Lovely park along the Norwalk River with some great walking/jogging trails. A few steps and lots of…read morehills for those looking for a bit of a challenge. The park's paths are long enough to get in a decent workout. Childrens playground in the front of park near the parking lot. Park is clean and well kept. The free parking lot accessible from North Water Street accommodates about 25 vehicles. Walking distance to/from the Maritime Aquarium...great stop before or after your visit there.

This is a fantastic little park, adjacent to the Norwalk Aquarium on Water Street…read more There's a small free parking lot and a playground, which is kind of in a difficult spot right now because unfortunately construction workers nearby are using it as their parking lot to avoid the parking fees, but there's street parking along Water Street, or you could park in the garage for the Aquarium. Anyway, like I said there's a nice little playground structure, and there were kids having a fun time when I visited. Beyond that, there are a couple of trails that lead out into the park itself, which is a large mound. This mound was, once upon a time, the town garbage dump. But as so often happens around the country, yesterday's garbage dump is today's cool park, and that's definitely the case here. There's a path that goes around the bottom, and another trail that links to that, going up the top of the mound. There's a lot of interesting art sculptures from the top, and views of the Norwalk River and surrounding area. There's another trail that links into and is cosigned as both the Norwalk River Valley Trail and the Norwalk Harbor Loop Trail. Both of those trails link this park to the Pine Island Cemetery, Matthews Park, and the Stepping Stones Children's Museum, on the other side of 95 and the RR tracks. This is definitely a great park to visit and to work off some energy if you have kids that just haven't been tired out enough by the Aquarium.

Beautiful little spot right on the harbor. Lots of different sea and shore birds for the bird…read morenerds. Also, lots of eye candy for the photographers.

Large waterfront park with lots of grassy areas, jogging/walking paths, two baseball diamonds and…read moresome basketball courts. A few nice sculptures and some fact posters around the park. It was very quiet (only a few cars) there when I visited on a Friday, mid-morning. Lots of parking spaces but non-Norwalk residents must pay the $6 parking fee to park at all time. Parking can be paid using the ParkMobile app. Might be more worth it for locals who come regularly to jog/walk...but I can't say the $6 fee is worth it for visitors unless they have other interested there...i.e. attending a game.

This is a nice off-leash dog park located in Norwalk by Calf Pasture Beach. There are usually a…read moregood number of dogs there at all times, so if your dog is off-leash, you'll want to make sure that they act appropriately. There is a small body of water, but it gets very, very muddy, so I would bring a few towels if you plan on letting your dog get wet. There isn't really a trail, per se, but there are a few rambling paths in the wooded area of the park. It's not huge, but it's large enough that dogs will have plenty of space to run and play fetch. It's larger than any gated dog parks I've been to in the area. The only downside of the park is very limited parking and you have to make sure you have an up-to-date Norwalk city permit. They are very strict about enforcing it. I once forgot my permit and I got a ticket!

Great place to take a dog, or just have a stroll. Golf course size dog park, lot's of friendly dogs…read moreand people about. If you don't have "norwalk parking permit" park on nearby public street and walk to the park . (look for the roundabout at "calf pasture beach" and "marvin"

Stratford may be the only town in the state that has it's own forest. Others have State of CT…read moreforests but I'm unaware of municipally owned forests. Regardless, this is such a great asset! There's a peaceful little pond next to a parking area if you just want to relax with a cup of coffee or sandwich. There's a bonafide camping area that you can reserve that will handle a largish crowd and has composting toilets. There are so many hiking trails and you can see coyote and bear and all kinds of other wildlife if you're lucky. The trails are easy to follow and well marked and it's very hard to get lost. There's a picnic area that will be good for families or larger groups. There's even a small dog park on the road in. Love this forest!

Best go to trail walk, its always empty which is good for when i go after work on fridays with my…read moreHusky. The sitting area by the pond is the best spot. 4 different trails depending on how far you want to walk. The pond is the entrance

This is my dog's favorite park Always lots of dogs and the people are friendly and for the most…read morepart everybody cleans up after their dog Love this place

Coming to this spot is starting to become a weekly ritual for our family. The park isn't anything…read morefancy but is a good size, fenced in area, and kept pretty clean. There are plenty of benches and tables for the humans to sit, water bowls for the dogs, and owners are generally good about picking up after their dogs and watching that they stay out of trouble. There's also a separate small dog area. Our dog loves it there and we have a pretty good time too.

Enjoy the sunset as you watch your dog with others play around at the Shelton dog park ! This dog…read morepark is huge and my dogs enjoy going there. If you have a male dog it must be neutered in order to come to the park. Be sure to wear clothes you don't mind getting dirty because many of the dogs love jumping on people (including my little husky! ) otherwise you will end up like my sister in the image I added here LOL.

What an excellent park! Small dog enclosure, large dog enclosure, walking trails and ample…read moreparking. Shelton has done a wonderful job with this park. Many of the locals gripe, however, that the town doesn't hasn't made its upkeep a priority. No clue whether that's true but special places like this are gathering spots enhancing life and community, which is sorely needed in these days of social isolation. Therefore, any projects developing community care ought to be nurtured and expanded for its citizenry to thrive instead of only survive.

I have always liked going there for a fun day of swimming and just plain enjoying my time there in…read morethe summer. The fact that after all these years it is still standing tells me that the people still enjoy going there and still want it to be preserved.

The signage is not great, especially if you are looking for the waterfall. But once found, it was a…read moregreat hike. There are 3 different trails, from 0.5m to 1m each way. You can go to the summit and get to see the beautiful river or head down to the waterfall. Unfortunately we went after a dry summer, and the waterfall was a very small trickle which was anticlimactic. But the hike was still fun. Warning: some paths are very narrow and can only take one person at a time. If going with kids, be warned. If your kids are prone to not listening and wandering, this is not the right hike. The paths are not paved and the risk of getting hurt if varying off-course are great. Since I mentioned about the signage...here are some tips. If you go to the general parking area, that is for the beach. It is very pretty to walk along and take photos or launch kayaks...but this is not the parking lot for the waterfall. Instead, go to the small parking lot on the other side of the road (do not pass the train tracks). If you go right, there is good signage that explains the 3 trails and markers. If you go left, it's the shortest 0.5m path directly to the waterfall (it's the red/blue path). Enjoy!

This is a great little park located right next door to the North Branch public library. It's gated,…read morehas a splash pad, in fact and regular swings, a few tables with benches, tennis courts, and best of all, lots of parking. Perfect for all ages! In a quiet neighborhood and there is a woman selling ices and other things in front. A GEM! I ended up finding this park because Ellsworth park's splash pad hasn't been working.