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.

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.

Review Visit: August 9th, 2016…read more Somehow I am usually the last to learn of cool places. Farmdale Reservoir is no different. I have driven past signs for Farmdale many times in my life and just thought it was a giant water reservoir or something like that. Then one day I decided to google it to see what it was. Well, talk about kicking yourself in the ass for taking forever to do something. I came out here and hiked for a few hours and enjoyed every second of it. I decided to hike the 'tough' trails and they proved to be a challenge. Especially if you were mountain biking. While I only hiked about 4 miles and it was just a small section of the map, I was very impressed and will be back in 2017. The entire area is beautiful and far enough removed from society that you do feel isolated, but not far from help and home. This could be a great place to bring dogs, if you have one and they are properly trained. They say Illinois is boring... but we have beautiful places like this to help dispel that notion.

Hidden Washington backyard gem, hiking, running, biking, and dog walking trails all over with some…read moresurprising views for central Illinois sprout out this suburban park as essential oxygen to check in frequently. Coming from Indiana I didn't realize what was here til introduced recently and quickly fell for this lil slice of Gatlinburg. Parking isn't well marked but just like life I kept going until I found what I wanted. A decent Saturday morning gave clear nice weather without a crowd, will definitely be back!

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).

Several websites recommended that my husband and I check out the Luthy Botanical Garden and after…read morevisiting, I can't figure out why this place was recommended. We went there on a Saturday morning. Parking was very difficult to come by. There was no clear entrance. On this Saturday, there were vendors selling their wares. There were too many vendors taking up too much space. I went there to enjoy nature, not feel forced to buy things. There was a singer and guitar player who was too loud and not very good. I enjoyed walking and seeing the flowers and sculptures but there was not enough of that at this garden. Luthy Botanical Garden is too commercial and there is not enough garden.

Wha a lovely stop on my day trip today! I loved observing the winter phase of the outdoor gardens…read moreas well as the permanent art pieces and sculptures. The real treat was the greenhouse space though! I really love to learn all the names of everything around me and they're all expertly labeled with large font which my group appreciated. And nice that admission is free! Be sure to leave a donation though.

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.

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