We have made it our goal to find hiking trails we haven't explored yet and this is one we for sure…read morewould have never stumbled upon on our own. With the help of Google we found a list that included Rozarks. Off we set with our Google maps to find the trail head by car. We were led to the Rosedale Arch and thought we were in the wrong spot. However we weren't giving up so after poking around a bit we saw the trail entrance. We soon discovered it is one of many all through the Rosedale area. This has been developed and still looks to be developed since 2015. It is not well marked at all and for sure would advise to take a look at the map on the website link. That being said we did not do that but we also never felt "lost". There are tree markings to those that pay attention. It is very peaceful and serene. The trails are steep and rough in many spots so this is not what I would call "easy" hiking. The trail also seems to be geared towards mountain bikes and therefore you need to be aware of them and yield to them. We were here on a weekday morning and didn't see any. No amenities except trashcans on the heads of the trail so do come prepared.

Weston Bend State Park is a peaceful and beautiful spot located near the town of Weston, MO. The…read morepark is famous for its picturesque beauty, walking trails that winds through forests overlooking the Missouri River. I visited the park in winter last yr and fell in love with it. Primarily I just hiked around but I saw many people bird watching, and enjoying the quiet nature as well. The best part is the scenic overlook that gives a beautiful view of the river valley, especially at sunset. When I visited the park, it felt calm and less crowded. That definitely makes it a nice place for families or anyone who wants a break from busy life. My suggestion to everyone one is to hike at this park and then head to the town of Weston to enjoy some hot wine at Pritle Wineries followed by amazing food at the O'malleys pub.

Small park that nestles along the Missouri River…read more Trails for hiking and biking exist on the eastern side. You can also camp and picnic. If you hike along the West Ridge you will climb up to the ridge and come up to some overlooks that look into Kansas. The park was unmanned on Indigenous Peoples Day, but folks were able to access the park. If you have pets, the park has a small dog park at the front end. Plenty of benches can be found along the lower trails to take a load off. Right now the leaves are turning into their fall shades and the birds that come in the fall are arriving for the birders that are on the hunt. Plenty of information can be found at the trail head. There are clean bathrooms. The water fountains don't work, but the taps do. The weather today was awesome. I will return.

Beautiful park! Beautiful falls! Love going here for lunch, taking walks, fishing and taking the…read morekids for outdoor adventures!!

It's just a park with a waterfall, nothing fancy about it. It smells sometimes. And it's dirty.read more

Burr Oak Woods Conservation Nature Center in Blue Springs, Missouri, is fantastic from start to…read morefinish. Whether you're visiting with kids or exploring on your own, there's something here for everyone. The nature center itself is large and packed with educational exhibits that encourage hands-on learning. Topics range from fire safety and local wildlife to water ecosystems and conservation. There are live animals on display, a theater with a continuous live video feed of a baby falcon nest, and a large children's area complete with climbing features and slides. It's both educational and entertaining. Everything inside the center is exceptionally clean, well-organized, and thoughtfully designed. The staff truly make the experience special. During our visit, they brought several turtles outside for visitors to see up close. The kids were fascinated watching them explore while staff members shared information about turtle behavior, unique characteristics, habitats, and safe handling practices. It was engaging, interactive, and educational all at the same time. The outdoor grounds are just as impressive. Beautiful flower gardens, a pond, and well-maintained walking trails surround the center. Trail maps are available inside and include descriptions and difficulty information for each route. Families with children can also pick up a laminated scavenger hunt sheet to make exploring the trails even more fun. The maps clearly indicate which trails are paved and which are gravel, making it easy to choose a route that fits your needs. What stood out most was the attention to detail throughout the entire property. It's obvious that the staff and volunteers put their hearts into creating a welcoming, educational, and memorable experience for visitors of all ages. This is one of the best nature centers in the area and a place we will gladly visit again and again.

This land has been close to my heart for most of my life. I…read moreremember my mom taking us on nature hikes, way back before I knew they were so cool. Now, it's one of my favorite pastimes as an adult. The Hubs and I had a rare day together that we decided to enjoy outside. He had never been here before, so it's just a hop from where we live. Seemed like an easy decision. Went through the nature center first, which is always a nice start. Fun to see the creatures and read about the past. Then we decided to do the longer hike. Great choice. Defined, clean paths. Not terribly busy, even though you are directly in the city. Plenty of wildlife, this time was smaller spring babies. Still a great reminder of seasons and the importance of protecting their environment. Overall, well worth a visit.

This trail is great! Lots to look at with creeks, deer, birds, turtles etc! Can get busy but is…read moresuch a great spot!

Randomly found this trail after missing my workout class time. It is such a nice and SHADED trail…read more They have many parking lots throughout, so you can start wherever. I also like that the trail was lined like a street! So, everyone knew which side to claim and can stay clear or the bicyclist. They had little ponds everywhere too which was cute! Many benches and water fountains throughout for pit stops if needed. I'm not sure how long the trail is, but it's lengthy

This is a fun trail to hike on. Most of it is paved, although there are some off paths that are all…read moreterrain and wooded. I was not familiar with this trail so it was a little confusing to get to. Tip: you can access the trail by the tennis courts on Blue river rd. Tip 2: the bathrooms by the tennis courts were not open yet (March) and no bathrooms along the trail. Along the trail you pass lots of the park's amenities: shelter house, tennis courts, benches, playground, golf course, water, love lock bridge and more. If you do the entire hike it's about 5 miles. Parts of the path are secluded but I was with a friend and felt safe. I would recommend doing the hike with at least another person, although there were lots of people walking, running, and cycling on the trail. Good trail for all levels.

It was great hike, very long but seemed to be forever. I ended up turning around. The bridges were…read moreawesome and the lock bridge was really cool, but you just get to the red bridge and only go on it and turn around. The tennis courts seemed nice and they had basketball hoops, a park and bathrooms . You can go to the bridge and then go on the other paths. I will say there was about seven cars with older men in the parking lot in the last parking lot just sitting in there cars which was kind of interesting . Honestly for being a younger woman with her kid I probably wouldn't go back by myself again, everyone was friendly though. Also a semi parked just off the dirt/ gravel way with a car and I didn't feel comfortable going that way so I had to just turn around completely. The people do come and clean the bathrooms which is good, I didn't go in there but I saw the guy going in at one point before my walk. By the bridge there was literally trash next to the trash can so like come on my fellow walkers do better.

Olathe and Overland Park are lucky to have this trail head and this trail system. My running club…read moremeets here every so often and we can either run to mid American Nazarene university which is about 2 1/2 miles away or go in the opposite direction and run for miles and miles. Unfortunately there is no water here but there is a trashcan and a porta-potty. so if you're in the area be sure to stop by and use this wonderful trail for running biking rollerblading walking. it's great for everything.

Phenomenal runners trail in Olathe, KS…read more This trail is over 27 miles - great for walking, running, or biking. Great training distances / elevations for 1/2 and full marathon runners. One area terminates to a picnic area with fountains and bathrooms. It crosses some main roads in certain sections but also goes underneath in tunnels in others. What better way to up your mileage on your winter runs!

My husband and I Roeland Park, this nature sanctuary the day before Mother's Day. We had a heck of…read morea time finding it because the address was listed incorrectly. The nature sanctuary is on 12th St. and the connecting street is East St. Once we figured out where it was, we took our time on one of the trails I believe there are four trail options and the longest is 1.6 mile loop and the second is a 1 mile loop and the other ones are less than that. But it is a beautiful nature sanctuary with lots of greenery, woods, streams, water falls, and benches to enjoy the scenery. No pets are allowed since it is a nature sanctuary. There is a covered area off of one of the hikes that we went to that leads to some picnic tables. There's also several picnic tables by the parking lot. There are also bathrooms near the parking lot. The parking lot is next to the track and field belonging to the college. We really enjoyed our slow, meandering walk/hike and will definitely go back.

Hidden right by the bustle of downtown parkville, the parkville nature sanctuary has become one of…read moremy favorite places to do an easy hike. The trails are well maintained, and while there are some inclines at certain points, the trail is easy to follow and not strenuous. I love the various view points where you can stop and really appreciate natural beauty, like the waterfall or the butterfly pass. It feels like this is in its own little world despite being so close to the city. Be aware that the parking lot is pretty small so at peak times it may be hard to park.

I can't believe I've lived in KC for so long, and I just found Wyandotte County Lake…read more This is a 12 minute drive from where we live in Parkville MO, so we can be paddling or hiking within 10 minutes from leaving our house. A few things to know: 1. Kayaking or Paddleboarding- you must have a permit (sticker) displayed on your craft. You purchase this at the marina office - and they are closed Tuesday/ Wednesday. It's $60- season. We hear they are strict about enforcing this. The launch spot is very close to the marina office- and is amazing. The launch point is zero entry and it has a parking lot- so you don't have to drag your craft very far. It's great! We kayaked on a Saturday and only saw a couple of boats. We love the calm quiet water and the beautiful nature experience. 2. Hiking- there are over 10 miles of hiking trails around the lake. They are maintained by Urban Trail Co- and their site is where they post trail closings (they are closed after big rains). The trails are pretty hilly-and we have been using them for Colorado Backpacking training. It's perfect! Bring bug spray- and I wouldn't recommend going alone since they are very isolated in the woods. There don't seem to be clearly marked trail heads- we parked at the spillway parking lot or the shelters seem to trail entry points as well. Go get outside! Enjoy! ‍

I went there to hike the West Dam and Vulture Ridge Trail so that's what I'll be reviewing…read morespecifically. The trail is about a 5 mile loop. It's not well marked and there's spots where it's not maintained very well. I would suggest a trail app that you can download a map from because cell service is also spotty in areas along the trail. We went off trail several times due to those two reasons. It was also difficult to find the trail head. The trail itself has lots of shade. It's not the most difficult trail but you do have to watch your step due to rocks and uneven ground. There are lots of bugs, highly recommend bug spray because the mosquitoes are plentiful. There were quite a few mountain bikers and a few trail runners. There were also a couple of pups and children. If you bring a pup, make sure to keep an eye on the ground. It seems there's quite a few inconsiderate individuals who leave trash everywhere that frequent the park. So that's disappointing. Overall it was an ok trail. I'll return in the fall because I'm sure the leaves look pretty. But it's not a trail I'm super eager to return to.

This area was called "Monkey Mountains," because early settlers deemed the river bluffs too steep…read morefor even monkeys to climb. This place is as close to being out in the wild as you can get in the KC area. A little bit of a drive but worth it if you want a rugged terrain. It's perfect. Reaching the open meadow at the top is wonderful. Use bug spray and check for ticks.

Monkey Mountain is an 855 acre nature preserve in Eastern Jackson County, halfway in-between Grain…read moreValley and Oak Grove. The address I listed is the approximate address of the south entrance to the park, there is another entrance a little over a mile north off Old US 40 Hwy next to a softball field. The park is mostly undeveloped, which is what I love about it. You get to experience nature instead of a sanitized version of nature. There are two primary loop trails, one measuring 3.5 miles and one measuring between 2-3 miles depending on the route taken. Numerous smaller trails criss-cross between these main trails and branch out forming various side loops. You can spend hours hiking here and not see everything. The park caters to hikers and equestrians. I usually encounter a few other people at the park but only between long stretches of complete isolation. The elevation ranges from about 780 feet on the banks of Sni-a-Bar Creek to about 950 feet at the summit. There is a wide variety of terrain in the park: marshy lowlands in the north and northwest, thick woods and steep terrain covering most of the western half, limestone outcroppings along the ridge and at the south end of the park, a huge roiling meadow in the center, and farmed land along the eastern edges. Several ponds dot the landscape, and numerous tiny streams feed into Sni-a-Bar Creek along the western edge. There is even a waterfall in the park, but I will not reveal the location since it is both a fragile and a dangerous feature (especially in winter). Finding it can be part of your adventure. In the spring and early summer the park's meadows are filled with a wide variety of wildflowers, and wildlife can be spotted year-round. I've seen deer, foxes, turkeys, tortoises and turtles, all sorts of birds, and even evidence of some sort of wildcat. In the first half of the 20th century, much of what is now Monkey Mountain Park was part of a show farm called Sni-a-Bar Farms, owned by William Rockhill Nelson. The hillside and meadow were used for grazing sheep. Evidence of that can still be seen today in the form of farm remnants such as an old boundary fence running east-west through the middle of the park. If you hike the park, don't do it alone until you are familiar. Even though there are trails they are not always easy to see, and some portions of the trails can be treacherous. If your hike takes you through the northwest portion of the park you can expect to encounter mud pretty much year round so wear appropriate shoes. You will also need to carry your own water, there are no facilities at the park except at the softball field and an outhouse at the south entrance.