I've been looking for an ideal spot (clean, with lots of grass, nice shade, river nearby, serene, with not too much dog and human traffic for letting dog loose to play) that I can take both my one year old and dog and this has got to be it! The pavement trail doesn't loop but it extends very far in both directions from the parking lot (making it ideal for cyclist). The trail really is nice with only industrial businesses (like Fedex) neighboring by with little to workers in sight. I loved that the trail was nicely paved, lined with trees, and wasn't just straight. It was interesting with lots of curbs and tranquil with the sounds of the river playing in the background. Right next to the parking lot is a shaded eating area and playgound and very large grassy area. The grass was well kept and seemed very clean.
The only con to this place is I that I saw three cardboard boxes on the floor near the bridge meaning there most likely are some homeless people floating around. Heck, I'd pick this park if I were homeless. Fishing, scenery, clean grass. Hahaha.
I've been to:
*Virginia Lake Park (Nice for taking baby to see animals, too dirty for dogs - geese droppings everywhere. Park across street has lots of cigarette butts laying around. has a nice loop for walks around a lake, great shade for parking and walking)
*Huffaker Park (insufficient shade and grass area for dog and baby to play around)
*Damonte Ranch Park (high in dog traffic and grass not as clean in feel, though nice long 4mile loop for walking with not much shade)
*Idlewild Park(grass area not big enough for me)
*Davis Creek Regional Park (no grass area to hang around, but nice short hiking trails in the wilderness, only 15min drive on freeway from reno)
*Mayberry Park (top 2nd choice, but too far a drive from my house. has a nice river and trail, lots of clean grassy areas with shade from trees, bbq grills available)
*Rancho San Rafael Park (there are dog restricted areas , no shade)
*South Valley Regional Park (love this park on the weekends and evenings when there aren't any baseball games going on. they leave the field open at all times and the huge grass area is nice play on. well kept and super clean) read more