The park is filled with interesting things to do and explore. If you're looking for a relaxing…read moreoutdoor activity or just want to soak up some natural beauty, I highly recommend visiting Olmsted Park in Spokane.

The perfect little play space nestled in the middle of the Kendall Yards development and directly…read moreon the Centennial Trail. The toys are geared for 4 and up so it can be challenging if you bring tinies here. There's a great covered picnic area and a large field for tossing a ball or frisbee or a pick-up game of soccer with your pals.

The views from this park are just incredible, especially during the spring runoff. Unfortunately…read morethe only portion open at this is the upper, street level. This also happens to be where the majority of the druggies hang out. On our visit we watched no less than 4 people with needles out, injecting themselves. We've got to somehow do better than this as a city.

Rode the gondolas with the fam and it was absolutely pleasant! Great views of the dam and river,…read moreeven as the sun had started its descent toward the horizon. Lovely.

My husband and I have made a pact to go to all of these outdoor spots right in our own city. The…read moreareas around Spokane, are really lush and beautiful and a great place to take it all in. The river has so many spots and this was just one of them that we had found. Wide open spaces, creekside stream sounds, children laughing, wine coolers in tumblers...all of the above. We had a great time and it was calm and warm for it still being May. Great walking and hiking spaces too.

Classic hiking trail on Spokane's north side. From the Indian Painted Rocks trailhead, you can go…read moreeast, west, or north, thought the traditional route is to the west. This trail runs past ancient Native American pictographs before taking a lazy stroll amidst the singing birds of the Little Spokane River. At the west end of the path, you can turn north and explore the Knothead Valley trail which winds up through ponderosa pines and gives stunning views of the Spokane River below. The 6.5 mile loop drops back across the valley before turning south and ending back at the Painted Rocks trailhead for a solid outing. If you are looking for a longer excursion or just want more time along the river, the easterly trail (across the street and south across the bridge) adds another couple of miles of waterfront scenery.

It's ok. Not a destination trip by any means, but if you live in and around Spokane it can be a…read moreconvenient and reliable pop-off for hiking or skiing I've heard the skiing is not as great as the nearby competing mountains, and I believe that to be true from my few cross-country experiences this past winter. Winter access means buying a special "Snow Pass" which is something like $80. If you thought your Annual Discover pass would cover you, you're SOL. For someone looking for unfettered access year-round, that's about $115.

Mount Spokane State Park is a 12,000 acre state park with over 100 miles of trails. It takes about…read more45 minutes to get to the trails from downtown Spokane, but it's a picturesque drive that takes you through farms, before transitioning to farm with forest then ending with thick forest. The trees grow denser the farther up the mountain you go. The climate on Mount Spokane is very humid and is cooler that downtown Spokane. The maintains the green vegetation and provides a more comfortable hiking environment when the rest of Spokane is in the high 80s and 90s. Based on our afternoon at Mount Spokane, I could see how the cool, wet climate would make for a great cross country skiing venue. We only hiked on about 4% of the trails but they were very well maintained and had maps at multiple intersections to assist hikers. The maps took a few minutes to decipher but at least they were there. I've been on many hiking and biking trails where you are forced to use instinct and hope that you did some rudimentary maps research before the hike. One side effect of the dense forest is that there are not many vistas available to hikers because you have to look through the dense pine. I suppose this is a drawback to hiking in wet environments rather than in the desert. On the plus side, the dense pine trees mean that there is always enough shade. My wife showed appreciation for this fact. Many runners passed us on the trail. At first I thought it was a trail running club. It was not until the 4th or 5th hiker until we noticed their bibs. I asked one of the next runners about their race and he said that they were running a 50k. That would be an extraordinary distance to run on such a hilly trail. Maybe one day I can reach that distance but I'm still trying to progress beyond my 5k trail runs.

A nice little get away within the city to explore nature…read more I stopped here for a little walk after having breakfast nearby. There are trails that are marked and a sign at the beginning pointing out the routes you can take. I only explored for a mile or so, but it was a perfect little get away. I came across many families that were coming to a small playground area for their toddlers or families that were hiking the overall easy pathways with their children. A pretty, perfect little escape for a quick, overall easy hike. I'd recommend!

We live near Dishman Hills. Took my kids there often and they loved it. Our grandkids also enjoyed…read moreclimbing rocks and looking at plants just like their aunt and uncle did. It was a great help on those really restless days. It's an incredibly beautiful place with many great views and lots of options.

Note: My review is for the Lake Spokane campground and boat launch area, just East of the Long…read moreLake Dam. There are four distinct areas of Riverside SP. To see the actual location, refer to Google Maps. A lot to like here, and it's all dry camping. But if you are used to metro area conveniences, be ready to drive 20+ mins, with Suncrest being the better option, vice Reardan or Wellpinit. It's a pretty drive, wherever you decide to go. Sites here are spaced nicely for semi-privacy; meaning, it's nice to have a quiet space, but it's also nice to see neighbors 30 yards away. A full camp is a safe camp this far out. If you have a travel trailer, don't get Site 4. It's set up is 'against the grain' for the 1-way road, and the only reason we made it in was because of our smaller RV. Big rigs? No way. They have these--I guess--decorative rocks to define each camp site. They're in the way, mostly. Otherwise, if you have booked online, it's plug and play. We got to our site; name on the reserved placard; and let the relaxation begin. Easy...

Riverside State Park is an amazing place to visit in Eastern Washington (near Spokane). The park…read morehas a great trail for walking, running, mountain biking or horseback riding. There is a very nice suspension bridge along the trail, and the trail is near a very scenic river. I highly recommend visiting this park.

Fun and easy to follow. Ended up running through places I would otherwise never have seen.read more

When you visit Centennial Trail you'll be rewarded with some lovely views, especially of the area…read moreon Spokane's west side. Tip: While there are some beautiful things to see, and the terrain here isn't particularly difficult, the signage is really bad so it's very easy to get lost :-( The trails here are good for hiking, running, and evening bike riding!  As I didn't bring my bike on the first visit I'm not quite sure how far you can go on the trail, but I'd love to find out sometime :-)

Friends told us about supposed waterfall we walked around looking for waterfall did not find found…read morebunches and bunches of mosquitoes lost the car along the way, but got to spend time together in the early morning. Don't recommend coming in early morning. Come when the mosquitoes are gone in the afternoon or evening.

Dang Spokane, how is this park not reviewed yet?!…read more This is a great place to see sweeping views of the city and surrounding areas. As an added bonus it's close to town and easy to get to. You can even drive up here in the winter fairly effortlessly. Come up for sunset or at night with a tripod to get some great cityscapes. I used to live a couple miles away, man I miss this place...