It's an amazing view must bring spotting scope great for kids and puppies and you can see a lot of…read morestuff

As a previous campground host, this was THE # 1 place I recommended people check out while here…read more It's only a 5 minute drive up. It is SPECTACULAR. I cannot imagine why anyone would give it less than 5 stars. While there are only swings here ( marked down by a previous viewer for this reason) there is lots of grassy area for kids to run around far away from the cliffs. Be aware, there are no guardrails at the viewing point... so watch kiddos closely . Enjoy the views of the Minnesota bluffs across the water as you gaze upon the Mississippi river down below and the Alma dam to your right ! You might get lucky and see a barge coming through. There is a steep hiking trail @ the north end of 2nd St in Alma to start your way up. Otherwise, you drive up from the far South end of town. Well marked. Don't miss this "beautiful view"!

Back before this place was a park, it was all swamp land. Who knew that this place could have…read moretransitioned into such a beautiful area to bring the kids to run around, play, eat, or swim! The park has many different things to offer from playground equipment, a lake, many soccer fields, and a walking path that encircles the lake and then some (not sure of distance, but a couple miles at least), places to fish, and a large shelter with bathrooms. Some parts of the playground, like the plastic coating on the metal, is starting to come off and is starting to show some age. Some parts may be sharp, so make sure kids are wearing shoes. Otherwise it is a great place to occupy your time with all the different things you can do!

What an amazing park! Picnic tables galore, beautiful playground, beach, soccer fields. Benches…read moreeverywhere. We will be back!

Although this place is amazing, very beautiful, but this place is so shady and so insecure for…read morepeople last night when we went there with the family the moment we parted, there was a huge bunch of people who came in different cars mostly African-American. People are not US based Somalians or somewhere from that side of the country Because I could not hear them talk properly. They were dealing with illegal drugs and the park was so dirty and nasty that you could see used condoms all over the place. If you're going with the family I strongly recommend you avoid this side of the park because it's not very safe. We feel really insecure and left that place although the park is very pretty we could have stayed longer, but we didn't feel safe with the amount of people coming in there with the law-enforcement can make rounds in this area. They can have a good check on what's going on in there

Here's a weird fact. When I lived in Rochester, I never dropped by Silver Lake Park. I always drove…read morearound it to get to and from my home to the downtown area and beyond. The only explanation that I can muster is that I had a park within walking distance from my home. I visited that park often that I didn't think of visiting others. After having a decent lunch on Saturday afternoon, I decided to drop by the park to finally check it out. There are a number of parking spots. I backed my car into an available spot and walked around. Rochester is unique in that it's the only city in Minnesota that has manmade lakes. I believe that the number of lakes in Rochester is in the double digits these days, but the lakes were designed for cooling. Specifically, Silver Lake cools the Rochester Public Utilities power plant. The park surrounds Silver Lake. You can get quite the workout walking around it. I walked maybe a quarter of it. I had spotted a swing that had enough space to comfortably seat two adults. There were indeed two people on it, so I decided to walk somewhere else. When I noticed that they were walking towards me, I headed over to the swing. I like a good swing. This one faces the lake and it was enjoyable taking in downtown Rochester and the view while swinging on it. There are geese in the area. They are known as Canadian honkers. They have longer necks than your traditional Canada goose, which I didn't know about until I learned that Canadian Honker, the restaurant in town, was named after it. Cool! If you do see these birds, you can feed them. There isn't a bylaw that says that you'll get fined for feeding them. During the Fourth of July, fireworks happen in this area. It's definitely a smaller version of the Victoria Day fireworks at Ashbridges Bay in the Beaches in Toronto, but it's pretty decent. I never watched it from the park, but admired the display from afar. This park has a memorial dedicated to fallen firefighters. I also like that each tree has a sign that identifies what you are looking at. It's a cool place to walk around, and learn and discover on your own. It was great getting to know this park instead of driving around its perimeter! I look forward to returning and checking out the rest of it. (140)

Best way to spend my birthday out snowshoeing with friends! The trails here are very scenic with…read moreviews of the Mississippi, and lots of wildlife to boot. Definitely worth the trip especially if you are visiting nearby Red Wing. My only criticism would be that the maps along the trail didn't have a "you are here" marker, but that went away once I figured out each intersection being assigned a letter. Will have to come back in the warmer seasons for a hike and/or camping trip!

Beautiful trails, very nice campsite and gorgeous bathroom/shower facilities! It was our first time…read morevisiting and we enjoyed the family-friendly atmosphere. A very easy and beautiful drive from Rochester, perfect for a weekend getaway!

Quarry Hill Nature Center has a nice assortment of picnic tables, trails, and local animals. It…read moreeven has a small nature center within. Tip: The signage here is sorely lacking, which is why I couldn't find the paved bike trail, and ended up totally on the wrong side of the park :-( Once I discovered that I was almost hopelessly lost, I wandered aimless in the woods for close to 40 minutes before I found a trail sign that set me back on the right path. Despite the major signage problems, this is a nice place - if you can figure out where to go....

A nice condensed forest experience. The nature center is adorable and educational. The forest…read moreitself is a fun place to wander. I even had two deer that ran by me. A bit more signage would have been helpful to figure out how to go up the hill versus around the hill. I just wandered on random treaded paths until I figured it out. I found a point where you could get a skyline view of Rochester downtown.

Pretty cool little excursion in LaCrosse. Easy drive up. Not a lot of signs alerting which…read moreparking lot is for the highest vantage point so my tip to you: drive through the open gates and drive until you see a parking lot with a gazebo-esque type outdoor building and that will be the highest point. Quick walk out to the edge. Some wild flowers added to the experience. It was a beautiful morning. Very clear and we were able to see the Mississippi river, Minnesota and of course Wisconsin. Worth taking the half hour to take in this view.

Nice little place to hike and just take in the scenery . I can only imagine how more beautiful it…read morewould be when the leaves change colors. Went a tad early.

This is a small over look with an AMAZING view. Well worth the stop…read more It has plenty of parking and is just a short walk from there.

It was super cold otherwise I would have explored further, but nice parking lot, well paved main…read moretrail with little random paths going off into the woods for the more adventurous. Great panoramic views of Winona.

This has got to be one of the most fun parks I have taken my boys to in awhile!…read more There is free street parking and a small parking lot down the street. This park has all kinds of things to climb, swing and explore but it also has... TOYS!! What kind of a park has toys!? The best kind of course!! As far as what is surround the playground, it's wood chips and the vast majority of the playground it wood. The entire playground is fenced in with only one way in and out, truly a parents dream haha!! There is a big sand pit to the left and alllll kinda of trucks, push toys and things to ride! There are several benches and picnic tables as well! This was a clean and well maintained park! If you are in the area, it's definitely worth the stop!

I know this place as "Wood Park". As in "Can we go to Wood Park, please please please ...". After…read moreall, its made mostly of wood. But to the city of Rochester and the kind people that made it happen, its know as the Field of Fun. Its located just a hop and a skip from the Soldiers Field Veterans Memorial. This park is small, but is a great place to take younger children. The play area is enclosed so they cant stray to far. There is a separate area for the toddler set with toddler sized play gear. For the 4-8 crowd there are more advanced slides, poles, and other climbing do-dads (even a climbing wall). There are even some picnic tables up front. if you were 4, wood it get any better than this?

Beautiful little lake surrounded by trees and nice public sandy beach. The inflatables are…read moreincredible and staff is super friendly!! Highly recommended!

This is one of our favorite parks here in rochester. Very clean and well taken care of. Very close…read moreby to downtown too ( maybe about 5-10 min drive). It has two play grounds, one for little kids and another for bigger toddlers and adolescents. What we also really love is the volleyball sand court! We've had so many good games there. There's also a shelter for groups to eat and sit around. We used it several times with friends for birthday parties and potlucks. Have I mentioned the lake yet? Really nive Lake with a little sand beach. You can swim there too. They do hold several sport events there for swimming during the year. People also bring fishing poles and go fishing there. During the winter, the lake is frozen and people come here to do ice fishing. I just love coming there and reading or chilling around sunset time.

Loved this park. Some short, moderate hikes to get a gorgeous view of the river. I do wish that the…read moretrails were a little better marked, however, It is worth visiting when heading down to Southern Minnesota. The driftless region is amazing. However, it was my second favorite park today. We headed into effigy national monument immediately after, and that was even more breathtaking. They are a great one-two punch if you're driving down from the Twin Cities.

This was a nice spot for a hike. There is a series of trails throughout the park. I did the King's…read moreBluff and North and South Overlooks. There is no shortage of beautiful views and there were plenty of spring wildflowers to make the walk even more stunning! Parking is available at the trailheads, there are some nice picnic spots, and the vault toilets were well kept.