What a nice and relaxing day at Schnormeier Gardens! We went Friday (6/9/23) and the weather was…read moreperfect, and around 78 degrees. We had the opportunity to visit in 2020 and so happy we took some time off to visit again this year for 2023! Booked tickets online a couple weeks ago, drove up from Columbus, checked in at the gate, and spent the afternoon enjoying the grounds and gardens. Price is $50 per car, there were only 2 of us but we would have been the same for a full car. The experience was simply breathtaking, tranquil, and fun to explore the 9 gardens and art. The gardens consist of: the Waterfalls Garden, Stream Garden, Serenity Garden, Hofstra Garden, Chinese Cup Garden, Japanese Garden, Meadow Garden, Woodland Garden, and the Quarry Garden. My personal favorites are the Quarry, Stream, Serenity, and Woodland Garden and I absolutely love all the art and the various shapes and sizes of the trees and shrubs throughout. The stroll took us about 2 1/2 hours this trip. Open to the public this season from Jun 1st - Jun 25th, 2023. Located in Gambier, Ohio (Knox County) It's about an hour outside of Columbus. Second visit in three years and hope to be able to return again as it is simply a treasure. For more info visit schnormeiergardens.org

The June tour of the Japenese/Chinese inspired gardens was so much better than I was even…read moreexpecting!! The self-guided tour of the gardens allowed for literal roaming of the property off path (as there are no official paths). I had thought this would be a drive-through tour to protect the garden space (pricing is by the car load). I thought I would have 1 hour. When I learned I could walk the grounds at my leisure and literally stay as long as I wanted, I was amazed and ended up staying for almost 3 hours tracing and retracing my steps! Thank you, Schnormeier family, for sharing your treasure with all of the public who want to come!

Gallant Woods Park is a very nice park that features a wide variety of habitats, including forest,…read moremeadow, prairie, and wetlands. There is a very nice Interpretative Gateway that is a little sheltered area with benches that features a lot of excellent signage, maps, and pictures about what you might see here, including the plants and animals. A reservable shelterhouse with restrooms and water fountains is located next to a green space with a horseshoe set up and a cute little playground and benches. The playground features some climbing and balancing structures, a slide, and a 'treehouse' type structure on top. A sledding hill is also available here when the weather is a bit more appropriate than it was on our recent hot, sunny visit! Signage on the Pheasant Run Trail had a neat mindfulness theme with various activities along the way to help with the process. There are three additional trails available - the Acorn/Gateway, the Tree-Frog, and a Primitive Trail, plus a connector trail to the Gallant Farm, which is a historic Depression-era farm located across the street. There are a couple of parking lots available in Gallant Woods, including one near the shelterhouse/playground area.

What preservation parks of Delaware county is doing is truly great work. The are added new parks…read morearound the county, similar idea as the metro parks in the bigger cities. However I find the Delaware parks to have more charm. They also seem very connected to their community. Several of these parks I prefer to state parks. Gallant farm is especially interesting. You get to go inside an old farm house furnished with items from that era. The gentleman working there was information. He loved the work he was doing there and you could tell. I found the other parks to be clean with modern buildings. Trails clearly marked and easy to follow.

Great little park to walk or run in. Nice trail that goes through a meadow and back into the…read morewoods. Hidden Gem in Delaware.

Hickory Woods Park, part of the Preservation Parks of Delaware County, is newly opened in November…read more2021 with its first phase! There are several short trails available now, with a loop through the woods, a smaller loop through the meadow, and a short gravel loop near the parking lot that takes you by the sledding hill and fishing pond, and it connects back to the other two loops. There is a gravel parking lot with a nearby port-a-potty available. Several picnic tables are also available in this area. It sounds like there are future plans to add some more amenities, which will be a nice addition. It's great that they were able to preserve this section of land, which is located between an existing neighborhood and a second neighborhood that is currently under construction (and can be heard from the woods). It's a pretty area!

Beautiful park. Outstanding hiking. We LOVE it here. The trails are wonderful. Loved that the…read moretrail follows the stream, and that you have to walk across them - FUN! We hiked once on a day right after it rained, so it was a bit slippery in parts, but we made it through without any trouble. Very peaceful.

Look out hikers, this tiny little park is not for those of us who are introverts & enjoy peace &…read morequiet. It is always packed whenever I go here! Yet if you actually enjoy being surrounded by strangers and walking narrow paths, tripping over roots & getting your feet wet as you cross streams without bridges then you have found your paradise. This is one of my least favorite parks to visit as it only offers one of two paths. And since the longer trail loops into the shorter route it's practically just one trail only. Although I must say that the other hikers & the track students that were enjoying their exercise were 10xs more considerate and polite than any other park I've visited. Yet I strongly suggest being prepared to carry smelly poop bags the entire time since there is only a trash can at the start of your adventure...this is also NOT handicap friendly nor a wide trail if you have a dog that doesn't like strangers or others canines. The majority of the trail is shaded but you'll quickly work up a sweat as there are a number of very narrow & steep stairways if you choose to take the long way. However, it is highly recommended not to visit if it's raining because the trails are all mud and there is nothing to stop you from slipping off the edge. This is also not a wise choice for small children because there is no play ground equipment & again, the roots & lack of bridges. Thankfully the stream was very low & my dogs & I could jump over what little water was around us- but when the stream is full you'd have to wade through the cold water. You also can't picnic here but you can reach "The top of the World"; their is literally a sign in the field you'll come across that states this, lol.

What a cute little plaza. There are plenty of benches and the water is nice and cooling. The dogs…read moreare just so cute!

Such a fun discovery in the heart of beautiful & historic downtown Mount Vernon, Ohio!…read more 18 different full-color, full size cast aluminum dogs sit in a circle, staring up at a golden bone, spewing water from their mouths! Built in late 2019. Corner of Gambier & South Main Street. This is a must visit attraction and totally free to see!

This is a small community park that had been donated, developed, and maintained by local farmers,…read morevolunteers, and the school (Highland School District). There is a large gravel parking lot that surrounds the grass and pond. The baseball field is right by the lot as well. The lot/road curves back to the forest where additional walking paths are. The pond often has families of geese cheerfully swimming while people walk the loop around the pond or fish. There is a small gazebo sitting on the water although it does need a new coat of paint. On Halloween they try to have a treat trail for the kids and once or twice they had a haunted trail in the forest. Sadly now that Fishburn (local farmer) has passed the park does not get as much support as it once did. We still enjoy taking the dogs for a walk or enjoying a lone stroll though. You can also hear the school marching band practicing nearby or see them practicing. Please keep in mind this is a very small park, nothing fancy, but it's nice for such a small community.

This is a great spot to go for a night of family fun in Marion. They keep the course really well…read moremaintained. The holes don't seem hard but they will give you a run for your money. They also have yard games available. Gem mining. Ice cream. Lots of seating to sit out and enjoy the views.

Just returned from an outing with my wife and brother-in-law. Great experience and very shaded for…read morea day when the temperature was 88 degrees. Loved the decorations around the course and all the streams and waterfalls. We enjoyed the family atmosphere and especially the ice cream afterwards. We will be back.

Love this place. I cannot believe I pass by it all the time going to the lake. It has a huge grass…read morearea for running. Water bowls, balls are left to play with for other dogs. There is also a fenced area where the doggies can go to the lake and swim also... just bring a towel.

Yelp has the address wrong. 840 Mill Run Crossing Delaware, Ohio 43015. It is behind Kohls…read more Great new addition to the Delaware Community. When I moved to Delaware I thought it was a perfect community except for one thing, it lacked a dog park. Then I discovered a dog park was in the works and I was overjoyed. This 5-acre park has segregated areas for large and small dogs and has several nice amenities. 1) GRASS! Now I know this park is new but the grass is holding up perfectly. If you are an avid dog park visitor you know having grass is a huge plus. They have some things in place such as large cement double gate entry that will hopefully keep the grass in tact. 2) On site water. No need to take water to this park. They have a lovely human/dog water fountain combo that is located in a stone area that will not get muddy. 3) This park is deceptively large. It is flat and slightly uninteresting but their are a number of young trees that will provide great shade one day. 4) Great walking trail just off the parking lot around a wildlife area including ponds. My dog insists we walk around the trail after visiting the park. 5) People must not know about this park because it never seems busy. I have many times been the only person there. To me this is a positive because my dog is more interested in chasing birds then other dogs and I think it is helping to keep the grass wonderful. Have I mentioned having grass at a dog park is a huge plus? 6) Park also has doggy waste bags and trash cans throughout the park for your convenience. There are also a few nice benches. Please clean up after your dog so all can continue to enjoy this park. If you are in the area come and visit. I do not think you will be disappointed.