We were on our way to a picnic dinner at Sweat Beach in Wrentham, MA but they decided to close two…read morehours early and shuffled everyone off. So we googled picnic areas nearby and put our GPS to Medway, MA. The rood trip was winding picturesque road through towns with beautiful houses and finally came to Choate Park. Free and plenty of parking. It's a trash free park, what you bring in, take out. There is an event pavilion and beautiful lake for catch & release fishing ....or turtles ( see pics) lol. There is a fantastic playground for the little & big ones. The trail around the lake has exercise spots and open fields with a huge wall mural. This will definitely be a go to spot for picnics, walking and being in nature.

I took my 5yo and 7yo to the playground and splash area. Very nice park. The splash area is simple…read more(just some fountains that shoot up from the ground) but is great to cool off on a hot day. The water stops at 5pm. I don't think the water area is particularly slippery but i would suggest water shoes. My son and a couple of other children who were barefoot did slip. The playground structures are really unique and fun. They have a smaller one for young kids and larger structure for older kids. There was also a trail and lake but we didn't follow. Highlights: -fenced in with only two doors -bathrooms (clean and open until 5pm) -clean - picnic area with tables and benches. Covered and large with plenty of seating. -electric car charging station (not free) -plenty of parking Cons -no trash cans. Small inconvenience. Overall would def recommend as a summertime activity.

Killing time, I made the stop at Plains Park, located just south of I-495 on Route 85. The main…read morehighlight of this park is the trail, which does a big loop, covering less than a mile. You have the option of doing half of the loop if you wish. I enjoyed the walk, which was extremely peaceful, and also, the great scenery of the beautiful field. The park contains a pavilion, picnic tables, a playground, and a soccer field. Beware of school sporting events that take place, because the parking lot will be packed, for example when I came. I truly enjoyed making this stop.

I first found out about this path when my boss took me here after work one day. He likes to go on…read morewalks to delay returning home when his psychotic girlfriend (according to him) or her psychotic 10yr old daughter (also, according to him) are too much to handle. Sometimes his goal is to wait for them to fall asleep, then go home. I duck out before it gets to that point. The Upper Charles River Trail will eventually be 24 miles long and through Milford, Ashland, Sherborn, Holliston, and Hopkinton. It's on an old CSX right of way. I believe the Milford section is the only section complete so far, roughly ~5 miles. I don't jog that long anyway, especially with the sunset getting earlier. I usually park at Fino Field and go the trail until it intersects Route 85 by the Sports Authority, then turn back. Round trip is ~4.5 miles GPSed. The trail is paved and has mile markers in 1/4 mile increments. Traffic is pretty light when I'm there; dusk, weekdays. I see more walkers and less bikers. There are unimproved trails through the woods that you can stumble into and I'm still exploring where they all go. Also, I believe what they call "Vietnam" has an entrance on the north end of the trail across US495. NEMBA actually owns it. (http://www.nemba.org/Articles/VietnamFAQs.html) I'd like to try Vietnam out, but reading reviews saying that there are "6 foot drops out of nowhere" kind of scares me.

Update: I frequent this trail weekly and try to go a few times a week and go in the mornings when I…read moredo. Since August there's been this young couple I want to say in their early twenties with a dog and they have extremely loud music that plays vulgar songs. I don't mean to be a stick in the mud but there are young children and elderly on this trail and they don't need to hear songs about "suck a f****** d***" and other terrible expletives that shouldn't be played at an OBNOXIOUS LEVEL. Not only this but I guess it's you can smoke on this trail even though people are there to exercise so it's pretty rude!! BUT THEY'RE SMOKING WEED! Again I understand weed is recreational now so it's fine and I don't care if people smoke but they were smoking a huge blunt as a mother and a kid and her infant in a stroller passed them and I felt awful as she gave me an odd look and I was behind them. Why do that? There are plenty of areas to go off and hide and smoke do you really have to do it and pass it to each other in front of everyone's children when they're trying to get exercise? It's so rude! Also pick up your dogs shit! I think there should be more police on foot on this trail since were right by the police station or something because I am avoiding this trail until next year they are ALWAYS there. I sat by the lake for almost 2 hours in hopes they would be gone but nope. There they were passing the trail again. Do they live in the woods?? What the hell. The guy always has a backpack and they wear sunglasses. A cute little trail that's pretty clean. Usually pleasant people on this trail for the most part consisting of moms with their kids and the like.

If you're looking for a peaceful outdoor escape in Central Mass, Blackstone River & Canal State…read morePark is a hidden gem. Spring is the perfect time to visit. The trees are just starting to bud, the landscape has that first hint of green, and--best of all--the bugs haven't shown up yet. Add in a warming sun, and it's ideal for a long, relaxed walk. The canal and scenic trails along the Blackstone River are great for walking, running, or biking. If you take your time, you'll spot plenty of bluegills in the water, and occasionally bass or carp. You'll also see fishermen scattered along the canal and river, adding to the laid-back, local feel. What really stands out is how quiet it is compared to other state parks. Unless there is an event, there are no large crowds, and little noise--just open space and nature. Perfect for a casual stroll, a bike ride, fishing, frisbee, a picnic, or just clearing your head.

A slightly secluded walkway. Paved and straight, it's good for a quick little run/walk. There…read morewere about a dozen people walking in the area I was in when I was there even with it being late afternoon, so I would imagine its even busier during peak times.

I've gone to "the bubble" for years for soccer games with my kids (winter league) and also for two…read moreyears with one in their club soccer program. Regarding the latter, personal experiences with John Smith himself always fun, positive and entertaining - however rest of club experience was very disappointing, your mileage may vary, but I'm certainly not a fan based on my experience. This is a review of the facility being a venue for (winter) soccer league games, and this comes from many years of going there with two children for just that reason. If you have not been, the place is basically a large bubble\dome (think tennis bubble but much larger) that holds two walled turf fields built like hockey rinks with walls on all sides, and then PlexiGlass shields and nets in others designed to keep balls in play and away from spectators. Each field has metal grandstands on one side of the field for spectators. Amenities-wise, there is a small bathroom area, a tiny shop up front where you can buy basic soccer stuff, and\or uniforms if you are in the club program. They also have an inflatable play area suitable for young (under 10?) kids. At times they have also set up an inflatable laser tag game but I haven't seen it recently. Most of the time I'm there I see kids playing soccer or training for lacrosse in the two turf fields. There is also often a large contingent of local Ecuadorians playing volleyball on a side field. Lots of activity. The facility wasn't really 'nice' when I first started going years ago and if anything has gone downhill a bit since. It's always seemed kind of beat up and dirty inside. Their parking lot is dangerously unlit, and feels unsafe at night, especially in winter. You can't see the ground well, nor easily catch sight of the kids darting from the parking area to the front entrance. There isn't even an illuminated sign at the entrance that makes it apparent where to turn in for parking. The have changed food options several times over the years. For a couple years they had a snack bar that had a good selection of food and seemed to be staffed by really nice people. But it was often not open for night games. Then this winter I went in and was dismayed to find it was closed down, replaced by a row of (mostly I think) drink machines. One last thing - on one field spectators and players are on same side and can see the scoreboard clearly. But on the back field players and spectators are on opposite sides, and they hung the scoreboard so that the players can see it but spectators cannot without getting down from the stands and waking a few feet away to turn and loop up at it. It's really annoying that I pay for and drive my kids to the games for years, and I can't even see the score half the time. I've asked JSS staff about this, they don't care, and generally my impression of them is that they are really not very customer oriented. This is a shame because the location is perfect for serving the surrounding towns, and the kids really like playing indoor sports, but the facility is in desperate need of an overhaul and maybe a change in management.

Really disappointed with their customer service. The…read moreplayzone itself is very simple but was loads of fun for the kids, and I think it is a great feature in the facility for kids to play while their siblings are in sports practice. We live 30mins away, had a Groupon for their playzone that we were saving for a special rainy day treat. Brought 5 kids to the play zone and they had a blast. Their website said they were open until 8pm, but after being there for an hour from 2-3pm they announced they were closing. I politely showed the website hours & was told they didn't have time to update the website yet, so I asked for a voucher because we were disappointed and I felt it was unfair & poor customer service. We were told no, and that she told me they were closing at 3 upon check-in (which nobody remembered hearing). I have never written a yelp review before but felt this was such poor customer service, really disappointed. It's not the money, it's the customer service. Would have made a big difference to show compassion & understanding in this situation.

This place was a quality beach/lake experience. We came here on a Sunday afternoon, and it was…read morequite peaceful. As advertised the snack shop was legit...cheeseburgers were like $2.50...can't beat that. The sand was gritty and dirty, but there was ample space to stretch out, which is always a necessity. I'd say the only thing preventing a 5-star rating is the "mussel farm" that seems to exist beneath the water. All I can say is watch your feet; otherwise, you'll be spending Monday morning at the pediatrist.

This was a new find for us, it's a great little beach. Clean area and the water was beautiful…read more Lifeguards on duty. Bathroom available. Snack shack was great and not too much money and the food was good. I look forward to going back over and over again.

Beware, these memberships are hard to cancel. The 6-month or 1 year memberships will continue…read morecharging even after those time periods. They will reference the contract but this stuff is buried and they don't explain this to you when you sign up, just like a gym membership. Keep an eye on your credit cards folks and call before the time period to cancel. Here is the phone number. 800-960-4778 ext 4

Space was clean, including bathrooms. Staff was present all around, supervising and answering…read morequestions. Lots of entertainment options for kids and adults alike. The one thing that would make this place perfect, is an improvement in the food from the cafe they run. Taste was average but the pricing was also average/low(compared to other places). All around, a great trampoline venue.