of hiking difficulty. I'm low impact so I stick to a leisurely walk around lake Ralphine in Howarth Park. You can fish here, though no one I know would want to eat the fish that come out of the lake. You can also take small paddle boats (no motors) onto the lake. There is a boat launch and a small dock. It's a very tiny lake though and I don't know all the boating rules so check it out before you plan on an over-water outing. New since I was a kid, they've added a kid's rock-climbing wall in the play area close to the lake. That's pretty cool and I bet I would have used that as a child. Down closer to the street there are several tennis courts as well as a baseball field. Just a lovely place to spend a little quiet time in nature. If you don't find it quiet enough, just keep walking. It doesn't take long to find good happy spots to relax and unwind. read more

Howarth Park - Tennis courts - Parks Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

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I have just recently relocated to Santa Rosa from Orange County. Let me tell you, I am going through an adjustment period. I wanted to check out Howarth park because it is close to where I am living right now. I had heard good things about Howarth, Spring Lake, and Annadel, so I walked over one day to check out Howarth. In Orange County, there are some parks that are outside the city (Irvine Regional Park, Santiago Canyon) and some that are in the city but are big enough to let you get away (Great Park, Mile Square Park). What the O.C. did not have for me is a really nice wilderness park within walking distance. I liked the location and accessibility of Howarth Park without even stepping foot in the park. Even though it is winter and the park is not in full swing, there were quite a few people here on a Sunday afternoon. I loved watching the paddle ball players as I walked by on the sidewalk. What a fun little game. Upon entering the park, I saw the beautiful play area. I am sure my kids will love this once they move up. I proceeded up the hill and found a hiking trail that wrapped around to the lake. When I saw the boat house and the sign for the type of fish in the lake, I immediately called my son to let him know about a cool little fishing spot. We was excited. I am sure that this is just my first review of Howarth Park. It bears exploring, and I will definitely be back for another Sunday stroll, some biking, fishing, or whatever else the park has to offer. Stay tuned. read more

Howarth Park - Parks Near Me - Santa Rosa, California

Pretty cool park up in Santa Rosa. This park is HUGE. Couple of playgrounds, a carousel and train. Theres also a lake and lots of picnic tables. Parking was a little difficult when we got here today, but im happy we got the chance to check out this park read more