I love Laura Bradley Park! It holds lots of fond memories for me. There's a playground in the top…read moreand bottom section of the park! Gotta love the dog park if you have doggos. Lots of little attractions to see like the Chinese bridge. Plenty of roadways in the parks for walking and bike riding. Great place to visit year round!

Beautiful park near Bradley University. Plenty of walking areas, not really many trails, more of an…read moreopen set up. This park has a lot to offer, including a Frisbee golf course, two fenced in dog parks, sand volleyball, picnic areas and tennis courts. Plenty of free parking in multiple lots throughout the park. The dog parks include a smaller, more secluded dog park on the top and a large dog park on the bottom, separated into small and large breed fenced areas. The dog parks are often packed with wagging tails on the weekends. No fee and doggie bags are provided by the people. Each season brings something gorgeous to view in nature's little hideaway.

Beautiful natural area, nature center is very kid-centered with friendly help, small gift shop,…read morebenches and picnic tables for resting!

Review Visit: September 29th, 2013…read more I remember coming here a few times as a kid on field trips. It was awesome as kid. They taught us about animals, bugs, nature and everything else outdoorsy. Then we got to hike a smaller trail as a group. Maybe this is what caused me to be such an avid outdoors person. Coming back here after about 2 decades was a huge nostalgic trip. Nothing had changed from what I remember as a kid. I'm sure things have been changed and updated since the early 90's, but it still retained that feel and look I remember as kid. The main building has set hours, but I do believe you can hike there before they open, as long as you follow the rule of 'no hiking before sunrise and after sunset'. Don't quote me on that. Inside the building is a small gift shop. There are quite a few learning activity areas to enrich yourself on local foliage and fauna. They hold a lot of events here, so you are surely able to drop in once a week and encounter some fun activity going on. There are plenty of trails to hike. If you want a quick hike, they have short trails. If you desire something challenging, you can hike some tough trails. Just be careful, I know a few people who have wandered off the path and ended up in a business area of Peoria Heights. The last time I was there, they had a 100-mile hike challenge. It was $10-15 to sign up and you record your hiking distances in a book there. Once you reach 100 miles, you get an award of some sort. I think it was a t-shirt and a certificate. Ive been wanting to sign up for it since I learned about it. But life gets busy. :/ Parking is plentiful but be warned; its a popular place, so there is usually a good amount of cars there at all time. But you shouldn't have a problem most of the time finding a parking spot. If you are native to the area and haven't been here, do yourself a favor and check it out. If yo are from out of town, also do yourself a favor and stop by for a quick hike. You won't regret it.

Matthiessen State Park is such a gem. The trails take you through gorgeous canyons, lush greenery,…read moreand peaceful streams that make you forget how close you are to the city. The waterfall views are the highlight and absolutely worth the hike in, especially when the sun hits the rocks and everything feels like a hidden escape. The trails are well marked and offer a good mix of easy walks and more adventurous climbs, so there is something for everyone. Even on a busier day you can still find quiet corners to enjoy the sound of the water and the view of the sandstone cliffs. If you enjoy hiking, photography, or just want a beautiful spot to reset in nature, this park is a must visit. Bring good shoes, some water, and be ready to take a ton of photos.

Fantastic place to hike and explore. Not too crowded and lots of space to wander and exploreread more

Another childhood location revisited…read more Detweiller Park is a place I have fond, if not faded, memories from my childhood. I remember coming here on a few field trips and also coming here to slide down their sledding hill. My friend Mary and I set out to hike some trails we grew up traversing and I said yes. We got there early to beat the heat and discovered about 30 games of kindergarten-level of soccer being played. Glad to see kids will have fond memories of this place as I do. Once we got parked, we headed out and hit some trails. Being super rusty with the area, we poked around here and there trying to find where and what to hike. At one point, we had an elderly gentleman walk up to us and give an assessment on some trails we were debating on hiking. We didn't really want to take this northern path that lead 7 miles away, so we took the Pimiteoui South trail about the lower part of the park, then took Dry Run trail to stretch out the afternoon before ending it too early. It was a nice leisure stroll with a friend on a sunny and breezy afternoon. The entire soccer fields, once full with kids, were completely empty. In fact, the park was nearly empty by the time we got back to the parking lot. We saw more cars drive through the park than people hiking in the park. While there are some trails, this isn't the place to come if you are looking for some dedicated hiking trails like you can get at Forest Park Nature Center but still a great place to escape to nature.

This park is soo Amazing & beautiful scenery also. Would highly recommend this park for anything…read more Lots of room to play sports and etc.!

Review Visit: August 11th, 2015…read more Not to be confused with the Riverfront Park in Pekin. Though both offer a majestic view of the might Illinois River. Just how majestic is the view of the Illinois River? I'd rate that a 2.5/5 only because the landscape is pretty. If you come to Riverfront Park, you really need to visit for a few reasons. One, this park is a wide open flat park that is just serene on a beautiful day. Also, there is an old train turntable that nature has taken over. Just what it is doing there after the railroads have long since disappeared, I don't know but I can say that it was a nice little surprise when Matt and I came upon it during our walk of the park. I would have to guess that it is a relic from the old days when Peoria pumped out the alcoholic spirits en masse. Reason two for visiting. There is a nice little garden set off to the side of the park. It's called the Constitution Garden and you can read about that in the linked blog post. Last reason to visit is to check out the Dan Fogelberg Memorial which, again, you can read at the linked blog post. Aside from those three things, there isn't much else to do at this park but maybe get some running in. With it being next to the river, I would assume there are some running trails carved out by either people or the park district. If you had an afternoon to spend on exploring some of Peoria's unknown attractions, you wouldn't be wasting your time here, especially if you came on a gorgeous spring day. I guess you could also get a view of the river, but that's not a real selling point for any Illinois resident.

This park became home to the Dan Fogelberg memorial in 2010, but prior to that it was still a cool…read moredestination in my book due to the old railway turntable or wheelhouse that is on display there. I'm sure it's been there since the 80s because I remember seeing it when I was a kid. The park itself is pretty nice with paved, lighted paths along the Rock Island/Pimiteoui Trail with views of the river. Several people use the trail there for running, walking and biking. The Peoria Riverfront Museum's Community Solar System model's earth model is located in the park as well. There is a parking lot at the site.

Great park for kids of all ages! Splash pad in the summer is a great time as well!! The restrooms…read morewere very clean and I have no complaints!!

Great park for young kids. Gets busy during summer afternoons. There's a decently large playground…read morewith a padded ground, multiple tall slides, monkey bars. Next to the playground is a large splash pad with several shaded benches. Not much shade to be found elsewhere in the park. Small concession stand open when we went (June). Bathrooms at the entrance to the playground/splash pad. Several picnic tables on the other side of the parking lot that are partly shaded by trees.

Good park that's one of the best things about Bloomington. It of course has a zoo, the most notable…read morething about it. Miller Park is also a place for other recreational activities such as shooting hoops and walking. Has a playground to entertain young children. There's also a lake that has a cool bridge that makes for classic scenery. An interesting history about it. It's the largest park in the city to be sure. The park is best known for the zoo. Actually it has an interesting history itself. The zoo has its own business page on Yelp. As for the rest of the park, there's other stuff worth exploring. There's a pretty big lake. Go take a walk across the stone bridge. The park also has a mini golf course and softball fields among other things. Also check out a preserved steam locomotive. There's also a pavilion for those wanting to have a picnic. Has lots of activities throughout the year including festivals and fireworks. It's located east of Morris Avenue and south of Wood Street. They also have entertainment such as outdoor theater.

Great place to walk or relax. Has a splash pool for kids, a pavilion for events, paddle boating on…read morea lake, a stocked lake for fishing, trails to walk around, picnic areas, a gazebo, a baseball field, a monument to war veterans, a monument to firefighters, lots of open fields both in the sun, and shade, and easy access to downtown Bloomington. We went to the zoo, and then we spent two hours just exploring.

Wha a lovely stop on my day trip today! I loved observing the winter phase of the outdoor gardens…read moreas well as the permanent art pieces and sculptures. The real treat was the greenhouse space though! I really love to learn all the names of everything around me and they're all expertly labeled with large font which my group appreciated. And nice that admission is free! Be sure to leave a donation though.

Review Visit: October 21st, 2012…read more A neat little garden tucked away in the corner of Glen Oak Park. Like many things on my travel list, Luthy's was one that I never heard of until I started looking around for things to do and places to visit. Discovering that there was a botanical garden next to the Peoria Zoo/Glen Oak Park was a surprise as I had been through the area a handful of times but never noticed it before. Sure, I saw the signs along the roads in Peoria but I figured it was nothing more than a place to buy flowers. A quick Google search soon proved I was way wrong. Doing what I do best, I loaded my car up with a few people and set out to see what the Luthy had to offer. If I remember right, there was a small parking lot available to use despite the fact the gardens is tucked away in this recreational area. We approached the front entrance and headed in. There is no fee to access the gardens but donations are very appreciated. After talking to the person at the entrance, we dropped a few bucks in to a donation box and headed towards the first part. The first place was kind of a greenhouse garden. It was inside a building that facilities the growth and sustainability to a multitude of flowers and plants. I am no green thumb but the fact that they could have so many different species in a small space was impressive. Also, they had a bunch of Nightmare Before Christmas decorations up at the time of our visit. Seeing as it was 10 days before Halloween, this must be how they were decorating for that year. I'm not a big Nightmare fan but it was cool to see them use that movie to spook the place up. As we moved on past the greenhouse, we emerged in to this open area that had a bit of a trail you could follow to see most of the outside gardens. This little path was not so little once you realized how sprawling the outside area was. There were many things to see along the way as we slowly walked and took in the scenes. They had a not just flowers and plants but small sculptures and statutes scattered throughout. Similar to what you would see in the movies when there are public gardens or mansions with a garden area the size of a city block. You can see some of these in the gallery below but in the years since, they may have changed stuff around. I said earlier that I am no green thumb, so trying to describe Luthy in technical detail is beyond my capacity. Despite that, you don't need to know the difference between a dandelion and a tulip to enjoy the sheer beauty of this place. It's a combination of quaint, serene, beautiful and peaceful. Sometimes you need those things in this day and age. If you are able to visit, please do so. You won't regret it. If Peoria, IL is no on your radar due to a million reasons, check your local area to see if there are any botanical gardens to visit. I am sure they are just as lovely.

Are dogs on a leash allowed in the park? I have a French Bulldog. My dog would like meeting farm…read moreanimals.

Great place for toddlers! The animals are very well taken care of and the place looks very clean!…read moreMy niece who is 2 years old has an amazing time feeding the cows, rabbits, ducks, horses, sheep and hens! The park has a good play area too! They also have plenty of seating arrangements - benches, wooden swings and chairs where you can rest and relax under the trees. Overall I would totally recommend this place!