The best local park around. Family friendly. Sprawling park, feat nature preserves, tons of hiking trails winding through the woods, some featuring varied terrain, with steep inclines along ravines, tons of local wildlife, and feat picturesque views of the Huron River which runs directly adjacent to several trails. Don't forget to pack your bottled water and bug spray during the spring/summer months, and be sure to wear appropriate footwear for current hiking conditions. Several of the more rugged nature trails are NOT stroller-friendly, due to narrowing of trails and steep, rocky train in various areas, making tripping/falls a very serious hazard, as there is a steep drop off on either side of the trail in certain areas. If you have small children or are pushing a stroller, I suggest staying on paved paths that run the length of the park, situated between the main roadway and the woods. My family has personally encountered whole families of deer at this park, owls, eagles, coyote, and numerous species of birds and butterflies (particularly during summer months). This park features tons of play areas for the kids, with a new, large, modern Space-themed playscape meant to entertain kids of all ages and abilities. Tennis/racquet ball/pickleball and basketball courts available on a first-come first-serve basis. Numerous covered pavilions with grills for family cookouts, available for rent during summer months. Modern restrooms scattered throughout park. The park also features a water park, open during summer months for an additional charge (Turtle Cove Family Aquatic Center), featuring a lazy river, large splash pad with dumping bucket, water slides, and zero-entry pools feat bubblers/spray features for the little ones. For about $50 (local residents), you can purchase an annual pass for the park itself (not including water park access, which must be purchased on top of general park entry fees). This park is gorgeous particularly during autumn months (my personal favorite time to visit), due to the abundance of trees and the colorful changing leaves visible in every direction. A great place to take family photos, with stunning natural backdrop! During the summer months it's common to spot fisherman on the pier within the park, on the banks of the lovely Huron River. A great place for families to unplug and enjoy some physical activity, in a large, picturesque park that never feels crowded regardless of how many people are there! 5 stars! read more

went teaterday with my kids to the water park there over croweded and long line to get in they where at max compasity and could not get a ticket waste of time and money to get there when we got there they shoukd have told ne this at the first entry point and i would ahve turned around and went some where else and then we went to the wave pool at lake erie lower metro oark a d there pool is closed and tge web page said it was open but no not until next year what a joke but as fir the forst park they need to expand there water park read more

Good hiking and good views. Screaming children scare off the wildlife, but it's good to see families out and about I suppose. read more

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I think this park is newer. The metal slide kind of worried me, but there plenty of other slides. Plenty of room to run and things for all ages to play on. There's a wheel chair friendly carousel, and the chair type baby swings. The toddler side is just as detailed. There are bathrooms within walking distance. Plenty of benches, and some shaded picnic tables. read more

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Had a wonderful time doing the Lazy River 5k. Hope to do the early morning walks in the lazy river next summer. Also taking my dog to the end of season swim event on Sept 8. Can't wait ! read more

This metropark is well laid out with lots of attractions. I like the wild areas the best though they are cut through with lots of lawns that seem to never see use. The trails themselves are acceptable but they are not well maintained nor do they offer anything in the way of signage. I was there recently and along the walkway near the Huron River the brush and understory plants had been cleared just chopped away. It was very unattractive. They could use more shaded areas. During events any shaded area is quickly filled up leaving most of the children (for whom the events are held) and seniors out in the sun. There is a pool and pond attraction I have yet to visit. I am looking forward to checking that out. read more

We are so lucky to have the metro park system. Lower Huron is my hometown park, and we visit often. The trail is great for walking and biking from end to end, and it connects to Willow. This park also has a campground, a water park (Turtle Cove), a 3-hole golf course, and lots of areas for kids to plan, and fishing holes. I walk and bike on my own here quite often, and sometimes take my dog. While we feel camaraderie with the others we see, we feel perfectly safe and the park is never too crowded. It's fun to walk the trail and see the picnics, reunions, and other parties happening that keep delivering folks to this gem of a park. We also take our nieces and nephews to Turtle Cover sometimes in the summer for a treat. It is well-staffed, friendly folks that take good care of all the visitors. The kids love this place, and the adults even have some fun, too. read more

My first visit to Lower Huron metropark. Turtle cove aquatic center. Not only kids can enjoy in water but also adults. $12 for adults and $10 for kids. If it's week day it's less by a dollar. We spent almost half a day in the water area. Few hours doing grilling. After getting into water kids didn't come out. Need to explore the trails next time The only sad part was it took more than 20 minutes to stand in queue to get ticket to the water park. read more

Horrible experience!! You are unable to purchase tickets online for turtle cove water park. We called ahead as we have a 45 minute drive there to make sure they were open. The girl on the phone says yes we are open until 7pm. No mention of anything else. I said okay thank you. It took us about 50 minutes to get there and we were turned away at the gate. I have 3 super disappointed kids, one who just lost his dad 3 weeks ago. A heads up that they may be nearing capacity soon would have been GREAT!!! Thanks for ruining what was supposed to be a fun day. read more

This is great park to visit. The trails are nice, woodsy and the streams and water make for a scenic view. Great place to go bike riding, roller blading, jogging or for a nice walk. The trails can be lengthy as they connect to other nearby parks. Always enjoy taking my bike here or just kicking back and reading a book. Very peaceful. It is also a great spot for family or group picnics. read more

Walnut Grove Camping We booked two nights at Walnut Grove. It's conveniently located near the freeway and close to home, two things we prioritized for camping with a newborn. The park was beautiful, with lots of trails, river ways, and things to do. There were convenient bathrooms which were clean and plenty of playgrounds. The campsites themselves were seemingly manufactured. There was a random tree every now and again, but for the most part, it was an open field. Our campsite was dirty. There was garbage hanging from the tree from previous campers, pieces of plastic on the ground, and huge shards of glass, like a jar broke or something. We've got two little kids, so glass was really cause for concern. The campsite clearly hadn't been looked over in some time. My newborn is bottle fed. Little did I know, the bathrooms have those 5 second faucets with lukewarm water at best. I wasn't able to heat my bottles up that way. We brought a saucer and a grate for the fire as a backup, but the fireplace was three feet deep below ground level (which caused it to be constantly wet) and didn't fit a grate. So if you are bottle feeding, book elsewhere for that alone. Additionally, with the campground being essentially a huge field, noise traveled. Far. And loud. We had a neighbor a few sites down blaring music that wasn't family friendly until 2 in the morning!! We didn't confront them because they had been drinking. Both our children were up all night. While this is none of the parks fault, they refused to refund either of our nights, not the one camped or the one we refused to use. Instead, they offered us two nights at a future date. Finally, you are locked in between the hours of 10-7. This wasn't mentioned to me until after I booked and paid. There is an emergency only police number to call if you need to get out of the park, but I was repeatedly told it was for emergencies only and not to use it unless it was for emergencies. That's why it wasn't used early in the morning. Lesson learned. What began as a pleasant experience at a nice metro park quickly turned downhill due to the service. We've done our fair share of camping, even with kids, and have never had issues with the occasional refund. We've never been locked in. And we've always been able to warm bottles. We will NOT be going back, thank you. I should not have to pick up my own campsite with others glass and garbage or put up with others 2am parties. read more

Love our lower Huron Metropark. Lovely area to power walk, bike ride or run. The grounds and restrooms are kept very well manicure and clean. read more

We visit here often simply because it's really close to our home. There are several areas to visit in the park and each one is different. The have a HUGE pool/water park but it is usually chock full of people and I HATE crowds. The park is well kept and the attendants are always friendly. There is a 5 dollar daily entrance fee unless you buy an annual 25 dollar tag. I'm not sure about the cost on the water park. It gets busy during holidays and weekends but on weekdays you pretty much have the park to yourself. There are bike/hiking trails, play structures, camping, fishing, and swimming. read more

Fantastic place to get away from the crowds and enjoy nature. Hiked over 7miles with my dog. Loved the place.

So, it had been a few years since I had been here and I did read reviews beforehand - but blew them off because there can't REALLY be a 30 minute wait for such a popular waterpark, right? Wrong. We waited 25 minutes in line on a random Tuesday afternoon while one cashier was working and the line was wrapped outside of the three lanes they have set up to contain the line. Other staff members were going and coming out of the office, there were two just standing at the entrance tearing tickets...but one working the window...I can't imagine what it's like on the weekends. Besides that, this is an alright "once in awhile" treat for your kids. Do I think it's worth $10 a person on top of the money you pay to get into the park? Not necessarily. It's crowded, which is typical, but the employees are all really "meh" about everything and I scraped the hell out of my elbows going down the green water slide. Walking around, I saw multiple adults bleeding from their elbows, so this isn't a "just me" thing. Maybe I don't know how to use the water slide because I'm 30, maybe they should take a look at how far those screws are sticking out...I don't know. Really, I paid $20 for my kid to swim in an open pool (because the zero entry part with the toddler-ish toys didn't peak my 5 year old's interest), go in the lazy river, and kind of half play on the playscape because it was so packed - on a random Tuesday - that there wasn't much room to really do too much without running into someone. I've read that the food is expensive, but I didn't think so. $7 for an adult meal (hot dogs, chips, pop) and $5 for a kid's meal...pretty average prices for a park like this. It's a pain that you're not allowed to bring your own food/drink in, so you have to exit the park to eat/drink, then go back in. There are a few picnic tables outside of the park, but not many, so you'll more than likely be on the ground. I've been to much better (free) water attractions at other metroparks that also have much nicer playground equipment than this park does as well. The bathrooms were gross, as all are waterpark bathrooms, and it was surprising that there are only two family changing rooms. It was a very 3 star experience and will definitely be a "one time a year" thing for us. I've read that Rolling Hills is much better - we'll try it soon and let you know! read more

This review is for Turtle Cove. Not the Metropark. The park itself is great. Turtle Cove Waterpark is nasty, bandaids and snot were floating in the water. There are lifeguards constantly harping on everyone, but they don't seem to notice or care when people don't have actual swim suits on. One man even had on underwear with an open fly in the kids shallow pool, and nothing was said. Also, while strollers are allowed, apparently there is a new rule that does not allow wagons. It is not posted anywhere but on a typed piece of paper, taped onto the ticket booth. Many family's were having to turn back, with screaming kids to take their wagon back. I don't know what exactly their policy is, but the small push car we had for our child was also considered a wagon and made it very difficult to get around or enjoy anything. Considering they had updated times, hours and changes due to covid posted on line, you would thing they could have added that. read more

I grew up in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan where green things grew in abundance, and when I moved to southeast Michigan, I thought it was terribly ugly-- nothing but artificial lights and pavement. Then, I discovered the Metroparks and realized that there are islands of green and flowers in the middle of very urban parts of even Wayne and Oakland counties. Out of the entire Metropark system that spans five counties in southeast Michigan, Lower Huron isn't the biggest or the most spectacular, but it's the closest one to my house, and it has a special place in my heart. I have picnicked there a couple times with one friend and have helped another friend walk her dogs there on several occasions. It's spacious and shady, friendly to cyclists, walkers, dog-owners, and picnickers. In spring, the protected state flower, the trillium, covers the sides of the walking paths in a blanket of white, and the trees through the park turn pink and purple with flowers. It's an easy drive both from Detroit and from the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti area. If you've explored some of the other Metroparks and want a change of view, Lower Huron is worth a visit or two. read more

Finally broke down and bought the park pass seeing as we live less than 10 minutes from here. It's $10 per adult and $8 per child. One pet peeve I had was that they waited until we paid to tell us that the pool and lazy river was shut down for an hour for cleaning. It wasn't that big of a deal because we were mostly there for the toddler splash pad area, but is still a poor practice. It was clean and full of lifeguards if you're into that. We didn't use the lockers, but our stuff was in eyesight and it wasn't so busy that there were not enough chairs to go around. We will be back :) read more

I love the park, although I'm always going in circles when walking, seems like it's not as big as it looks. I'd give it 4 stars but I think it's silly that I have to pay a $10 fee to go in for a day or pay $40 for the year. I know they use the money to keep it nice but it really hinders people from getting the exercise they need. I can't go back right now because I can't afford a year pass. And I won't waste money on the daily passes. I thought our taxes went to things like this. read more

GOLF at Lower Huron Metro park.- Play 18 holes for $5.00 !!! No I'm not sh....ing you , it's beautiful, right on the river and its a sweet little par 3 course. The longest hole is 110 yards and the shortest is 50. Its really beautiful and hardly anyone knows about this place. Its a great place to teach your kid to golf or just to come by yourself cause it is so mellow and pretty. read more

It was the most horrible experience. I was placing some items in the locker, the locker next to me opens their locker and a metal piece broke off of the locker almost hitting my 1-year-old. I get it accidents happen but the coworker did not even apologize for what happened. read more

This is a beautiful place to come alone or with a group. You and your family can have a picnic and play games or hike on the trails. There is so much to do here. Although I've never visited Turtle Cove, there is a great water park the kids love as well as a golf course. The bike trails are a nice challenge and connect to Willow Metro Park. You can fish, play or relax. No matter what you enjoy doing, this park is the perfect place for everyone. You can even watch the deer as dusk approaches. This is a great park for church events or family reunions and has many different pavilions for parties along with clean rest facilities. read more

I bring my nieces and nephews here, usually with my parents so that there are more eyes to watch over them. However, I decided to load three out of the six in my car and bring them out for fun in the sun water park play and swimming. They love it here, the staff is very friendly and the bathrooms are clean. There is a five dollar entry fee into the park and I believe it was seven bucks a kid into the waterpark. Kids love it, plenty of chairs to lay out on. Pack some sandwiches, buy some ice cream there....and they fall asleep on the way home. Completely comatose. Brilliant. read more

Lazy river? More Like CRAZY river! MY FAMILY and I were splashed no less than FIVE times. And do not get me started on the food. The hot dogs left ME cold. They were delicious but I had to use ketchup packets because the bottles were out. And maybe it's some people's idea of fun to get wet when sitting beside a pool but ummm yeah trying to sunbathe here, manners much? Overall it was a pleasant experience. read more

I love the metro parks. Unfortunately my family discovered this halfway through summer. I wish we would've known about it at the beginning of summer so we could've spent more time there. We truly enjoyed being able to bike, walk, and explore the park. It's beautiful and definitely worth the season pass. read more

I have been an annual member for about 10 years straight now. I enjoy the serenity of the park, cleanliness of the bathrooms, Autumn colors and even the occasional acquaintance of regulars who visit as well. No matter what season, this park is specacular to visit. If you're fortunate, you will see the deer that roam, and by deer I mean plural. Always keep in mind that if you see one, there will always be more. It definitely is the beat substitute to my growing up in the sticks of East Texas. There are always park rangers patrolling so that is for sure peace of mind. read more

I bike here often because I live in Ypsi. The bike path from Lower Huron to Willow to Oakwoods Metropark is 13 miles long. Round trip it's over 26. The path runs along the Huron River and is a wooded park the majority of the way. Only road to cross is coming out of Lower Huron, and besides a couple of railroad crossings it's all park paths. read more

Clean & lots of fun for the family or just adults:) I wouldn't complain if they added a little more for the younger ones... The kiddie area is nice but it does get deep & the younger kids area is too big for little little ones. read more

This place was so nice and so big! The 3-par golf course is really nice. It is good for beginners because it is not too big. They do not have carts but you don't need to bring your whole golf bag. You only need your pitching wedge, and putter. The bike/walking trails are huge and the turtle cove is nice. I will be going again. read more