This free venue bring community. Local fund raising venders and neighbors enjoying lawn shows…read more Bring a chair and enjoy a show, two offered each night. Handicap parking available and carts to assist as needed. Restrooms close by. Beautiful place for the young and old.

We are so fortunate to live so close to this wonderful park!…read more It's a great place for the kids to play on the playgrounds, walk the dog, go sledding in the winter, enjoy the festival, plays and concerts in the summer.

Thanks to our friends, we had a chance to see and enjoy this park…read more The park has great view to the lake with two decks on each side. We saw some folks fishing while we were there. There's also a small trail where you can exercise too. Don't worry, there are a couple of picnic areas for you and your family to bbq and enjoy the serenity of the beautiful lake. The parking lot has lights so when you leave the park at sunset, you won't be walking in the dark to your car.

It really is such a shame that this park doesn't have a beach. We are super fortunate to live on…read moreone of the Portage lakes and have access all the time, but between West, Austin, and Long Lake's parks only Long Lake has a beach (at Ramona Park). Nonetheless, this park has incredible views and offers decent fishing opportunities off of two extended docks, one of which features a large covered gazebo with benches. The playground area here looks legit, and my partner and I always enjoy stopping for a break here when we do a 9-mile cycling route that basically wraps around Austin Lake plus an extra mile each way to access the route from where we live. As with Long Lake, the boat launch is at a completely separate location from the park. Unlike Ramona Park, there is no charge to park at Lakeside Park. We are super excited at the prospect of all the cycling routes in the Vicksburg and Portage area connecting soon. Work got underway on connecting the Vicksburg path into Portage early last year but was halted due to the pandemic. So happy to have a little bit of spring-like weather this week to get out and celebrate all the wonderful natural spaces in our community.

I have been visiting Woods Lake for several years. I know the Lake is on the small side, but it is…read morecertainly safer than most lakes I have seen. The restrooms, drinking fountain, and picnic pavilion are definitely a plus. They were just recently updated. The water temperature of the lake feels like that if a bathtub. It is very warm. It is also clear enough for me to open my eyes underwater. I have taken my inflatable stand-up paddle board to Woods Lake several times. I know one brat said you'd get swimmer's itch, but I disagree. I never had any issues with water quality. I wear beach socks or water shoes to avoid directly touching anything with my bare feet, and I stay in the area just in front of the sandy shore. I know most of the sandy shore has been submerged, but that's what fucking happens with inland lakes!

We've been swimming here for years, so I was surprised to see I hadn't written a review yet!…read more This park has a sandy (with some gravel) beach, accessed via a hilly sidewalk from the handicap parking next to the newish picnic pavilion. Note: to get to the handicap parking, you don't park up top (and walk down those stairs, obviously!), but drive down a clearly marked accessible road down to the four handicap spaces nearer to the beach. You will still have to walk/wheel from those spots to the water. The water starts out really shallow (good for playing, if you have littles), and then goes deep pretty quickly. There is often a bunch of seaweed near to the shore, and, depending on the weather, the water can be murky. Persevere! STILL! It is a swimmable lake, and feels really good to get in the water, so close to home. There's a small playground area, a grassy area next to the sidewalks, and then, along the lakeshore, plenty of space for fishing.

Beautiful nature preserve. Tons of native plants, animals and bugs. Good for families, dogs, hikers…read moreand maybe joggers. Really well made trails and beautiful scenery. Also some really great examples of trees and birds. There is good parking for handicap accessory vehicles.

We had walked around this preserve more than several years ago but never realized it was part of…read morethe Southwest Michigan Land Conservancy (SWMLC). Evidently, we weren't so adept at reading signs then. I don't recall if there were graveled paths leading to an overlook last time. The overlook looks to be several hundred yards to the west of the trailhead, and there are three benches along the gravel paths. There's a dirt path that goes from the right of this area down a small hill to the marsh. The dirt path turns into a boardwalk with occasional interpretative posts. Depending on the time of the year you go to this preserve, it will either strike you as a place of phenomenal beauty or one of the Gates of Hell. Several years ago we experienced this preserve as the former, then later the latter. Our first several encounters were when there were flowers everywhere. It was stunning. Later that summer, babysitting an Irish Wolfhound for a friend who was stuck in the hospital, we walked about the preserve - dogs must be on leashes - and we discovered the boardwalks were covered with overgrown foliage. So not taking a misstep off the boardwalk into water was a challenge. And then later, surprise! We and the dog caught ticks. It was simple to find the few that were on our legs and to remove them, but checking through the fur of a dog whose size is just short of a pony was arduous. So for this most recent time, we checked out the gravel paths and overlook. The paths wander around. The overlook, which is an inverted V shaped structure and already marked with graffiti, is a bit small but it provides a great view of the marsh below. The plateau above the marsh looks like it's a project and that SWMLC has something in mind to do with it. The parking is dirt and gravel except for the 2 spaces reserved for handicapped parking. Those 2 spaces are concrete. There is a white barn to the right of the parking lot that has the trails posted. Entering and exiting the preserve's parking lot can be tricky because there is a blind corner north of the entrance, so southbound traffic on Nazareth Rd. can just suddenly and unexpectedly appear. In short, a beautiful area. Watch out entering and leaving the parking area. Do tick prevention.

Probably my favorite and most unique trail in the area. First major tip is to wear shoes that can…read moreget WET because theres a 95% chance they will on the boardwalk, no matter how careful and lightly stepping you are. When we say "bog", it's for real. Theres a long boardwalk literally through the bog/swamp. After the boardwalk theres a more typical forested nature trail area. Also there is West Lake Nature Preserve across the street, so you can make a day of it really. Lots of photography opportunities here. I think it's a beautiful place. I've never seen more than maybe 4 other people on the trail. But seriously wear water shoes, athletic sandals, rain boots, or some kind of waterproof shoes. I wouldn't run here only due to the possible slippery nature of the bog area. I don't consider this a deterrent from visiting though, just plan ahead!

It's a beautiful spot for a hike, but they mean it when they say 'bog'…read more Raised rubber boardwalks do their best to keep park guests above the water but you should definitely plan on getting very wet. My first run here was when I was marathon training in a visciously cold winter. Ice below us crackled as we started across the boardwalk and water guysered up and completely soaked us. There's no experience quite like this ... Especially amid an 8 mile run when you're many miles from the car and any hope of changing. Brr. My nethers are shivering just thinking about it. It would be nice to see them use some of the huge influx of bikeway funding that will connect bishop's big and Schrier Park with Elaison Nature Preserve to raise the boardwalks a bit higher above the water.

Lmy husband and I have loved coming here this last year to eat our lunch in the vehicle. The view…read moreis great, especially after spring when everything bloomed! Love looking at the architecture in the neighborhood too!

I finally got the chance to re-visit! I kind of love playing tennis here…read more There are only two courts, and both nets need some tightening, but I felt fancy regardless. Here I am, driving up a stone road, playing tennis in a court carved into a hill, in a tranquil part of town, all the while unbothered by anyone. I felt like I had my own little slice of Wimbledon. The sunset was gorgeous and the boulders lining the court and fading into the hill were a nice touch, too. With a little TLC top the courts themselves, this place could be perfect. The Park itself isn't that big, but it make for a great tennis spot or sunset picnic.

A very interesting park surrounded by some of the most beautiful buildings in Kalamazoo. It's a…read moreplace to read a book or relax and enjoy the scenery or walk your dog. There's a few resident challenged people but they are not as bad as you might think,

Downtown Kalamazoo, Bronson Park is at the enter of the municipal district with the City Hall…read morebuilding across from one side and the Public Library across from another. Some excellent topiaries, beautifully mowed grass, trees, benches and even a bandshell that I am sure is popular. I enjoyed walking in the park and tried to stay away from the homeless folks who decided now was a time to have a fight to provide some entertainment. It ended just as I was ready to call 911. [Review 11219 overall, 995 of 2019.]

I have watched this trail around 60 times in the past few months, and have no intention of…read morestopping. It's a small walk, but such a gem to discover. If you enjoy animals, especially birds, you see and hear more than in any other park.

Really well kept up trails! I saw a lot of wildlife. There is not parking near the entrance of the…read morepreserve, but I parked in Oakwood Plaza and walked over, it was under a half mile. There were benches sporadically for resting or birdwatching. If you stick to the main trail (it's a loop), it's just over a mile.