Come out and visit the Trail Head at Theodore Wirth!…read more It has a fantastic community space and outdoor recreation center. Totally makes winter in Minnesota even better. I'm new to discovering The Trailhead at Theodore Wirth Regional Park, but believe me when I say I'll be back many more time. In the winter, they offer cross-country skiing and lessons. (You can rent a full set of gear for about $30- no need to have your own to experience skiing! They also have à la carte options for cheaper if you only need poles or boots, etc.) Besides skiing, outdoor winter activities also include snow tubing, snowboarding, snowshoeing.... You name it. (I haven't been in fall or summer yet, but I also hear great things about their mountain biking and trail running options.) Inside The Trailhead, there's food and drink concessions, ample seating, lockers, bathrooms, and even rooms for rent. The last time I was there, a family was hosting a young child's birthday party in the multi-purpose room. Altogether, there is an amazing assortment of services here to come and check out. Can't wait for next ski season!

HIDDEN GEM IN THE CITY…read more I've lived on this parkway for 3 years now and I don't think I've shut up about how amazing Theo Wirth is since! The City Chain of Lakes get all the hype, but you know what's even closer to downtown, in the heart of the city, with: a lake xc ski trails fat bike / mountain bike trails endless walking paths beach with volleyball courts public golf course and so much more?! Yeah, that's right - my neighborhood park! You can do about every outdoor activity you can think of here. Plus, the Trailhead is the main hub for all of it, with a restaurant, tons of indoor seating, gear rentals year-round, and an amazing nature space in the heart of the city. This is the perfect park to embrace any season in Minne!

This is a beautiful beach! Plenty of sand and grassy areas to sit. The parking lot is a good size…read moreand there's a second parking lot across the street for the playground. That being said, I do want to make a note that the Playground is in a completely different area than the beach. Even though it's right across the street, you cannot see the beach from the playground and vice versa. They have single stall toilets, which were pretty nice as well. The area was clean and beautiful landscaping/pollinators!

It's a very nice area for morning walks and I love that you are pretty close to the lake. I feel…read morelike being in MN you have such a great selection of parks with a lake view given we have so many.

I'm going to have to return to this park again when I have a bit more time to explore. I stopped by…read morefor a quick hike and was a bit stymied when my GPS took me an unnecessary two miles over to the west entrance (past the unrelated marina) when I'd been intending to use the east one. The west entrance has a good-sized free parking lot nearby the gazebo. This structure has picnic tables, fire pit, water fountain, and restrooms (however, the latter two are seasonal... in November the fountain was shut off and the restrooms were locked, which kind of sucked for me who was in need of both... thus why I made my stay somewhat short). The trails for the most part are all paved, unless you take the unofficial ones beaten down along the riverway (which seem to be most utilized by fishers from what I could glean). So that's great for bicyclists or people pushing baby strollers or rollerbladers, but wasn't exactly the vibe I was looking for. Depends on what your desires are recreationally. There was one lake area under restoration that was therefore inaccessible for now; always nice to see when resources are being invested to keep our parks nice. Lots of trees, plenty of shade, even when most of the trees have lost their leaves in preparation for winter. I think I'll come back when some snow has fallen, because I'm sure it would probably be quite gorgeous.

Love this park! Beautiful sand trails by the river and also paved trails. Highly recommend checking…read moreit out. There are many places to park along the road, but I love the parking lot by the picnic shelter, too!

He Said: One of our favorite nearby parks. The playground is…read morewell-shaded, fenced-in (easier to watch kids), there are play structures for most kid ages, and has a nearby park and library. Pros: - All- around great playground option, in the metro area Cons: - There is some litter, but that is more the fault of the people coming to the playground, not the playground itself.

I had a fun time here. There were lot of different benches to sit on…read more It was over 90 degrees but the trees provided a nice shade. One of the dads that was there with his daughter kept staring at me. When I made it obvious that I wasn't interested in him, his body language became aggressive. There was also a couple rude women there. I wouldn't suggest going here alone. A park is for serenity but a lot of people there are miserable, unfortunately.

A very cute park off the beaten track. If it wasn't for my son's baseball game I would never have…read morefound this awesome park. They have a great playground, a huge covered picnic area, 2 baseball fields. Parking can be a hinderance if there are a lot of organized sports going on otherwise parking shouldn't be an issue. Bathrooms are currently closed for the season but there is a port a potty and they should reopen when summer starts.

Excellent community park location with ice skating in the winter, basketball, pavilion, playground…read moreand disc golf course. There is a great little walking trail in the wooded area also. I try to incorporate this into my walking/ hiking time as it is just peaceful and nice trees and wildlife.

This visitor center is just inside the lobby of the Science Museum of Minnesota, so you do not need…read moreto pay the museum admission fee. This is a smaller center with a few exhibits. One is a virtual canoe paddle simulating traveling on the water, while another is a virtual soaring exhibit. There's a hands on knot-typing exhibit. There is no associated gift shop with the visitor center. The science museum does have a gift shop in the lobby, but it doesn't have any National Park Service branded items such as medallions, clothing, etc. I would say that the visitor center should not be the highlight of your trip - visiting and experiencing the river itself should be! There are a fair number of NPS guided talks, tours, and paddling programs every week, so plan your visit around those or go through a tour company.

Located in Science Building to the right as you enter. Small area but full of information and…read moreactivities for the kids. It shares the space with Science Museum, no cost for National Park exhibits, but it does cost to go inside the actual Science museum. You can walk around lobby and see some additional cool stuff for free. The restrooms are clean. Parking can be rough & somewhat confusing. We parked over by Square near Public Library (also worth a visit). The square area park is also very nice with some sculptures of beloved "Peanuts" characters. The 5 "Star" Rating is mainly based on interaction with Ranger Nathaniel. He was awesome, very informative and showed us on the map areas that would be of interest based on our conversation. All his suggestions were spot on "Thanks Nate". We found the Heron Rookery. Ranger Nathaniel was fantastic & made our visit very rewarding.

I'm a new annual pass-holder for the Washington and Anoka county parks. I've wanted to check out…read morethe Lake Elmo Reserve for a very long time and the fact that the Reserve had the Nordic Renewal Co. Sauna (pop up) on Thursdays and Sundays...this was the jump start I needed to just buy a pass. I've gone to the park now 4x's in over 2 weeks. I did the sauna once, took my kiddo to the beautiful brand new huge playground twice and then did a little hike solo. The park is huge. There are lots of spots to camp, they have their own beach (in the summer), beautiful lakes, lots of hiking trails, etc. I look forward to coming back not only to this park but others that are part of the pass. No time like the present to get outdoors and explore!

If u have kids this is a good place to go because it is super shallow I recommend u come before…read more12:00 so u can get thare before the lifeguard because they have dumb rules

This is a huge park that has a little of everything. This park has a fine mix of modern amenities…read moreand rustic appeal. It is a little piece of calm just outside the busy city. It spans 34 acres and is named after Charles Loring, an American businessman, miller and publicist who was the first Minneapolis Park Board and considered the "Father of the Park System" in Minneapolis. The park has an astounding flower garden. It was very pretty. You will also find a very nice lake/wetland here. It has seating and is very soothing. The lake is home to many animals. Fishing is welcome at the lake. They even have a fishing pier. The park has a full basketball court and a half-court basketball court that are in great shape. The park's horseshoe pits could use some TLC, though. The park is home to about 10 pits. If you are a pickleball player, then the park has a couple of nice courts to play on. Other park amenities include tennis courts, shuffleboard, and two playground areas on wood-chip beds. One area is fenced in and is for smaller children. This area has a bank of swings, a saucer swing, slides, a modern merry-go-round, a bebble bridge, and a jungle gym. The other playground area, for older kids, has a climbing net, balance beam, slides, pebble bridge, and rock climbing wall. This area is not fenced in. I have seen a lot of parks, and this is a nice one. They host events such as movie screenings, ice skating, and lunchtime concerts. You can easily spend half a day here. I really enjoyed my time here and am sure that you will too.

Nice to have events at. Beautiful open space. Close by to so many things. So much fun during pride!…read moreFun if you are with someone else or a group. Lots of homeless people sleeping on ground nearby. I wouldn't feel safe cruising around here alone as a female. Saw lots of police around too.