This state park has so much to offer! The trails are well maintained and easily accessible, the…read morelodge is beautiful with a delicious restaurant inside, and there are even cave tours! Some caves only run seasonally, but I took two tours on a Sunday, and it felt like a good amount at a time. Tickets for tours are purchased at the Welcome Center, day of. There's a self explore cave, too, but you need two adults minimum in your party and each with a flashlight. The arches and natural bridges in this park were amazing sites, scattered along the park. I took on the challenge of hitting each arch / bridge, and it was doable in under 5 miles if you move between accesses.

I started visiting Carter Caves State Park when I was young. Fast forward to 2024. I planned a…read morevisit with my nieces and their kids when I was in town. None of my great nieces and nephews had been inside a cave. We arrived at roughly 11:15 AM. I purchased tickets at the Welcome Center for everyone to tour Saltpetre (AKA Saltpeter) Cave at 11:30 AM. It was $54 for three adults and four children. We followed our tour guide across the street, up a hill, then down the stairs and into the earth we went. This cave was used in the War of 1812 to make gunpowder. We got a history lesson from our tour guide who was so patient with the kids. This cave was the driest of all the caves at the park, so no stalactites hanging from the ceiling. But bonus was, no water on our shoes. If you want to see bats, this is not the cave. The cave used to have thousands of bats. The park conservationists are working to increase bat living in this cave. After the tour, we had to turn up our feet, one at a time, so the tour guide could spray the bottom of our shoes with soap and water. He told us this was done to prevent carrying germs/bacteria out of the cave that could harm the bat population at the park. The tour lasted roughly 45 minutes. It was worth the time and money! The kids had a blast. Only one was scared when the lights were turned off momentarily so we could experience total darkness and silence. My nephew Cooper lasted about 3 minutes, then, in his little whimpering voice, he asked if the lights could be turned back on. I can't say enough great things about our cave guide. We left the Welcome Center and headed to the public pool. The pool was free for those camping and staying in cabins. We went on a Monday, so everyone was $3. Pretty good deal! The pool was clean. Only light snacks available, icecream, chips and soda. I highly recommend you add Carter Caves to your summer fun list!

Explored the lovely Alexandria Point Park on the west side of Portsmouth, OH. This hidden gem is on…read morethe Ohio riverbank. You can see two bridges from the corner of the park. Amazing view! The grounds were very well manicured with lots of beautiful flowers and plants. There were many benches and a few shaded picnic tables. There were stairs leading to the riverbank. The park is nestled at the end of a residential street. You can't see it from the main road. If you would like a peaceful place to eat lunch or just relax, check out the river and meditate this is a great place!

This state park that very much centers on the lake of its name, which offers both boating and…read morefishing opportunities. There's a boat launch area, where they are also currently constructing what looks like a boat house, and a couple of piers. Across the street from the boat launch are two parking areas and two picnic shelters, one uphill and one downhill. The downhill shelterhouse also has a nice playground nearby. Unless you are in a boat, this park feels a bit smaller than others, as there's not a lot to do on land. The views are very nice, however. It was foggy on our visit, which made for some fun photography!

The good is that the hike through the beautiful woods was great, and the pool area well kept. The…read morepool table area needs improvement. I really enjoyed my hike.

Cedar Trails is a nice secluded park! Family friendly. We were there just as it's annual kids week…read morehad wrapped up and there were a couple families still hanging around. Plenty of hiking / walking trails. The pool is not heated and we were there early in the season so it was still too cold for us. The hot tub was great, but could use a little TLC. It is plenty big (made by the residents themselves!). I had to rewrite the brakes in our trailer while there and not one person complained, in fact one of the residents lent me some tools! It's a little rustic and could use an infusion of money to improve the maintenance; however all-in-all a great place. Check out the nearby Serpent Mound park! We will definitely stay there again!

I was looking for a short hike. The trails by the lakeside were a bit overgrown on my visit; not so…read moremuch as to be impossible but enough to needlessly increase the tick and poison ivy risk. The activity du jour seemed to be boating, and there were plenty of people taking a dip in various parts of the lake as well. It's probably good for that, but the sights weren't amazing and I wasn't convinced that the calories burned were worth the trouble.

I've hiked Lake Vesuvius many times and it is always quiet, clean and well kept. You have to be…read moreaware of conditions, but I live close by, si no worries. Love this lake hike!

Highly recommend. Absolutely gorgeous grounds! Wedding parties, say "YES!!!" This is a perfect…read morevisit for families, friends or romantic partners and a serene walk in the park! Get away from the hustle and relax in serenity! *Cheers

Absolute jewel! We were traveling through with our dog and were looking for a great place to hang…read moreout, walk, and run. The grounds were clean and beautiful. The trails are wide and they have community dog water fountain. Lots to look at and smell .

This park looks wildly different from anything else in Huntington, with various stone features, an…read moreample playground, paths running along a stream, and some roses. Not many roses, mind you, but you can get some cool views. The aesthetic is much more upscale than the waterfront parks, and this area is usually crowded on a nice day. While there's some parking inside the park itself, the surrounding streets are free as well. And there's really no reason not to head on over if you're in the area.

Good community park, only could use more connected trails to even more of the city, for cross city…read morehooks that can help connect to a mobile-city feel. Some maintenance issues and reinvestment in older space rehabilitation also needed, and curation tied to local entities to expand and do more with some of the open space that is aged out. Great updates to the kid park a few years ago, now they just need to keep it going.

We hiked the fern valley trail. It was pretty easy. Well suited for little ones and adults. There's…read morea few spots near the lake where you might have to help smaller kids but our daughter and her friend managed well enough. Saw a lot of little toads on the trail. Lots of butterflies and squirrels. We managed to see a Heron fishing and flying. That made the trip in my opinion. We walked around the lodge. Not too much to see in there. Looks like a decent enough place to stay. Staff wasn't very friendly but I guess you can't expect much out of government employees having to work a holiday.

We had lunch at Anglers Cove today. The buffet was delicious and our waitress, Jayden, was…read morewonderful!

Unfortunately, my attempt to hike the Zaleski South Loop was cut short due to high water, I will be…read moreback in the Spring to tackle this hike, really looking forward to it!

Headed out on the Hope Furnace Trail to Yosemite Falls and a few other offshoots and loved the…read moreelevation changes and different trail options to accommodate how many miles you want to hike. Take a picture of the trail map before you head in it will help with the navigation. Extensive trail network and can easily do 20+ miles if you want. Have fun it's a great group of trails!

It was so relaxing to walk along this river front as well as have a seat on the amphitheater style…read moresteps. Walking along the river was so lovely as we took in the water and other views. Different art and statues along the route as well.

Beautiful murals and statues aligned the wall as you enter not far from downtown. Scenic views…read morewould have been even better at sunset or at sunrise to improve photos. Parked a few minutes away in 2 hour spot so I could walk here and around town.