Minnesota has always impressed me with the effort it puts into its green spaces, parks, trails and…read moreespecially its playgrounds. There are a lot of good ones scattered throughout the Twin Cities, but the Hyland Play Area is operating on a different scale. The first thing that hits you is simply the enormity of it. A landscape photo barely does it justice. This isn't a playground with a couple of oversized structures--it's an entire playscape built around elevation, exploration and seemingly endless ways for kids to disappear upward and reappear somewhere completely different. There are distinct areas that make it approachable for kids of different ages, select water features, and plenty for younger children to explore without making the bigger kids feel like they've outgrown it. But the stars are those towering structures and enormous climbs spread throughout the park. If you've got a kid who needs to "get their zombies out," this ought to do it. A determined child could probably accumulate the equivalent vertical ascent of Minnesota's Eagle Mountain before lunch. What impressed me almost as much as the playground itself was how well the space handles people. There can seemingly be hundreds of kids here and somehow it doesn't feel like hundreds of kids. The scale absorbs everyone. Instead, you get this constant background soundtrack of giggles, playful screams and kids absolutely exhausting themselves. And somebody clearly thought about the adults. There are huge umbrellas providing shade along with benches, tables and places to settle in while the kids go explore. You quickly understand why the crowd is such an interesting mix: stay-at-home parents making a morning of it, grandparents with their grandchildren, friends meeting up with their kids, and even remote workers squeezing in some laptop time while periodically looking up to make sure everyone is still accounted for. It's less "take the kids to the playground for 30 minutes" and more pack some food, bring water and make this the destination. We're only reviewing the play area for now, but based on this alone, Hyland deserves the five stars. It's enormous without feeling chaotic, ambitious without forgetting the little kids, and thoughtfully designed for the adults who inevitably spend half their day here too. Minnesota does parks exceptionally well. This is one of the ones worth going out of your way for.

Hyland Lake Park is one of my favorite places to rent a kayak and fish for bass in the Twin Cities…read more The lake is never too busy and the bass are always biting :) I easily rented a single-person kayak online and walked up to the rental booth to pick up my life jacket and paddle - off I went! There is a nice sandy beach, and other boats available to rent (including paddle boats!) This is a must-stop for your summer itinerary in Minnesota!

This hidden gem is one of my favorite spots to meet friends and let the kiddos play! The playground…read moreseems new, and has a little mini one for toddlers and babies. Lots of trails to explore, right next to the water! I've seen people fishing as well. There are lots of picnic benches and large covered areas for bigger gatherings! We've attending a kid's birthday party here and it was perfect.

Beautiful, clean park with nice river views and paved trails. Nice bathrooms and picnic areas and…read morebenches.

Great park and trail system on the Mississippi River. There's two sides one in Brooklyn park and…read moreother in coon rapids. You cross the river walking the dam. Theres endless places to fish and lots of trails. Renovated visitor centers and playgrounds.

Oh my gosh it was so beautiful and peaceful with many walking trails and such. A breathtaking view…read moreI could have stayed all day. Excellent for a walk or bike ride. Check out Thursday evenings during the summer for great free music...and free parking! My friends and I enjoyed the amazing Minnesota band, The Power of 10 and danced to it all night long!

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!

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!

We have been trying different playgrounds h the is summer and this one was a total hit!…read more Plenty of free parking. There were two parking lots from what I could tell. There are plenty of walking trails! There is a cute bridge that crosses over the creek! There are also trails that walk next to the creek. Very peaceful and you totally forget you are in the suburbs! The playground equipment is well taken care of and no sand or wood chips! It's all rubber on the ground. There are plenty of activities to keep your kiddos entertained. There is also a basketball court, volleyball court, 3 pavilions, an open field and indoor bathrooms. If those are locked, there are porta potties. There is also a small garden with benches. Overall this is a quality park! One definitely worth visiting!

Great neighborhood park with cute features and close to a stream with walking trails. We come here…read moreoften. Overall it's well kept, lots of kids on the playground.

My family and I wanted to take our dog in a nice trail to enjoy all the fall colors. It was a…read morereally nice well kept up park with picnic benches, bathrooms, and even a fountain for your four footed Trail Blazers. I really enjoyed our time here and look forward to trying the other trails offered at this park.

We hiked for about 3 miles through the woods and prairie. The section along the Crow River was…read morereally nice. The trails are very nice to hike on.

Nice little park with walking trails and a bike path. The trails loop around ponds so there's…read moreplenty of wildlife to see. There is a parking lot with restrooms and water fountains. Nice place for a stroll.

I used to live in Hopkins and hiked this park on a regular basis and loved it…read more At the time I gave it a high rating. I moved away three years ago and this week returned to see what had changed. I was extremely disappointed at the amount of cutting and clearing that has gone on and is still going on. It used to be a nice secluded spot where you could not see any houses for most of the loop. Now houses are visible everywhere along with increased noise from the roads. I know there was a sign up talking about clearing invasive species, but I think something has gotten out of control. It saddens me that I will no longer enjoy walking this park.

Cool hidden memorial park in downtown Anoka. This park has good sitting areas to view the dam and…read moreriver with lots of informational signs that tell the public about the park and river history. Nice Sunday stroll park

A nice walk along the river and from there you could head into downtown Anoka, head through the…read moretunnel and keep wandering along the river, or down the walking trails next to the feed mill. I like taking the dogs here and we've walked it in all seasons.