I love Laura Bradley Park! It holds lots of fond memories for me. There's a playground in the top…read moreand bottom section of the park! Gotta love the dog park if you have doggos. Lots of little attractions to see like the Chinese bridge. Plenty of roadways in the parks for walking and bike riding. Great place to visit year round!

Beautiful park near Bradley University. Plenty of walking areas, not really many trails, more of an…read moreopen set up. This park has a lot to offer, including a Frisbee golf course, two fenced in dog parks, sand volleyball, picnic areas and tennis courts. Plenty of free parking in multiple lots throughout the park. The dog parks include a smaller, more secluded dog park on the top and a large dog park on the bottom, separated into small and large breed fenced areas. The dog parks are often packed with wagging tails on the weekends. No fee and doggie bags are provided by the people. Each season brings something gorgeous to view in nature's little hideaway.

This is a small ship-themed playground outside the entrance to Bass Pro Shop, with a nice view of…read moredowntown Peoria. It's a quick stop off the interstate for kids to burn off some energy (follow the Bass Pro signs). There are public restrooms right next to the playground.

Review Visit: March 7th, 2012…read more After a whirlwind trip in Florida, I came back to Illinois and kept up the traveling. You could say traveling is my... forte. My friend Tim and I decided to check out what Fort Creve Coeur had to offer. Never having been in the area, I parked in a seemingly random parking lot that had a walk up point to a trail. I remember there being a small monument or plinth with an inscription on it. Referring to my photos, there was also a rock with an inscription dedicated to the fort. After we spent a few minutes reading the inscriptions and surveying the area, we hit the hiking trail. What a trail it was. The trail was a lot harder than I expected due to the constant elevation changes. It was a winding and roller coaster hike. After thinking we were about to get lost, we emerged to a clearing that lead to the fort itself. The fort was closed to public access. We could only observe the inside by looking through the spacing the logs provided on the front door. The interior of the fort seemed to represent the time period perfectly; that time period being in the ballpark of 1680. Looking in to the history of the fort, it seems to have been destroyed shortly after being constructed. You can read about it below via the Wikipedia link. Following and looking in to the Facebook and website page, it seems like they host some events. I haven't had the time to attend one, but they sound fun. If the rain ever stops, I would like to revisit during a time they are open and see the inside of the fort. Once I get to do that, I will update this post with some photos from the interior. Funny story... once we got done exploring the fort and the surrounding area, we realized that there was a parking lot next to the fort. We laughed at that fact since we spent a solid chunk of time hiking up to the fort. So, do yourself a favor if you aren't a fan of hiking and locate the nearby parking lot.

Fort Creve Coeur, in Creve Coeur, Illinois, is a historical re-creation of the winter, 1680,…read morequarters of the French explorer LaSalle, who went on from this site to explore the Mississippi River and who was eventually shot by his own crew in what is now Texas. The park and re-creation are probably near to the actual fort site. The re-creation itself will be of interest not only to history buffs, but also to civil and military engineers. There is a small museum/gift shop that offers some background about the town of Creve Coeur and the surrounding area, as well as a bit on LaSalle and his expedition. More about the expedition itself and their time in the Illinois country would be very welcome. The fort itself is in a neglected condition: all the labor and staff are volunteer, and the group that seeks to preserve the fort and its history operates almost entirely on donations from visitors. The fort site-museum/gift shop is open from 10 to 5 Tuesday through Saturday. There is no admission charge, but donations are very welcome. There are interpretive events featured at the site a couple times a year. The fort's website (www.ftcrevecoeur.org) has more information on these. This is a site that might disappoint people who are hoping to have a lot of detailed historical re-creation, but for those who enjoy letting their imaginations fill in the details, a visit to the site could be very rewarding. Young children probably won't be impressed (there is playground equipment near the museum/gift shop). The site might be best for more mature children. The site appears to be pet-friendly: a father, son, and their off-leash dog were just leaving the fort when we were about to enter. The site offers camping. A state nature preserve adjoins the fort site. There is a trail through the preserve, but the trail is not well-maintained as of this writing (8/2013).

Review Visit: August 11th, 2015…read more Not to be confused with the Riverfront Park in Pekin. Though both offer a majestic view of the might Illinois River. Just how majestic is the view of the Illinois River? I'd rate that a 2.5/5 only because the landscape is pretty. If you come to Riverfront Park, you really need to visit for a few reasons. One, this park is a wide open flat park that is just serene on a beautiful day. Also, there is an old train turntable that nature has taken over. Just what it is doing there after the railroads have long since disappeared, I don't know but I can say that it was a nice little surprise when Matt and I came upon it during our walk of the park. I would have to guess that it is a relic from the old days when Peoria pumped out the alcoholic spirits en masse. Reason two for visiting. There is a nice little garden set off to the side of the park. It's called the Constitution Garden and you can read about that in the linked blog post. Last reason to visit is to check out the Dan Fogelberg Memorial which, again, you can read at the linked blog post. Aside from those three things, there isn't much else to do at this park but maybe get some running in. With it being next to the river, I would assume there are some running trails carved out by either people or the park district. If you had an afternoon to spend on exploring some of Peoria's unknown attractions, you wouldn't be wasting your time here, especially if you came on a gorgeous spring day. I guess you could also get a view of the river, but that's not a real selling point for any Illinois resident.

This park became home to the Dan Fogelberg memorial in 2010, but prior to that it was still a cool…read moredestination in my book due to the old railway turntable or wheelhouse that is on display there. I'm sure it's been there since the 80s because I remember seeing it when I was a kid. The park itself is pretty nice with paved, lighted paths along the Rock Island/Pimiteoui Trail with views of the river. Several people use the trail there for running, walking and biking. The Peoria Riverfront Museum's Community Solar System model's earth model is located in the park as well. There is a parking lot at the site.

Quite park right behind a fire station. My son loves the double slide winder, not too fast and the…read moresoft padding on the ground is an added plus

It's not a park no cookout grills no benches , no play area , they say park but it just a river…read morefront and that's it .

The views you can get from the lookout points are phenomenal no matter where on the walk you stand…read more You can see both of the bridges as well as the downtown skyline which is beautiful at night. There is a little park so you can park your car and walk along the riverfront which is great.

The line coming in was pretty long, however, I would say we had a pretty great time! It was pretty…read moreclean & not busy.

We always love to take our grandchildren here. The staff is super friendly and helpful. There are…read moreso many activities to do for all ages from preschool to teenagers. We come here several times a year and will continue to do so.

The dog park at Mineral Springs Park in Pekin is very nice. The very large grounds are well kept…read more(no standing water or muddy areas), lots of trees, doggie pickup bags available, and a separate set of gates for large and small dogs. Instead of fixed benches the park includes movable lawn chairs - which is nice - especially if you need to sit apart during the pandemic. Our dog actually loved running round and round the chairs like an obstacle course. Admission is free and most pet owners are responsible for picking up after their pet and watching to ensure proper pet behavior in the park. We have 2 dog parks in our own town, but this one is our favorite one to visit - even with the extra minutes to drive from Bloomington, it is worth it.