Went for a run in the area and enjoyed exploring this beautiful park and lagoon, full of trees, vegetation, and ducks galore. Stretching through the park, a dirt trail attaches to a boardwalk floating over the water, with a few benches for seating and info boards along the way about the surrounding animal and plant life and ecotones (connecting habitats). There's also a sand-filled playground, tennis courts, pollinator garden, water treatment center, and restroom on site, as well as a very small parking lot (fits about 6 vehicles). The serene environment and calming views overlooking the water from the bridges and walking paths are simply amazing. read more

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This was such a nice little walk, beautiful scenery and I was lucky enough to see the goats, apparently they bring them here once a year to help clean the landscape. There is a cute little playground and lots of ducks to look at, the baby ducks were so cute swimming behind the moma. Definitely recommend this place to clear your mind and get a little me time. read more

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Such a cute walk in Santa Cruz!! Especially being right next to downtown. A hidden treasure for sure. Really fun walking over the docks thru the lagoon. You pass by a couple kids parks as well. It is a very quiet mellow walk. Good area to see birds. Nothing too crazy or scenic, but it's very pretty and peaceful. read more

Neat little spot that I'm glad we stopped by We enjoyed strolling on the floating docks and checking out the lagoon that is surrounded by reeds and nice greenery. I loved how serene it was, and we didn't run into that many people. It was lovely to be out there, and reminded me of some of the marshlands I've been to in Florida We saw various bird species and glad we ran into a birder who named them for us! You can see some fish as well, though not easily as the water is very murky. The docks are pretty sunny, so might be less enjoyable on a hot day. There are benches throughout to take breaks. There is a water treatment plant right next to it, and I see people complain about the smell. But I'm pretty smell sensitive and didn't think it was too bad, considering what a water treatment plant is treating... There's a old but adequate play structure with sand surrounding it- my kids enjoyed all the balancing bridges. There is a bathroom, but it was closed up when we went. read more

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My friend and I and our three kids randomly came across this place while vacationing in Santa Cruz. We had such a great time and spent over two hours there. The highlight was the huge fish lurking in the Lagoon. read more

Neary Lagoon - Children playing on the floating dock - Parks Near Me - Santa Cruz, California

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very nice park with lots of walking trales,ducks,ect.Very beautiful place.I feel like im in a diferent world when i colme here.My mom used to love this place when she was alive read more

Another nice park without safe bathrooms... We went to the bathrooms they have near California St and Bay St at the southwestern side of the park and 1 stall had a sleeping homeless man and the other one had a bicycle blocking off the entrance. There were only 2 stalls I could see. We ended up driving to the main beach instead to use the restroom. read more

Hidden treasure in Santa Cruz. In the midst of Neary Park and accessed by a long boardwalk. Feels a million miles away from city

This is a really cool unique spot. I had no idea what it was going to be like and was pleasantly surprised. I really enjoyed the walk on the bridge and the fact that it was not crowded. read more

Loved the sceneries and wildlife at the park. Great place for a relaxing stroll. It's not too crowded and good for strollers and walkers. You can take lots of nice pictures here. read more

Beautiful to stroll through leisurely. Please do not feed the wildlife as the sign clearly says. Saw a gentleman feeding ducks on the boardwalk, leaving grains and duck poops everywhere on that trail. read more

Neary Lagoon - Parks Near Me - Santa Cruz, California

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At one time, Neary Lagoon was a nice place, with lots of birds, butterflies, and even some ducks. Somehow, in the past year or two, the place has morphed from a park to an outdoor homeless shelter... Over and above the homeless problem, there are parts of the walkway over the water that sway in a dangerous way... All in all, it's decidedly not the kind of place you'd want to come after dark, or even in the daytime if you've got small children :-( Until things here change, I'd recommend simply avoiding this place altogether, and see to your recreational needs elsewhere. read more

Dig the Neary Lagoon. You gotta make your way to the inner portion of it to enjoy the wildlife. It would get a 5 star if it wasn't for the sewage plant nearby that can sometimes emit some heavy duty odor. Bummer. read more

Neary Lagoon - Dreamy santa cruz sunrise at Neary Lagoon. - Parks Near Me - Santa Cruz, California

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My Best-Area-Adjacent-to-a-Sewage-Treatment-Plant Award winner. Great walking, waterfowl, oasis in the middle of a city. Plus a playground to boot. read more

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I do like this unique little lagoon. Pros; Pretty beautiful Adorable ducks that love bread! Nice-sized children's playground. One (or two?) full sized tennis courts. There's fish there! (Koi I think?) Cons: Theres a sewer right next to the lagoon which makes things stinky. No signs on where to go. Small-ish. It's an okay place to go if you want to see ducks and fish or read a book. I live very close so it's convenient! read more

I was harassed by a security guard for having my service dog with me. This was about two years ago but I waited to post a review because I wanted to have time to set aside my emotions towards the injustice. Even though by law I am not required to show tags or paperwork, I offered to show him because my friend and I really needed a relaxing place in nature to be near her home. He refused and physically escorted us out. I wrote numerous emails, made phone calls all to no avail. Persons "in charge" of the park and city insisted that he was in the right despite them blatantly disregarding my federal rights. He (the security guard ) flat out told me he did not believe that my dog is a service dog and told me repeatedly to stop lying. I even went into the humiliating details of what it is that my dog helps me with which he insisted on despite my knowing that my rights are that I only have to explain that my dog helps me on a physical level. If he did not believe it was a service dog, his next line of action would have been to point out where non service dogs can be safely corralled and provided with water. The park actually does have a place for that as listed in their charter and park amenities which he was apparently unaware of or simply did not care. The security guard would not even let my friend and I sit on the benches just outside the park outside of the lines of where it says no dogs. He yelled at us till we were over a block away "Stop Lying" Aside from that this is a beautiful park despite it being made from a sewer. read more

This is a unique little wetlands park There's a trail about a mile in length, part of which is a wooden pontoon system which allows you to walk directly over the lagoon. Waterfowl are abundant. Not sure how the first reviewer could say that there's no wildlife -- unless he doesn't consider birds to be wildlife. In a short visit I saw mallards, wood ducks, coots, grebes, and herons. It is a pretty small park though. read more

Cute walk during the day with lots of trees and ducks floating around! A few picnic tables and benches along the way

What a quirky park! The lagoons while hard to find are quite beautiful and make for a nice walk. The sewage plant right not door is not nice. 50/50 shot at it smelling or not. Nice tennis courts, restrooms, decent size structure and a detached slide. Limited parking and sand gets hot on hot days. Park is removed from street enough that sidewalks are safe for kids riding bikes. read more

We just had a quick little stroll here but it was great. The little boardwalk is a nice way for people to see a delicate ecosystem without disturbing anything too much. There were a lot of water birds, butterflies, turtles, and huge friendly carp. read more

Perfect spot for a little hike and a picnic on the grass. I love this little gem in Santa Cruz read more

Neary Lagoon - Parks Near Me - Santa Cruz, California

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Beautiful place to go for a walk and enjoy the outdoors. It is mostly dirt trail and wooden bridges, so its great for running too. I saw tones of beautiful birds as well, and some fish too. They even have goats. read more

Oh man, by BF was giving me such a hard time for taking us here earlier today. I lost count of the "sewage as the lagoon" jokes he made (he cracks himself up). We really didn't know what we were looking for as we started out on the trail, it feels a little like there's going to be an "off limits" sign any minute. But once you get past the sewage plant (and the lovely info board explaining the process of how crap is sent out to the ocean), there ARE a ton of birds and ducks to see in the water. Saw a lot of kids who seemed to be enjoying them more than we were. Short walk, no markers though (except trail map in parking lot) so we ended up in a lot of dead ends. Easy walk though. Umm..different? lol read more

Not worth any amount of time to visit. You will be traipsing through people's backyards, only to see... NO wildlife. Very falsely named a wildlife viewing area. If I was able to give a no star rating I would. read more