We were looking for a quiet, peaceful place to have a picnic away from the weekend crowds in…read moreTaylors Falls. So, we started driving up along the St. Croix River on County Road 16 off of Highway 95 in Taylors Falls. As we got further north, it became much more wild and natural with lovely views of the river, ponds, cattails, and birds perched in trees and flying about. We passed the South Lions Park and thought it looked nice. However, there were quite a few vehicles there that had boat trailers. We weren't sure if they were coming back soon, so we continued to look. Almost immediately we came to North Lions Park and found our spot! The entry is lined with large rocks, there's a picnic pavilion, playground, and direct access to the St. Croix River for hikers (not boats). There's pit toilets for use, if needed. We ate a table overlooking the river. There was a nice breeze and birds were singing around us. We even saw a pair of Bald Eagles perched high in a tree near us. It was such a beautiful spot - and one that we would return to in the future. This is definitely a hidden treasure of Taylors Falls!

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.

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.

There are two visitor centers for this river: Namekagon River Visitor Center and St. Croix River…read moreVisitor Center. Namekagon River Visitor Center has its own page, and it's an excellent visitor center. I'm not sure why St. Croix River Visitor Center doesn't have an entry, but the other review is referring to it so I'll expound on it more. The St. Croix River Visitor Center is larger than the other visitor center. There are more exhibits about the wildlife and boating safety, and the film theater is more roomy. The gift shop has more offerings in comparison as well. Behind the visitor center is a paved walkway that runs parallel to the river and to the dam, but you don't have access to the water. I had to go to Marine to walk down to the river and enjoy, as well as check out the old mill site. Beautiful views.

Everything you wanted to know about the historic St. Croix river dividing Mn & Wi is on display at…read morethis national center on the north end of St. Croix Falls. The attendant offered to let me watch an 18 minute video but I figured the weather is so nice I'd rather be outside. There is a viewing deck, some places to sit outside. A short walking path and a few places to explore. Inside has the usual displays for all ages to understand and interact and a gift shop ($$$$) .

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!

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!

Paradise Park was a great pit stop for our family in Chisago City on our way to northern…read moreWisconsin. It is a spacious park with tons of space. The highlight was the huge metal slides. The kids also liked the zip lines and the playground.

The name says it all. I didn't expect such a cool park hidden away in the back of Chisago City…read more Hidden across from the skating park by highway 8 is this awesome park. Upon reaching the playground from the parking lot, I first noticed a huge black hole at the end of a wooden bridge and a sign. I thought it was some kind of sewage hole but boy was I wrong! It's the entryway to a huge covered slide!!!! And a few feet away is a wide wavy double slide! Even better, next to the slides is another course - a zip line swing!! Oh man, in all my years I've never seen such cool playground courses in a park. Then you also have a complete playground course with many different slides, climbing Bridges, tunnels, rock climbing, money bars and a swivel bar with swings alongside. This park was definitely a paradise kind of park. Even I had to experience the slides & zip line for myself. Need a little adrenaline? This is where. Take a walk on the path down the dock to the fishing pier or alongside a small beach. It was a great small park filled with fun playgrounds for kids. Dogs are welcome here

I'm visiting family and we took our six kids to this part to spend time at the splash pad and…read moreplayground one morning. What a beautiful space! There are small rain gardens featuring native plants and plenty of lawn and field all around plus the baseball fields. But we only came here for the kid attractions. The splash pad has three different fountains that will be running at a time, 6 in total, that alternate with three coming up from the ground and three coming from rocks. And then, this is my favorite part, the water from the splash pad spills into a man-made stream. I actually had a lot of fun looking through the beautiful rocks and organizing them by look and feel with the kids. Find the button to turn on the splash pad on the short blue pole by the fountains. There was a small playground that didn't get much attention while I was there, but the large playground has a lot going on for little kids as well as big kids. There's even one really close tonight that you can only get to by climbing up a few rope ladders. They did have porta potties nearby, but the only thing missing is a bathroom. I love that they have a partial fence separating the main playground from the parking lot, and a shaded gazebo for grown-ups to sit at. I wish I had a park like this in my city near Atlanta! It would get so much action. I was actually surprised this place wasn't swarming with people and we visited on a summer Tuesday morning.

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!

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.

After a few duds, we were exploring other area parks while visiting family in Hudson. This was the…read morewinner! Expansive play area with towers, sandbox, slides galore, climbing walls, covered picnic area, benches, swings, tire swing, etc. There are also baseball fields, bathrooms available, and a great view of the Hudson water tower. The area is pretty enclosed, with much of it fenced, so we played with confidence that our wanderer child would be contained. :-)