It's a wonderful park that has lots of accessible areas and point of picnic, parking areas…read more They have river access, there's a shelter available for rent, end the camping area that accommodates some r v's. I enjoy the park for the birding opportunities that provides. It has an accessible bird viewing area with easy access for wheelchairs. I've seen red headed woodpeckers there , downey , woodpeckers , flycatchers , wobblers , finches , lots of variety. I also enjoy hiking the trail that's next to the bird area.For a wonderful walk into a burr oak forest with many of the trees looking like they're a several hundred plus years old. It's quiet and cool.Because the trail shaded. The other thing of note is that cut the trail wide enough that you can reasonably avoid ticks. I wish they would create a loop on that trail that would end up , so you would know that you've walked a mile or two. Maybe some volunteers could create it

We stayed here on an RV trip across the country. It was a great site. A load of trails and…read morefriendly people everywhere. Also, as you're in the middle of des moines you can get delivery from the town. The tree coverage is very nice and keeps the place cool during the day and the prices are super reasonable. We really enjoyed our stay here and I would suggest it for anyone looking for an RV campsite in or around Des Moines.

High prices, average marina experience. Nice people there. Will be nicer once the construction is…read morecomplete.

This park was created when the Corps of Engineers dammed up the Des Moines River and created a…read moreflood control system. It's a man-made lake fed by a large river, so you need to be careful boating, especially after hard rains or storms. With the above in mind, it is an awesome place to rent a pontoon boat, go swimming, fishing or camping. The campground is really well maintained and has concrete pads with nice fire pits. Latitude 41 is a nice bar / grill atmosphere, and has almost anything you would want. If you want to take your kids fishing, I suggest driving all the way to the back of the marina on the SW side and fishing off of the docks. You will almost always find croppy and other small lake fish that are easy to catch with minnows or worms with a bobber. There are so many recreation opportunities here - our favorite is biking and the nature center.

Fun local place for exercise and fun! I'd been a few years previous but forgot how fun and…read morechallenging it was! The staff is young so not overly friendly but we got the information we needed and then went to the refresher on belay. There were a lot of unsupervised children while we were there, which is annoying. It's not the staff's fault but it would be nice to be able to use the equipment without kids running into you or cutting you off. A kid also kicked a water bottle from the top floor and almost hit a mother walking with her baby below. It seemed chaotic but it was still fun. I'd love going for an adult only time if that was a thing.

Get Sendy Great…read moreGym, Great Staff, Great Problems. I can't say enough good things about these guys!

Visiting Quarry Springs and Quarry Springs Outfitters for the first time, we were pleasantly…read moregreeted by Greg. He explained how we were to pick up our 2 kayaks for our adventure. Everything was awesome, we enjoyed our entire visit to Quarry Springs Colfax, Iowa. We would highly recommend Quarry Springs Outfitters for a total turnkey kayak adventure.

Really nice little zoo! It was very busy because of nice weather and had a long line but it…read morehonestly moved quickly and the staff was so organized getting everyone checked in fast and directly traffic. There's a lot of construction going on right now (March 2026) so lots of empty areas but hopefully these will be more lively in the summer. But we did see a lot of animals out and about and we were able to loop around the whole zoo in about 90 minutes.

One of the best overlooked small town zoos in the United States...! While the Des Moines metro…read moreisn't exactly a "small town" we're not a huge city either. https://www.blankparkzoo.com/ I held season tickets to Blank Park Zoo for quite a few years when my kids were younger. Now it's an annual photo walk outing for me. Maybe twice a year. The zoo boasts a diverse collection of nearly 1,500 animals representing over 100 species, including African lions, Amur tigers, giraffes, Eastern black rhinoceros, red pandas, sea lions, Magellanic penguins, an okapi, and many more including aquarium and touch exhibits... Don't skip the Outback and children's zoo area! The zoo's 22 acres of developed exhibits make it easy to navigate, allowing visitors to see everything in a few hours without feeling overwhelmed. Very manageable for all ages... Blank Park Zoo always has something in the works whether it's expansion, a special event, or a special display. No outside drink or food is allowed inside the zoo, and the food on the grounds can be a little on the pricey side if you are feeding an entire family. I like to plan my visits between meals and eat outside the park. I'm not saying to not support the zoo... Not at all! I'm just saying I'd rather spend my money on a t-shirt or a momento of the trip in the gift shop than on something that I will literally flush down the drain later on... You know what I'm saying. Open daily from 900 AM - 500 PM. $20 for an adult and $15 per child. Check out their membership packages (with reciprocity to nearly 200 zoos and aquariums) and their calendar! You may be able to buy an annual Family or Family Plus membership for less than a single visit... And then be able to enjoy the zoo all year long...! https://www.blankparkzoo.com/membership

I love fun little parks around the city. This is a cute little guy that reminds me of the smallest…read morepark in the world on Parks and Recreation. It very small, it's got a nice walk way, great flowers, it's close to my house, and it makes the neighborhood beautiful and it's really cool! Sometimes I take my son here and sit on the bench and chat with the birds and the bugs! If you need a good spot to read a book, or want to see the cutest, smallest park in town hit this spot up!

Our family loves parks. This one is fun because it is right on a bike trail so it gives you a…read morebreak while riding through the neighborhood. The park has a nice bridge that goes over a creek. It also has a shelter area for parties and picnics. The play area is nice because it has several areas to climb up. There are a couple tree stumps to climb on and a big rock to climb up. There are also four swings to swing on. The negatives are that there is only one slide and there isn't a water fountain. This park overall is one of the smaller parks in Ankeny. It's still a fun neighborhood park.

Green space on a bluff with dramatic downtown views perfect for chilling with a picnic or if you…read morewant some nature and privacy that Grey's Lake can't provide. It has tennis courts, it has a pond & a playground. You are very close to multiple breweries, if you want to make this a bike ride desticnation or just want to go read a book with lots of shade on a nice day! You bring the blanket, I'll bring the food and brews!