If you are looking for a quiet space to enjoy nature and unplug from the technology of modern…read moresociety then I highly recommend exploring this park. We came here to fish, forage for wild foods, and relax. All three of these were checked off the list at this state park. Little did I know this is a crystal and fossil hotbed. If you look in the right spots there are many different types of treasures to be found.

I really enjoy this lake! Park areas are big and spacious. Easy to access the lake in several…read moreareas. We spent some time by the water's edge fishing and hammocking today, very peaceful. They had removed all the docks, most likely in an effort to reduce the amount of people around during this COVID19, stay at home pandemic. We were still able to find spots to fish and relax in though. In the past I have camped at a campground within the park around the lake and really enjoyed it! Dog friendly too!

What a great spot! Feels like a million miles away from Bloomington. So calm and peaceful…read more We enjoyed the well marked hiking trails. Would love to return and get out on the water!

Visiting Griffy Lake was one of my favorite adventures while in Bloomington for a fall weekend…read moregetaway. It's a scenic, windy drive to the lake with a large parking lot. It even looks like you can rent kayaks and boats here. We followed the boardwalk path and enjoy sitting on the bench admiring the fall foliage before following the path through the woods and marsh area. On a Sunday morning, there were families and dogs walking through the trails.

Being someone who grew up here this park was a staple of my childhood. Its changed some but overall…read morenot much. They have pickleball courts, basketball courts, a city pool with splash pad, multiple shelters you can rent for get togethers, trails to hike, disc golf course, playground for the kids, and the greatest sledding hill in Indiana come winter time. For the 4th of July, they always shoot off fireworks off the top of the hill for the whole town to see. Arguably one of the best city parks in all of Indiana given the hilly terrain and all the activities.

This public park for Martinsville is comparable to Pioneer Park in Moorseville. There are four…read moretennis courts and two full size basketball courts or they can be used as four half courts. They have a full size pool with a water slide, a splash pad and a good size facilities building to accommodate their water park. Both parks are very similar in that respect. This park might have better shelters depending on your point of view but definitely a couple more with a total of nine. Most are fully enclosed and most have fireplaces. Most have some sort of playground equipment at each shelter location. These shelters can be more accomdodating in inclement weather or during colder weather. But enclosed ones have ways to open them up for summer weather such as one or more garage doors. Parking is plentiful at most shelters and all have access to a paved road. There are trails for hiking, a large fishing pond and a dedicated playground with a huge spaceship structure at its core. A dog park is available. My only complaint is there is no sign that I saw directing you to the restrooms. The obvious boy & girl restrooms at the rear dog park were locked.

If you like hiking in natural settings where you can get a fair amount of distance (around 2 miles…read moreper loop) and without much elevation change (about 60 feet), this may become a new favorite park for you. As part of the Sycamore Land Trust, the properties here total 98 acres and were acquired in 1995 & 1998, so just over 20 years of naturally converting from farm land. There are wooded areas and prairies. There is a small lake hidden from view on the trail but just at the beginning of the Shawnee Trail loop. On the east side of the Shawnee Trail is a small observation deck that lets you overlook a prairie. Not a much better view, but it does held see over some of the grasses that obstruct your view. I will mention that if you are going here, wear clothing that you won't mind getting muddy. Also, be aware that the natural trails are mowed without any gravel or grit for traction, so even if it hasn't rained recently, the trail does hold some moisture which can make it slippery and muddy. I was surprised a couple times with all the fallen leaves and if not for a bit of luck, I may have slipped to the ground. There is a map of the trail paths at the parking lot. I suggest taking a photo with your phone so that you can check progress. The basic layout is the Lenape Trail heads east from the parking lot. If you take the short cut, the trail is only 0.7 miles long through a lightly wooded area. If you push on to the eastern edge of the trail, you add another 0.6 miles and will get more elevation change and pass through some areas where wooden bridges cross over the creek several times. If you want to explore some area where the observation deck and more meadows are visible, take the path that leads to the Shawnee Trail to the north. After following a 0.1 mile path to the north, you can work your way around the loop which is another 0.5 miles. Note that there are random placements of benches along the trails. No restroom facilities exist. The parking lot is gravel and is located about a half mile south of SR 46. I look forward to returning in the spring/summer months when the wildlife is more active and the fields are more colorful. Review #2061

I've lived in this area for several years and just discovered this local hidden gem. As others have…read moresaid, the gravel/dirt road to gain entrance is VERY steep and has some serious pot holes. My small Mazda SUV handled it just fine, going slowly, but I did get a little nervous going back down. Slow and steady, as long as you've got good brakes, and you should be fine. Just like the short driveway up to the small parking area, the paths are quite steep. When you enter the trail area, take the trail to your right. The trail loops around, returning you to the entrance. If you go the opposite direction, you'll be left to go up the steepest part of the hike. I made that mistake the first time, and let's just say it really tested my ticker. The whole trail takes you about 20 minutes if you don't make any stops. You certainly get the feel of being out in the wilderness, minus being able to hear the nearby highway and airplanes coming and going from the airport.

This is a small land trust tucked on 67 near Martinsville that is a fun moderate hike. The gravel…read moredrove into the small parking area is a steep curving uphill road so make sure you either bring the appropriate vehicle or plan to park a bit away and walk in. It is off of a nice wooded road with private residences, so is mostly quiet with the feel of deep woods. You can hear a bit of the road from later in the trail but it isn't too overwhelming. The trail is marked with some signs but can get confusing if you don't prepare and download a map given online. It helps to have also read a few blog posts about the land trust so as to get a feel for the trail and types of wildlife you might encounter. There are no benches along the way or any facilities in this spot, but there are plenty of fallen trees on which to sit if you want to stop and take a break or listen to the sounds of the woods. It is a lovely hike which has some hills and uphill depending on which way you go on the trail, and some wonderful vistas of the woods ahead. We throughly enjoyed our hike and we took breaks to look around so it took us a bit longer. I'd say it is a good 1 1/2 hour path at a slower walking pace. We did get a bit confused and did one extra loop twice as the marker isn't really well defined, so next time I will use the map or use Alltrails to calculate our path. A wonderful outing though and then we headed to Martinsville for some local BBQ which made the day that much more fun! Highly recommend this spot!

Great amount of activities and different trails and great area to bring the kids. Wish they would…read moreopen the obstacle course

Great customer service...we called this morn for directions (because our navigation was having…read moretrouble finding the location) and Gwen answered and gave us SPECIFIC directions...we found it easily..when we pulled into space 55 we realised we were in an old parking lot..all cement..not happy..BUT..at that moment (Mike the Camp Host) drove by on his golf cart and I told him we weren't really happy with the setting..he took Bryan (my partner) in his cart to look at three other sites ..Bryan picked #21..we were PLEASED...Mike was quite accommodating..then we went to check out the rest rooms...clean ..very nice..well lit..I do like paper toweling and there wasn't any but that was ok..we're leaving early in the morn and sorry we can't get to the museum..the general facility looks quite interesting

Nice place for a walk and some bird watching. Some trails are paved and some are mowed grass and…read moresome are crushed gravel. You can stick with level trails but they have less shade or you can head in to the woods and get shade but more elevation shade. I was there on a Friday afternoon and I didn't see another person at all.

This secluded park has several types of hiking available. For those who like wooded hikes with…read moresteep terrain changes, Trail #2 is a half mile loop that will get your heart pounding. For someone who likes a level hike along a prairie, the park has a longer loop around the perimeter of the 83 acre park. For visitors with mobility challenges, a paved loop near the north end parking lot goes around the northern prairie while skirting along the north end of the woods. The park is located off SR 67, south of Martinsville, just passed the street sign for Hyndsdale on North Duckworth Road. Duckworth makes several zigzags west and north before you see the east parking lot (the north parking lot is farther north and then west on Gray Road.) At the east end parking lot, you can head straight west up the gravel path into the woods. At the crest of the hill, you will be able to head left, straight, or right. The right side path is for Trail 1 and leads north on a short loop back to the parking lot. The left side path and the straight path are the two ends of Trail 2 which wanders through the hilly forest until reaching the south/west edge of the forest. The stretch between these two exits is a gravel path along the prairie that connects the two. Unfortunately, there are no trail markers and only some of the kiosks at the north end parking lot have maps showing where the trails lead. Apparently, there is supposed to be a tree identification program along the trails, but I could not find any markers along the trail to tell which trees matched up to the photo I took of the map with the key. The north end parking area has access to a shelter (with a grill and tables) and a mini "playground". There are a couple additional picnic tables to the west of the lot that are shaded and overlook the creek. Port-o-lets are found at the north parking lot as well. While hiking, I also noticed lots of bird houses for different varieties of fowl in both the prairie and wooded areas. Near the north lot, there is also a utility pole with numerous bat houses mounted near the top. The houses are for the endangered Indiana Bat. Fortunately, the bats are nocturnal, so no need to be concerned about an encounter. Overall, I liked the variety of the hiking trails, but wish that the park system would make sure both parking lots had trail information and that the trails and trees were indicated more clearly. Review #869

I was looking for something fun to do on a sunny afternoon and came across this nice walking path…read more There is a nice sized parking lot at the trail head. There is a water fountain and a waste can where you first get to the path. One of the main things I loved about this trail is the fact that it is wheelchair friendly. I have a difficult time finding suitable trails to take my daughter on. This trail is not paved but it is very well packed and does have gravel in some spots. I would think that if it was wet from rains it may not be as suitable to walk on. We passed several runners, walkers and bikers. We did not make it the entire length of the trail but the length we did walk was so peaceful. There were no leaves on the trees yet and no green grass but hearing the running water in the creek along part of the trail was very relaxing. I can easily see how this would be a great place to come and get away from city life for a short time! I'll definitely be coming back when I'll be able to walk the entire path. And hopefully see some wildlife and maybe some wild flowers along the way!

I have been during the day and night. It can be a little dangerous at night. There is a homeless…read morecompound that stays out in the woods, so be sure that you're not alone and that you're prepared for danger. But it is absolutely gorgeous at night. I didnt see anything sketch on my night hike and highly recommend going. Just better safe than sorry. The day time is also really nice. It can get crowded, but thats all parks here in Bloomington. It is usually filled with runners and speed walkers. I dont see many kids. It is a trail, not a full size park. And it doesnt have the art that the B-line has so it may not be well suited for some kids. I would have loved it when I was a kid...but I was a nerdy outdoorsy kid. Definite spot for locals interested in getting off the B-line and out of the hustle and bustle of day-to-day life quickly. I wouldn't really recommend for tourists. We have much better spots for you.