The trails are phenomenal. Especially the equestrian trails. Love going out and riding in the…read morewoods. Need to get out and start hiking with the dogs

My review may be a bit different than other people but during my time here I absolutely enjoy the…read moreviews but what I did not enjoy here were the amenities featured. The bathrooms here were absolutely in shambles and the maintenance at the park is pretty bad. Please be cautious that your GPS will not work in this area either. Poorly labeled trails as well where you can get lost.

great scenery and ambience with the stream running and different levels of view places to hike…read moreand views are spectacular highly recommend coming here

We love this State Park that is located on the bank of the Rock River…read more This park offers good hiking trails and is very popular with kayaker's. One of the highlights is climbing the staircase to the top of the sandstone bluff for great views of the Rock River There is a small parking lot on site .

Pretty trails. I highly recommend downloading the all trails app when hiking here. The trails were…read morenot marked that well. Plenty of parking and various picnic tables around as well.

We had a family reunion here on one of the hottest, stickiest days of the summer. It was one of…read morethose days when an afternoon picnic outside doesn't sound the most appealing and you ask yourself what your family would think of you if you show up in a swimming suit, carrying a bucket of ice water. The shelter we reserved is on the northeast side of the lake (though I question how this qualifies as a lake - more like a pond in my mind) and with a hillside just to the east of it, the shelter was as good as air-conditioned! Hallelujah! There was a cool breeze thanks to the lake and since the shelter was shaded for half of the day, it wasn't until 3pm when the space finally started feeling too warm. The proximity of the shelter was also great as the Monticello Public Pool is right across the road and the kids were able to go enjoy a pool day once they were finished chasing toads around the pond (sorry Freddie the Toady Toad. Also, sorry the kids couldn't decide on a better name).

My wife grew up in Janesville, so we stopped by with our four-year-old granddaughter, who…read moreabsolutely loved the playground. Unfortunately, it was drizzling, so we didn't stay too long.

For a community park, this beats every other park I've been to thus far. We frequent this park…read moreoften during the week. Not in the winter, but in the summer we may be here 3 to 4 times a week. Some times we rode our bikes, 5 miles away from our home, to the park traveling on the ice age hiking trail and what a glorious trail that is. Once summer arrives, we eagerly await the opening of the wading pool. The closest thing we have to a beach really. The park is very well kept. The grasses are well maintained and trimmed. Restrooms are clean. There's also the travel center on the grounds, that also acts as the welcome station for Janesville. If you go there and tell them you are newly arrived they will give you a packet which includes several saving coupons that can be used at various stores and eateries. Parking is abundant and can be found at different locations through out the park. There are many picnic tables with fixed grills ready to be used. I bring a grill top just to be safe and clean when using these grills. You can fly kites, have large parties as people often do, and there are even short hikes with trail heads close by. The main attraction is the play ground itself. Designed like a large forest camp with many places to climb, run, explore it truly is heaven for kids as they run around expending energy. There are slides any one can go down. These have rollers so no matter how you are you will go down, and fast too. You really have to watch yourself coming down these type of slides. I have seen many adults land smack flat on their buttock, and I laugh every time watching them remembering my first time too. There's also rings for kids to strengthen their grip and rocking platforms to help control their balance. When the wading pool is open it gets crowded but several life guards are always present to make sure there is no misbehaving by kids as well as adults. The spouting whale slides and umbrella water rain falls are excellent attractions for the kids to take pictures on. The surrounding area also offers kids to begin their exploration of nature. There is lots to see in plants as well as bugs. Many have vibrant colors and are so strange looking that makes them very interesting. We loved coming here. It's a great way to spend family time while your kid unleashes that bottled up energy and get a good work out building his physical abilities with coordination. Many fond memories and pictures are here. Wish there was one close to us now.

Can't believe I'm the first one to review this place! Beloit, you guys are slacking!…read more This is a pretty neat playground to take the kids to with an awesome view of the river. Not exactly sure what river it is, Illinois i think? The playground is well maintained, my 10 year old loved it. Not your traditional playground with swings and seesaws, but plenty of stuff to climb. There's also a walking trail along the river but I was sad that I couldn't go because we didn't take the baby stroller! We had our infant in the car seat and she was too heavy to lug that thing around in. Parent fail! Would love to come back and bring my walking shoes to get my steps in!

A beautiful 200 acre park located on the north side of Clinton on the bluffs overlooking the…read moreMississippi River. You can picnic,hike or cross country ski in this treasured asset of Clinton. There is a historic lodge which we did not visit and a castle turret open for stair climbs and fantastic views of the Mississippi . Lots of play areas, restrooms, pavilions and trails makes this park a fun way to spend a day.

Nice park, love climbing the old tower and the great views. A lot of play areas, restrooms,…read morepavilions, and trails. Needs a little better maintenance and some tree trimming to improve the views.

This is a nice place to bring your family and is pretty popular during the weekends. There are…read morefishing and swimming, as well as hiking and picnic shelters. The hiking trails are decent enough but, if you are looking to really experience "nature", this is NOT a State Natural Area. The lakes, while old and very well established, are actually man made, and most of the Park has been significantly altered by human activity. Trail options include hiking and cycling, as well as off road vehicles. So, if you want some fun outdoor recreation, this is good for that. But, if you are looking for quite hikes, natural settings,etc..., check out a State Natural Area, instead.

Great find and well maintained by the state. Great views! Kayaked on the Mississippi River which…read morewas great but came with some current struggles. The boat launch is right across the road from MP. The hosts were nice. They are only checking in people from 12-4. Find your site and your tag is on the post. There are about 10 walk up sites you can get on FCFS basis. Some electric and some primitive sites. Make sure to select the correct one. Beautiful views are with the hike up the cliffs.

We had a family get together here today and rented the pavilion. For $50, you get a really nice…read morebuilding facility that has a fireplace and several large picnic tables. The public restrooms are in this building however, and you will have people coming and going during your event. It wasn't too busy today so not a problem. There is plenty of open grassy area to play, didn't get enough wind to be able to fly the kites, but we were close! But we definitely had a lot of room to kick the soccer ball, throw the football and run around. The grill worked great, it's 4 feet long and we were able to cook plenty of burgers and hotdog and such for the family. There's also a couple of electrical outlets so we were able to plug-in a couple crockpots for beans and such. There are quite a few mice living in this facility, so just be aware of that, but you are out in the country! There are many hikes and such that leave from this location so you could use this as homebase with other family members being able to go out and take a great hike as well. We had a great day and I have a feeling this is going to become a tradition PS. Bring the bug spray :)

I have been looking for a waterfall that doesn't require any hiking and voila this is what I found…read more We went to this place on the way to Galena it is called Thunder Bay waterfalls you just park walk a little bit and the Falls is there they even have a selfie station or a ledge that you can put your phone in and just take your selfies it's a pretty nice place to stop at for a few minutes and just take pictures. Happy sighting!

Discovered this nice , small waterfall in the Galena Illinois area. You don't need to spend much…read moretime here , maybe fifteen minutes tops. If you're in the area , it's worth a quick stop for some nice photos. The parking area is located very close to the falls. Maybe a two hundred yard walk. The terrain is a little bit bumpy for elderly people to walk on, but you can still view the falls from the road above if you don't want to get out of the car. The water empties into a beautiful , slow moving stream , surrounded by wildflowers. This attraction is free to view.