What a beautiful park!…read more During a quick trip to Iowa we kept our activities limited to outdoor activities and carry out eats. I pulled up the Yelp app to find a park to explore and voila, there was Vander Veer Botanical Park. It was a toasty 93 degree day so we were quickly drawn to the plentiful shaded spaces found throughout this large park. In addition to a botanical garden (which we didn't visit specifically), they also have a rose garden, small pond with a fountain, long shaded promenade, and plentiful paved paths for walking. We strolled through the rose garden and then were naturally drawn to the long shaded walkway that leads up to a large and entertaining fountain at the end. This park has so many lovely uses for varying audiences and interests. Highly recommend giving it a visit if you find yourself in the Quad Cities!

It the most fun me and my kid add I love how handicap accessible it was in the summerread more

A beautiful 200 acre park located on the north side of Clinton on the bluffs overlooking the…read moreMississippi River. You can picnic,hike or cross country ski in this treasured asset of Clinton. There is a historic lodge which we did not visit and a castle turret open for stair climbs and fantastic views of the Mississippi . Lots of play areas, restrooms, pavilions and trails makes this park a fun way to spend a day.

Nice park, love climbing the old tower and the great views. A lot of play areas, restrooms,…read morepavilions, and trails. Needs a little better maintenance and some tree trimming to improve the views.

I have been looking for a waterfall that doesn't require any hiking and voila this is what I found…read more We went to this place on the way to Galena it is called Thunder Bay waterfalls you just park walk a little bit and the Falls is there they even have a selfie station or a ledge that you can put your phone in and just take your selfies it's a pretty nice place to stop at for a few minutes and just take pictures. Happy sighting!

Discovered this nice , small waterfall in the Galena Illinois area. You don't need to spend much…read moretime here , maybe fifteen minutes tops. If you're in the area , it's worth a quick stop for some nice photos. The parking area is located very close to the falls. Maybe a two hundred yard walk. The terrain is a little bit bumpy for elderly people to walk on, but you can still view the falls from the road above if you don't want to get out of the car. The water empties into a beautiful , slow moving stream , surrounded by wildflowers. This attraction is free to view.

Have been here for my wife's family reunion the last 3 years. Great little park by the Rock River,…read morenice covered picnic area reserved for the family. We also got to play the 9 hole disc golf course. Short but still a fun challenge.

Before we left Dixon, my mon and I wanted to check out this place and it was definitely worth it…read more Once we got to the waterfront, it was beautiful. Clear water and a lot of parks. They also had metal bench swings overlooking the water and it was very pretty. I wish we spent more time there but the time we spent was very nice. Would be back soon. P.S. they have an frisbee golf so i definitely want to do that when I come back

We returned to the Illiniwek again this year because we enjoyed the location, sites, and views…read more They only have electric and water, but no sewer. However, there is a dump station. Also, you can only stay two weeks per month. In September you can stay three weeks. We are in the area for the months of June and July. Even without a sewer hookup we'd stay the entire time, if there wasn't a time limit on it.

Staying here was my first camping experience since moving to the Quad Cities, and we had a great…read moretime! We camped with four adults and three preschool aged children and there was plenty for all of us to do. We stayed along the river at a tent site, and had plenty of space. The campgrounds were clean and quiet, and only $16 for the night. With little ones, it was especially great that there are clean, stocked restrooms. We really enjoyed being on the river at our site, but also the easy walk along the bike trail that connects to other parks. Overall, I highly recommend this site for easy, nearby camping.

This review is for the kids area at veterans memorial park…read more The play area is well laid out and maintained. The ground doesn't have mulch, but a nice padded floor. There are 6 swings, multiple slides and 3 benches for parents to sit and watch over their children.

This is a great park for a variety of ages. There are two areas 1}Toddlers 2}Kindergarten and Up…read more I am reviewing the toddler section since I have twin 1.5 year old girls. The toddler section was very nice and safe. The canopy on a portion of it to shield from the sun. The slides seemed appropriate as far as safety. I liked the squishy type ground for this play area. Its a welcomed change from rocks or wood chips. The fencing around the playground is also nice. And more then one park bench inside the fence was appreciated.

This was a really nice park. We camped here for 2 nights the first weekend in May. Weather ranged…read morefrom lows in the 40s to highs in the sixties. The campgrounds all have a table, grill, and electricity. There are pit toilets w/potable water w/in an easy walk of every camp-site. They were clean and did not smell. There is one shower facility w/flush toilets and showers for the entire campground. Also clean and well maintained. Privacy at each campsite varied widely from some which were well wooded and could only see a couple of neighbors to those near the playground which were very open. We could hear a train going by nearby at night but it wasn't too loud. There is a lake, a restaurant where you can purchase firewood or rent paddleboats, and a few decent hiking trails. This was a nice park and we would happily camp here again.

A group of us went camping here this past weekend and I thought it was a nice place! It is a pretty…read morequick drive from Chicago, about 2 and a half hours with the usual 290 nightmarish traffic situation. We left at like 9AM on a Saturday and it was like rush hour, wtf. The campsites are spread out fairly well so you aren't too close to your neighbors. We stayed in the 1-25 ring. We had 4 couples and we each rented a campsite, but I almost think you could share a campsite with 4 people total too and it wouldn't be too tight. The lake (Carlton) is gorgeous and they have a little restaurant right on it that was cute and a great location. You can rent canoes, sailboats, paddleboats, etc on the lake. There are a lot of hiking trails as well. The gnats were a little out of control and I don't know if there is anything better at keeping them away, but bugspray didn't really work. They are just kinda irritating. I'd recommend bringing grill grates if you have them to put over the grill because some of them are kinda dirty. Also, they do allow alcohol, which is one of the reasons we picked it, I mean, camping without beer? No way! The bathrooms aren't too bad for camping and they also have a place to shower, we didn't go as we were only there for one night, but they do have showers. It seemed to be well maintained and patrolled. The forest ranger guy came by a few times and he was nice. If you are looking for a quick weekend getaway, this is a great spot to get out of the city for some fresh, pollution free air!

This is a beautiful park with super interesting geological formations (especially striking at the…read morelower level picnic area and the Punchbowl Trail). For a quick visit the Punchbowl Trail is a good short hike (a couple of miles to and back?) but there are some steep stairs if you end up on certain paths. To avoid the stairs park at the lower level and hike on the (mostly) level path to and back... The Boundary Trail is also awesome and usually very peaceful, but it takes quite a bit longer and there will be a few steep hills... The Pine Creek Grist Mill is a picturesque historic site in the park, with its own spacious parking lot, a cool bridge across the creek, and an old schoolhouse and cabin...the mill is open limited hours during part of the year...it was interesting to see the mill machinery and learn about the historic flour-making processes (but it's very hot in the building during the summer months)... Nice shelters and campsites, too, some with fireplaces and fire pits...there's probably not a spot in the park that is not scenic!

Visited for the first hike of the spring. It is my first time here. We drove from Iowa City and it…read morewas about 50mins of views of empty corn field (well it is just Iowa). The park is not very big. We went on an hiking trail near the parking lot. It would have been nice to have some sort of map or marking/signs in the park but we failed to find any. As an result I think we made a wrong turn and had too short of a hike as the result. No running water available in the bathroom so be prepared to bring hand sanitizer. But otherwise the visit was enjoyable, my friends' bunny enjoyed hopping around on the grass near the picnic area (pretty clean).

Rented out the club house for a group event. It is a nice location with a reasonable rate for the…read morerental. The club house has air conditioning and a full kitchen with an operating refrigerator and stove. Lots of long tables and chairs available. A little outdated, but great for the price.

McManus Park has a lot of things for kids of various ages to play with. Swings, slides, rock…read moreclimbing, etc. The downside is the amount of bugs is mind-boggling. As a parent, I was tired swatting the bugs but the kids were having fun.