We did a quick walk down to the falls. It was impressive and pretty. There were a few people around…read moreso I didn't get the greatest nature only picture but it was worth the 100+ steps down and back and only took maybe about 15 minutes.

So beautiful. Worth the stop. You can either make a quick…read moretrip down the stairs or take the trails. The waterfall has a picnic area for family to hang out. Keep it clean cause it is so beautiful. You can get up behind the falls or play in it.

Beautiful views any time of the year. A parking permit (yearly or day pass) is needed to park in…read morethe lot or you can try to find free street parking on the Main Street. There are plenty of easy hiking trails and some very cool views! The river walk is a nice walk with a picnic table available too. There are a few park benches available to rest and lots fun shops and cafes/restaurants to eat at on the main strip. Great place to take a day trip!

Oh, what a gorgeous park! Last Saturday, my friends and enjoyed a lovely hike walking the trails…read moreand enjoying the beautiful scenery. We saw rock formations and potholes, eagles, sparrows, unique pretty flowers, along the gorgeous St. Croix river. After the hike, we enjoyed a lovely picnic lunch on the benches surrounded in all the beauty. No, there is no water fall, but who cares...it's gorgeous and just an amazing place to visit.

We stumbled upon Interstate State Park from the Wisconsin side and somehow found our new favorite…read moreplace. Absolutely stunning. The trees, greenery, rock formations, and trails are gorgeous, and everything was incredibly well maintained. The Ice Age Trail was perfect with kids and had just enough adventure without turning into a family survival exercise. We already can't wait to go back. Five stars and a new pair of hiking shoes may now be required.

Only an hour from the metro area, this park offers incredibly beautiful views with a variety of…read moretrails for all hiking levels. I personally prefer visiting parks earlier in the day to avoid foot traffic, but even as we left around noon it didn't feel as crowded despite how many people were there. No matter which side of the park (MN or WI) you find yourself, you will not be disappointed!

It's SO beautiful here. You get to see a variety of animals, gopher snakes, deer, friendly…read moreraccoons, eagles, fish, it's just so beautiful. There's a chance of bears being around which gives you that fun adrenaline "on edge" subtly feeling. The camper cabin are nice! They seem a little more durable compared to william o brien. Cabins 1&2 have been our favorite. We had a raccoon jump into the back of pir car 5 mins after we pulled up and we're unloading she came back again at night, so we named her Nosey Nancy. Lots of trails to walk ,this park is huge. You can even bring horses here. The river is right there so you can get a feel for that. It's just awesome. Love this place. Brought my 6 month old son here, and he loved camping.

This park is located along 18 miles of the St. Croix River. It's a quieter option to Interstate SP…read moreand Williams O'Brien SP (in the nearby vicinity). It's about an hour from the Twin Cities. It has opportunities for hiking, bird watching, and kayaking. The paddle down the St. Croix River from the Sunrise river access to the southern park river access is leisurely. Be selective about the hiking trail you choose. Some trails are shared with horseback riders. The trail I I hiked had its fair share of horse manure, which detracted from the experience.

This is a beautiful state park in Minnesota. One of the highlights is a 2 mile hike on the Wetland…read moreTrail. The trail is mostly flat and winds you through a wetland, which offers lots of good bird watching opportunities. The trail changes with the seasons, from flowers in the spring and summer to stunning fall foliage in the fall. The trail also offers a view of a beaver lodge. The park is along the St.Croix river, and has an exit point for kayakers if you enter in Taylors Falls. The park is about 45 minutes from the Twin Cities, and is 2 miles north of Marine on the St Croix.

Beautiful day and have the place to myself. Utterly…read morefantastic and lots of Hawks. No water in Lake Alice still.

Love the free regional parks. Lots of amenities! I was just there for a hike so didn't need much…read more There is lots of parking. The bathrooms are locked in the off season, but there are porta potties. I went for a hike and it didn't disappoint. I found ducks, geese, and deer. The only weird thing is the park is designed so similarly to Hyland that it confused me a bit as far as navigating.

A fun family park with Ropes, cubbies spaces and an area for smaller kids. This park has indoor…read morebathrooms. They have small snacks, board games and tables inside. There is 2 outdoor Pavilions and 2 indoor rooms for rental through Three Rivers Park District. This park is spread out. There is a lot of seating and many umbrellas to keep you out of the sun. There is a beach, walking paths, bridges and off the beaten path dirt trails. We will be back to enjoy this beautiful park just off 494 and Rockford Rd in Plymouth.

Not a large hiking area, but you can venture off onto other trails...or go down to the river to…read morecool off. There is a nice vista near the Railroad bridge, but the tracks are still being used SO STAY OFF.

A great place to take the family for summer camps, beautiful hiking, nature education and tons of…read moreprograma

This is going to be one of those reviews where I open with a quote/poem. Today's selection will be…read moreone of my favorites from Wendell Berry: When despair for the world grows in me and I wake in the night at the least sound in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be, I go and lie down where the wood drake rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds. I come into the peace of wild things who do not tax their lives with forethought of grief. I come into the presence of still water. And I feel above me the day-blind stars waiting with their light. For a time I rest in the grace of the world, and am free. Now that I got that out of my system, I love this place. They offer a ton of camps and classes for children and adults all centered around nature and conservation. I rememember coming to the day camps here and having a blast. I did the Spanish Lanuage immersion camp, general day camp, but never the week long over night. They offer cabins for rental as well. There was this one we went to that was like way out there on this trail and built from super old wood in a lincoln log kind of way. And now just looking at their website, they apparently rent that out too on a nightly basis. Ooh and the bogs. They have this massive bog on the property that you can walk through and it has all these crazy species of plants. There's even one of those insect eating plants and orchids and stuff. Now that I'm thinking about it, this place would make for a great Yoga retreat. If you're reading this Ms. Hunt or whoever owns this place, you should explore the idea of a partnership with a Yoga studio. You could be like the Kripalu of the midwest.

Trying to be more intentional about exploring parks around Minneapolis this year, and Hidden Falls…read moreseemed like the perfect place to start. We usually default to Minnehaha Falls across the river, but I'd never actually explored this side--which looks to be really sprawling with new townhomes and modular single family homes. We parked near the dam and walked along the trail to reach the stairs leading down to Hidden Falls. Heads up: the walk down is a little precarious since there's no railing for most of the stairs, but it's not very steep and the trek itself is pretty short. The falls themselves were a bit disappointing at the moment--more of a trickle than a waterfall--but it is early in the season. That said, the forested park area it winds through was really nice, and made the visit worth it regardless. I can already tell this place is probably stunning in the summer when everything is green and flowing! Even with the lower water level, it was a great way to explore somewhere new and great to see there were so many people already exploring the park with it being chilly still!

Beautiful park near the city. Grabbed some take out and found an empty picnic table in the middle…read moreof the day - lots of parking! Watched a few boats launch, saw some geese, enjoyed watching people along the shore. Picnic tables near the water at the North Entrance. Check it out!