I love coming to this park with my dog. It's a wonderful 13.8 mi park. Bol park was named after Stanford physicist Cornelis Bol. Bol Park opened to the public in April 1974. There are two donkeys that live there. They are named April and Buddy. You can see them walking the park with their care takers from time to time. You can meet the donkeys for a walk on Sundays from 10-11 a.m. There use to be three donkeys. The third was named Perry and he passed this year, 2025. Perry was the donkey that Disney's- Shrek's donkey was based off of. They are gentle and sweet and friendly to visitors. You can donate to the donkeys at https://barronparkdonkeys.org. My dog and I love walking the pathways and hanging out around the grass fields and trees. It's a great place for kids because of the cute playground, picnic tables and water fountains. read more

Cute mini-donkeys live here! So this is a little park with a childrens playground, vast green meadows and little gardens. It connects with a paved walkway both left to right. So the donkey pen is toward the left of the greenery. Walk about 8 minutes and one can see these little cuties! No dogs, feeding, petting or trespassing by the pen. I did not see any restrooms or water fountains. Location is in a residential area. If the little side parking lot is full, lots of shady residential parking spots to borrow. read more

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The park, what we saw of it, was clean and nice. We visited Buddy, one of the two donkeys currently at the park. April, the other donkey, was at the vet. There were 2 volunteers who were helpful explaining everything. On the way out with our 6 month old boy and 9 month old girl we stopped at the playground near the parking (which was adequate given it was a Friday afternoon). They had a wonderful time swinging on the swings. There were a full set of play things available for slightly older children. Everything was as clean as could be expected. We had a very nice day at the park. read more

Our kids love visiting the donkeys and riding bikes on the path here. It feels more like a quiet nature space than a typical city park. -Play Area: Playground for various ages. -Amenities: Walking paths, picnic spots, donkey pasture. -Shade & Scenery: Natural open space with shaded paths. -Accessibility: Wide paths suitable for strollers and wheelchairs. -Parking: Street parking available. -Good for: Families, nannies, caregivers, daycares read more

Passed through here today on a bike ride, the mixed use path was awesome. Well taken care of pavement. I passed a ton of people out jogging, walking. I also saw people who were commuting on their bikes because the park is well connected. Very easy to pass through to Foothill Expressway! I didn't stop and enjoy the park itself, just its trails, but it looked pretty big! Next time I need to take some pictures. read more

Nice little park/trail with plenty of parking. The trail could have had better signage, there were several offshoots that looked interesting but given they were next to the school, I wasn't sure if I would end up in a dead end so I didn't investigate. I really appreciated the poison oak signage. read more

We love this park. We caught volunteers taking the donkeys out for a walk so it was extra special.

Cornelis, your name sound like a Roman emperor or something. I am not sure if Cornelis Bol was the name of some local hero or similar...I just loved my experience of following my instinct of trusting fellow Yelpers. The other day I was in one of those 'leave me alone, I want to hug trees and draw' moments (remember Mercury is in retro until 3/28!) and always think that Palo Alto has so much greenery and beauty to offer to the sensitive eyes. I read the reviews of this park, and there I went. Amazing, clean, positive vibes, happy families, in the postcard of perfect park and spring time. Birds singing (cute bird house in a huge tree), amazing redwoods here and there in the park, vast amount of grassy areas, creek (with water to soak your feet), bike paths, lovely donkeys, playground...everything so perfect and magical. I advise you to venture to go alone and hug the trees (and take a selfie, otherwise it does not count!). You will also probably park your car across the street and admire and enjoy with your eyes other people's house and front yards (sorry if I picked one or two lemons, they are one dollar each and they were falling, someone has to forage to keep them coming:) read more

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Spent an hour walking hiking in the area. Good leisure stroll and mixture of shaded and unshaded areas. Popular nearby is a donkey farm. PRO TIP: donkeys walk around the park 9-10am on Sundays. read more

Cornelis Bol Park - Parks Near Me - Palo Alto, California

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Donkey park! We visiting the park on a warm summer Friday during lunch. There are some picnic table on the park entrance on Laguna Ave and we sat there for lunch. The field was nearby was wide open and very green that summer day. Very nice! After lunch, the kids played on the nearby play structure. Especially fun were the donkey ride. We took a stroll along the path to see the donkeys. It was a fun little diversion from online classes. read more

Nice park with two play structures for kids to use. There's a wide and open, grassy field that's great for kids to run around or to have family picnics. Next to this park is a long trail that's great for walking, jogging, bike riding, etc. It's paved and perfect for strolling your stroller! Love the area that houses the donkeys. They're an added bonus! Finally, I love how peaceful this park is. A nice place to relax, spend time with your kids/family/friends. read more

decent play structure with various features to hang, spin, slide, climb and venture...woodchip grounds isn't the most convenient for children...sandbox and small features for the little one...long and wide grass field to run and play...paved bol-park bike path passing through the park and gunn high school to arastradero....a donkey farm between, but not seeing any donkeys during visit in january... read more

Cornelis Bol Park - playground - Parks Near Me - Palo Alto, California

Cornelis Bol Park (BP) is a 13.8-acre park located in Palo Alto's Barron Park neighborhood. It's named after the Stanford Physicist who sold a portion of the land to the other residents, at below market value, to help preserve the former pasture. BP is a nice neighborhood park that I'd normally never seek out, because there are equally nicer parks much closer to my South SJ home. However, one anomalous feature drew me to it―but more on that in a minute. First let's get to the standard listing of park features: -Playground -No Restrooms -Large Grassy Field -Native Plant Garden -Picnic Tables but no BBQ Pits -Exposed aggregate path along the East side that follows Matadero Creek -±1.25 mile Paved bike path that runs along the west edge of the park from Arastradero Rd to Hanover St. -BP is the home to the local celebrity Barron Park Donkeys! My main reason for seeking out BP was to visit Perry and Niner, the long-time resident Donkeys. They are allowed to graze the BP grass every Sunday from around 9 a.m. - 10 a.m. For more info on the Donkeys check out my review here: http://goo.gl/kVioyR If you live close-by then BP is probably a regular stop for you, but if you're more than 5-10 miles away then I'd only recommend visiting on Sunday mornings, as Perry and Niner are well-worth a visit! read more

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One of the best find in the heart of Palo Alto. If you love animals, nature, water creek, redwoods trees, birds, Chickens and donkeys then this is your kind of place. Palo Alto for me has been revolving around the California ave and University ave mainly. Glad to have found this amazing location. The only downside of this park is that there are no public restrooms so don't go running to the woods:) read more

Nice large park with playground and sand play area. Nice shade from the trees for having a picnic spot in shade. Good for the little ones ages with swing sets catering to different ages. read more

SO FUN!! Gorgeous paved trail, grass field, standard playground structure, and most importantly...the DONKEYS!! Volunteers come and take them for walks around the playground in the mornings. If they're not out of the fence, just walk a little bit down the trail behind the playground and you'll pass them! read more

Cornelis Bol Park - Donkeys!! - Parks Near Me - Palo Alto, California

Very nice park! Big playground for kids, swings and slide. But the thing I like the most is the very nice bike path and very big green open space to play sports. Really nothing bad to say about it. It's in between houses in a nice neighborhood with plenty of parking right be the park! read more

Cornelis Bol Park - Bike path - Parks Near Me - Palo Alto, California

Pretty, quiet little park set back in a residential area. People riding bikes, running, and walking their dogs. No bathrooms so be prepared. I saw the donkeys! You have to go across the bridge then they are on your right. They get breakfast are walked in the park 10 am - 11 am on Sundays but you can see them at their gate any day or time. read more

Cornelis Bol park is located in Barron Park neighborhood of Palo Alto, behind the Gunn High, between Barron and Matadero Avenues, bordered by the paved road and Matadero Creek on its sides, with a nice walking path along the way. The donkeys, Niner and Perry, are the "best kept secret" in Palo Alto. Perry was the model for the movie Shrek!!! From their enclosed pasture, they are brought to the park plaza every Sunday morning for regular visits with kids. Did you know that descendants of Cornelis Bol, who came from Netherlands and was a Stanford physicist, sold their donkey pasture of nearly 5 acres to Barron Park residents for only $65K? At the time, it was half the market price, and became what is now the Cornelis Bol park in the early 1970s. Donkeys lived on Bol's property since the early 30s though (not Perry and Niner of course, but the earlier residents of the pastures). read more

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I could almost give this park 5 stars, but I am a pretty tough grader and tend to be stingy with my 5's. So - we really like Bol Park, and that's driven by the fact that our toddler loves to visit what he calls "Donkey Park". It's a little out of the way, but that limits the traffic, which is a good thing if you have small children running around. The donkeys (Perry and Niner) tend to be a showcase, and on Sundays they are brought to the main park to graze on the grass and visit with park visitors. If you go at a different time, just walk on down the paved road/trail that runs parallel to the large grassy area behind the playground equipment, and you'll find the donkey pasture about 1/8 mile away. I didn't see anyone write about Perry and Niner. Perry is the miniature donkey on which the animated Shrek Donkey was based in the popular movies by Dreamworks (true story). You can definitely see the resemblance, and it's fun to visit our resident animal star. Allegedly the animators used the coloring from Niner, but that story is unconfirmed. There are also goats and chickens that can be seen, and there is a ton of space to run around on the grass to play soccer or throw a frisbee around, etc. A great park, especially for taking your young children. read more

What a great park! I got to stroll my younger son around the dirt and paved path, while my older kids rode their bike and long board. Another great treat for the kids were the two friendly donkeys hanging around near the fence. The donkeys were super friendly as they allowed us to pet them for a long time. They must like all the attention! After spending some time with the donkeys, we strolled around the park some more, and then played in the playground. We also had a light snack/picnic on the grass since the park did not have a lot of picnic tables. In fact, I think I only saw one table. Nevertheless, this park is worth visiting. read more

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First time to Bol Park, and the Only reason for me to go there on Tues 8/7/07 was to see Vienna Teng for FREE! She's from Saratoga, graduate of Stanford, worked at Cisco as an engineer, but then decided to pursue her music career. Man, she's so cool! I have all 3 of her CDs. It was part of City of Palo Alto's Twilight Concert Series: http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/recreation/news/details.asp?NewsID=481&TargetID=7 So after work drove to Bol Park. It's pretty easy to find. Between Barron & Matadero on El Camino Real. They have a children's playground and supposedly some animals (didn't see them, though I think I saw some cages but not sure off to the side). There were some portable toilets near the street. There was an opening act: Austin Willacy, who lives in SF, born in DC, and grew up in Cleveland OH. He did a 30 minute show, 6 songs. He was pretty good. His website: http://www.austinwillacy.com/ Vienna Teng came on at 6:30-8pm and did 18 songs. Love her stories that she tells before her singing her original songs. If I wasn't so cheap I'd see her in concert at Mountain Winery or other places she goes to. Great show! Catch her if you ever see her name anywhere. Her website: http://viennateng.com/ read more

Love this park beautiful clean peaceful no dog poo on the grass lol my boys love it enjoy the walkway paths, clean nice safe playground nevertheless the friendly donkeys I made it my go to once a week., worth the drive.. read more

Came here on Sat. Saw two donkeys. Kids were happy. The first half of the trail has a lot of shade. The rest is ok . Playground is dated but big. Overall ok park in the middle of a city. read more

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Cute park, nice trails, and friendly donkeys on the way! read more

Cornelis Bol Park - Donkey friends - Parks Near Me - Palo Alto, California

This definitely becomes my favorite park in Palo Alto. I've visited many parks in palo alto with my dog. This is by far the nicest one. 1) plenty of street parking off Laguna. I was there on sunday 2pm, there were only 3 other cars 2) Very nice layout. While most park is square, this is elongated rectangle. It extends all the way to the bike path which leads to a "furry" surprise! 3) On the right side of the park is the bike bath which leads all the way back to Arastradero/Foothill. On the left side of the park is compacted sand road along the Matadero creek, there is a stone step which you can decent to the creek, the creek is super clean. Along the path there are many trees, plenty of shades even on a hot day. 4) You can sense the fresh air as soon as you enter the park, this park is somewhat remote and away from major roads. 5) The furry friend is definitely a hot spot. Apparently the donkey from shrek is modeled after the donkey at this park, it's along the side of the bike path, just keep walking all the way to the very end of the park and cross the bridge. read more

Love this little trail that leads to the donkeys (As a tourist, keep walking the trail, pass the little bridge and the donkeys will be immediately to your right) It's January and the grass is muddy bring running shoes or boots. Dogs are allowed but always on a leash, they are strict on that. read more

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This is one of my favorite parks in Palo Alto - it totally trumps our neighborhood park, Henry Seale Park, which quite frankly, ain't too bad itself. Bol Park combines both great play structures and lots of great open space to explore. I love that there is a huge grassy area where the kiddies can run off their excess energy, a bubbling creek next to the grass, swings in the shade, an awesome play structure with a super high slide, and a walking path that leads you to the two famed donkeys. My only beef is that I don't live within walking distance! read more

Would never have known about it until the PA Weekly wrote the article about Perry and Niner. The resident donkeys are darling. The park is quite linear and makes for a great walk. Play area for little kids. Just a lovely oasis not very far off the beaten path of El Camino. Note: Perry and Niner need contributions to pay for their food and care. The Palo Alto Donkey Project is accepting contributions through ACTERRA, 3921 East Bayshore Road, Palo Alto, CA 94303-4303. The check must be made out to "ACTERRA-Palo Alto Donkey Fund." I encourage you to go meet the donkeys and then make a contribution. You'll feel really good! read more

"Meh" is the best adjective I can come up with to describe this park. The field is very nice, but the play structures are all out in the sun so they get kind of warm, and there's just not that much to them. The donkeys are cool (in fact, Perry, the small one, was the model for "Donkey" from Shrek), but if you don't catch them when they're grazing, then they're off in a barbed-wire fenced-in yard about 1/4 mile up the bike path. Not a great place to let my young daughter roam... she would probably walk right into the barbs. I'd much rather visit Cuesta Park in Mtn View, and then go see the animals at Deer Hollow Farm in Rancho San Antonio. read more

Bol Park is a great park, with one drawback: inconsiderate dog owners who think they are above the law and let their dogs roam around unleashed. Bol Park is not a dog run. There are several signs that very clearly state that all dogs must be on a leash. This means every dog, regardless of how friendly you believe your little Fido to be. Other than that issue, it's a beautiful park. Come, enjoy. And bring your dog, but keep it on a leash! read more

I would come here again, though not go out of my way-- I've been to nicer parks in the South Bay. The playground is great, with a sandbox and a toddler-appropriate structure. (Naturally, my toddler went straight for the big kids' structure, though.) There are donkeys and chickens along the path. The donkeys are very friendly, though you have to greet them just at the gate-- the rest of their enclosure is barbed wire. My toddler went nuts for the donkeys. The chickens look like they're on private property, and are in a nice fenced-in coop, inaccessible except visually. Still, it was fun watching them cluck around. What would make this park better? Shade Seating for grownups near the sandbox Restrooms (preferably clean) read more

Bol park is by far the best park to be located next to a highschool which still practices an open campus policy. I have been enjoying this park since the late 80's when I used to have sumemr school at gunn. My first memories of the park include catching craw daddies in the crick as well as feeding mickey the mule. As I grew older the memories shift to cutting class to smoke in 'sherwood forest.' And when the path was over run with stoners and drunks, bol park was always a good alternative. This park gets five stars because it is still cool. I mean seriously, when was the last time you needed a place to smoke at night, but everywhere you go is too well lit? when was the last time you felt like taking a walk under the stars with your friends jim and jose? I love this place for what has been for me and what it will be for the next generation of stoners and druggies. read more

The fam was out and about in Palo Alto, and we were looking for an easy bike trail for the kids. We found this cool park, along with it's two donkey mascots: Perry and Niner.. Very nice play structure and lots of shady trees (small creek as well) to relax and kick back while the kids have fun. I definitely recommend this unique little park. read more

Cornelis Bol Park - Parks Near Me - Palo Alto, California

I do enjoy it when the famous neighborhood donkeys are walked around this area and allowed to graze on the grass in this park. You can always tell which kids have grown up with these magnificent creatures because they treat them as if they are another park fixture while those new to park and playground are transfixed on them. It's a great scene and one so rare in this area. read more

Ah, Bol Park! I love the two donkeys, the endless stream of dog-walkers and joggers, the dude walking his dozen or so goats... I miss getting drunk in high school and rolling down the grassy hills, and smoking cigarettes behind the bushes during PE class. I think it's not really a memorable park on its own merit, but growing up near it makes me sort of sentimental. I still walk my doggy here when I am back in Palo Alto! read more

The park itself is one of the best parks I know. And who wouldn't love the donkeys and other animals you can see next to the park. Only four stars because there are no restrooms and for visiting the park with toddlers, this is a problem. read more

Charming out-of-the-way park. It's a long strip of grass bounded by a bike path and Matadero Creek. There's a shaded path with a few benches along the creek side, along with a place where you can go down to the creek which is a few inches deep and flows slowly year-round (except after heavy rainfall). The park is popular with people taking picnics, generally just sprawled out on the grass. There's one picnic table right next to the playground, which is a good place to host a small birthday party. Up at the far end are Perry and Niner, the famous Palo Alto donkeys. On a Sunday morning they sometimes come out of their enclosure into the park. They're super friendly and will often come to their gate if they see people there. If you're looking for a park for your kids, dogs or for just hanging out, try this one. read more

Squirrel army. Bol Park is a wonderful park to explore. The nestled local lowers the crowding, plenty of structures for the little ones, and enough acres to spend some time walking or biking. Do watch your step if you're running backwards to catch the fly ball, however, as the squirrels have created a massive network of underground tunnels; no doubt with evil intent. read more

This is a GREAT running trail!! It's a lot shorter than I expected it to be, but it's all paved (my knees appreciated a break from running on cement sidewalks). It's a great quiet/peaceful path on a Saturday morning! There are also water fountains at one place along the path so if you're on a LOOOOOONNNG training run, this is a GREAT place to fill up!!! And the donkey's along the way are pretty cute too :) And totally unfazed by all the humans walking by. read more