Although there was nothing but a parking lot and a small patch of land. It was pretty nice to set…read moreup our camping chairs and just chill in a safe area with out pets. I would recommend this as a nice area for dog owners.

Certainly it's not anything comparable to the big popular arboretums and botanical gardens those…read moremay think of, but for Rockford it's good. It's not a humongous one, but there's plenty of ground to cover and nature to see. Klehm Arboretum has a respectable collection of flowers, plants, and trees. A lot of family activities. There's often some kind of special event going on for children and family things. A lot of the gardens are specific toward one plant species or a family. It of course has better viewing in the spring and summer, but any time of the year has something to check out. The visitor's center is the first place most people come to. Get a map. You can find out where all the gardens are and which paths to go on. It has a pretty cool pond garden in front you should stop at. There's a Prehistoric Garden featuring a T-Rex. Also children will enjoy the Fountain Garden. This is a way to cool off in summer. Even though the programs say there's an admission charge, you can still usually get in free. It's not like there's anyone at the gate. This is best in the summer, but there's also later year activities like hay mazes and whatever.

The garden in the name is a bit confusing as it's more about trees. Like 98% trees, 2% flowers…read more Keep in mind I visited in the 3rd week of may...there should be some more flowers. There was a bit of a flower arrangement by where they apparently hold weddings so that was something. But otherwise trees...trees and more trees. The paths are freshly paved and there are many more natural paths that branch off of the main paved paths. We walked around the perimeter of the garden staying on the paved paths. There wasn't much to view but I did see one wild turkey so I added a star for that. We also took one short dirt path just to see...but it was just a short dirt path through the trees. If this place was free...I'd of liked it more I think. But at $12 per person it seemed like paying to hike through a nicely maintained park. I ended up here because Anderson Japanese Gardens were overflowing with attendees. So I went here where there were like 4 cars worth total on same exact day. Anderson btw charges about the same price so...maybe it's an entertainment value for the dollar deal? I think so. If you are a manager here...everything was very well maintained...you just need to give people more color to see on the main paved paths.

Me and my wife recently stopped here to go on a little walk in the area. This place is perfect for…read moreall sorts of outdoor activities since there's a beach nearby and plenty of trails though I recommend and not walk through them when it's wet outside because they are very muddy and nothing is paved. Plenty of dogs are running off leash as well which isn't an issue. Please check to make sure you know what time the park closes because they will close on you as well. Highly recommend stopping here

Decided to take a drive from Evanston on a beautiful Spring day (70 degrees in Evanston, but 80…read moredegrees in Rockford - it was balmy!) I had found this place searching online for nearby state parks that weren't TOO far of a drive and still had ample hiking trails. The park was easy to find, had plenty of parking and lots of paved and dirt trails for both hiking and biking. Picnic areas scattered throughout and a nice large lake for fishing/boating/canoeing (there were prices posted in the concessions area for renting a boat with motor for the day as well if you don't have your own to bring with you!) Small selection of snacks and beverages (non-alcoholic) were available for purchase, however they did not have any paper maps (there were boards posted by trail entrances and we did take photos of those). It looks like there is a restaurant next to the concessions area that opens after Memorial Day weekend for the season. We saw and heard many different birds while hiking and it was very peaceful (and not very crowded, as we were here on a Tuesday). My husband particularly enjoyed seeing the turkeys roaming around