A little escape in the middle of the city. With a large lake with fishing , boat rental, swim beach and more (even scuba diving with permit) Hiking and biking trails. Disc Golf and a dog park. There is plenty of stuff for everyone. Rent a shelter and have a party, take the kids to one of the many playgrounds. Catch one of the Theater in the Park shows or go sky gazing. This park has a lot to offer. read more

I love this place I have been here a-half dozen times with the dogs and the dog park is awesome Ive walked around the lake also with a fishing pole and didn't catch anything but its a nice lake read more

I absolutely adore Shawnee Mission Park! It's huge- 1.6k acres and has a 120 acre lake. There is plenty of walking paths and places to park. A wonderful place to catch a gorgeous Kansas sunset, go on a walk, play sports, I've even attended a wedding rehearsal here. There's so much to do year round and it's perfect for so many occasions. read more

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Shawnee Mission Park is such a gem! I've visited twice so far, and I have plans to visit again soon. They have a lovely trail, park and lake on the property. On my most recent visit, I rented a kayak (reserved and paid for online a week prior), and enjoyed sometime out on the lake. The workers were very quick shout getting me checked in, pointing me in the direction of the life jackets, and helping me get settled for my morning adventure. As far as getting in the kayak, if you do not want to get in on the side of the dock, you have the option to use a contraption where you can push yourself off. Though you're in a body of water, and it's semi-cool (especially if visit in the morning), you still need to wear a hat and sunglasses are a must. If you're looking for a quick adventure on water at an affordable price, this is your place! read more

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I don't think I could have come to a better park to witness how beautiful the Fall season can be in the state of Kansas The leaves changing colors, bright warm sun, brisk wind, and cool mist from the lake made me feel like this might be the best Fall ever?! Hopefully so! This is my second visit to this park, but my first time driving myself and it looks like there are multiple things to do here. Dog park, lake, shelter houses, and what I like to call a look a like beach because as we all know Kansas is landlocked Benches and shelters galore. If you want to come have a picnic, rent out a shelter for a birthday party or just pull up to watch the sunset this is the place to be! Will definitely be spending many spring and summer days here myself. read more

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Shawnee Mission Park is THE place to spend time on beautiful days! The park is well managed and patrolled. We hike all the trails available with our dogs and rarely run into trash or issues. I have hiked this park since the 80's and it never gets old! From Mountain Biking to Disc Golf, kayaking and fishing, it has endless opportunities! We recently rented shelter #2 for a family reunion and had a great time! Multiple AC plugs was a bonus, two large grills and a good clean bathroom .10 miles away. Amazing views and scenery and all the other shelters were full with families doing the same thing! No alcohol is allowed anymore, and make sure your pets are on leash at all times! The fines for either are harsh. read more

I visit this location by weekly, and I can say assuredly that though it isn't a fishing miracle location, it gets the job done consistently. There's tons of people here all the time, which may be good or bad depending on your interests in humanity. Just the other day I taught a boat full of young boys how to catch fish properly, they promptly began catching fish which was cool to see. And I saved a woman who had a broken thumb! I also found a guy's paddle, and had genuine interaction with strangers on the water. It's definitely a cool place to be when you got nothing else going on. Obviously Shawnee mission has the RC plane airport, archery ranges, dog park, hiking galore, 12 pretty nice shelters free to use when not reserved, and a pirate playground as we call it. It also has a pond ripe with catfish, and one of the best playgrounds for kids around; such an enormous play area for dozens of children. But I stick to the water. Bluegill is abundant, bass in the right locations are a hoot to catch! Just last weekend I caught six bass in one day. And in trout season if you know what you're doing you can really clean up: this last spring trout session I ended up bringing home 12 trout, deboned and cherry wood smoked for basically a year's supply of trout. They also have a ton of purchasable boating options for those without their own boat - though they make you get off the water at like 5:30 which is lame. One thing I could say I don't like is the addition of all of the sand some genius decided to add to the paddle board launch area. It ends up becoming a free beach for wild children swimming now next to the boat launch where they're close to getting run over by a motor. Not to mention, I think for $5 they have an actual Beach to swim at with lifeguard; though it as well closes at 5:00 or 6:00. Shawnee mission's great. I just found out you have to be off the water at 10:00 p.m. Sharp, park closes at 11:00. Keep it tight, and keep it right! Sail on! There's tons of sail boats by the way, and a BMX track! Okay, bye. read more

Great park that is well maintained. There are 3 different playgrounds. About a dozen shelters to rent and even picnic tables throughout the park. You've got the little pond and the big lake. The beach is fun during the summer. There's a dog park with a dedicated dog beach. There's also an archery range and a model plane field (can't think of what it is called right now). And of course lots a hiking and biking trails throughout the park. read more

Simply put, this is the best greenspace in the entire Kansas City metro area. Whether you are exploring well-maintained hiking trails, a small but varied lake on which to kayak, or the multiple other outdoor recreation options, Shawnee Mission Park is just the tops! In full disclosure, I live less than a mile from Shawnee Mission Park, and I still feel like I don't take enough advantage. My visit today was a beautiful fall day, and an opportunity to spend some quality time with my rapidly-growing son. We chose to play the very open and very popular 18 holes of disc golf, and it was an absolute blast! The holes are well-marked, the fairways are nice and clear, and the players are very courteous and allow you to either play through or don't crowd as they come up behind you. We are also big fans of the playground, safe and cushiony, and I bike through here frequently. The speed limit is 25 throughout most of the park, and there are park officials/rangers around on the regular not only to keep the park very peaceful but to also keep it clean and safe. My rough count is that there are about one zillion great picnic spots, give or take. Find a quiet corner, near water or in one of the many shelters, and enjoy Kansas' natural beauty. I would love to be able to take advantage of the off-leash dog park, but my 'off-leash dog' isn't one that I want to let off-leash. I'll settle for beautiful vistas, the sunset viewing, and the recreation options that get me and my family out into nature. read more

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Shawnee Mission Park offers so much to us lucky visitors. There are paved trails, as well as off-path trails through beautiful woods, and along creeks. You can fish at the lake, and rent kayaks. There are plenty of covered picnic zones with grills throughout the park. There is a frisbee golf course, a theater in the park, a massive kids' play yard, and a beach area. read more

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It's mid August and the swim beach is closed for some reason. So we tried to swim near the dock and someone called the park police on us and made us get out of the water. They said they wouldn't give us a ticket which I didn't think could even happen. Such a bummer that there's a whole lake that you're not allowed to get in unless you have some sort of boat. The park police didn't have a reason for the beach being closed of course. read more

A beautiful park in the area. They offer trails for walking, biking, running, and the water for boats and kayaks during the warmer months. A dog park for your furry friends is always busy. Disc golf is always busy during the warmer days. And you'll see and hear kids playing on the playground that's offered as well. A family-friendly park with just about anything for anyone in your group. read more

Great park Beautiful little lake Off leash dog area Shelter rentals for parties etc Disc golf Hiking Biking Marina with water rentals Sailing Paddle boarding Canoes So much available here. If you're visiting and looking for a park to explore, this is the one. If you live in the area and haven't checked this place out you're late to the party. read more

Tons of things to do here. Growing up in South JoHnson County this was always a go to park for us, I guess I never thought to review it. What really drove me to review it and I'm surprised it doesn't has it's own page is this Inclusive Playground for all ages and abilities!!! This is awesome! And there's a nice little trail and creek right next to this playground. Anyways. This park has tons of trials. Fishing. Playgrounds. Shelters for parties. Creeks to play in. Bike trails and loops. I've kayaked and SUP here. There's even rentals! It's awesome! read more

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Great place to let the dog run free and see the lake/beach after a nice little walk over there! Beautiful scenery and great place to socialize a dog! read more

Shawnee Mission Park - Parks Near Me - Shawnee, Kansas

Amazing park with year round opportunities. If you haven't checked out the hay ride and bonfire offered have you even really prepared for fall?! read more

Shawnee Mission Park - Parks Near Me - Shawnee, Kansas

Finally! Some decent 'hiking'! I say 'hiking' because I'm used to the Colorado mountains, so that sort of skews my perception! But these trails at Shawnee Mission leave little to be desired if you keep in mind that we live in Kansas. The trails are well maintained, well marked and have great maps to avoid confusion. They even have a bike repair spot! I've never seen such a cool station before - complete with tons of tools and a bike pump. Plus a hook to hang the bike from as you work on it. Shawnee Mission has a million other amenities - a huge lake with a dock, boat rentals, multiple playgrounds, pavilions, hayrides, trails, a ton of picture ops, frisbee golf and more. It's such a treasure in the KC area. And if you haven't been to a Theater in the Park performance - what are you waiting for?? read more

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Been here a few times and finally got to try out my inflatable kayak from Amazon, but that will be a whole different review. (Well worth the $50 though). Come early... it gets crowded. This place has everything if you like the outdoors. Tons of trails, parking, clean restrooms, and of course the lake. read more

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Paddle board rental If I could give a negative review I would. The young man who checked us in was extremely rude. I had been going there for years but will find another place to paddle board. They have increased their prices. They provide no safe place to put personal belongings and the substance they made the new decks out of literally burns your feet. Not worth the money at all. read more

Came here on a weekday morning, some roads leading to it were closed but the main entrance was open. Parked at Shelter 3 + 4, plenty of spots and not very many cars. Trail is actually closed. Pretty flat, trees are all dead as expected, not much to see right now. read more

Shawnee Mission Park is my office on days off of work. This place is an oasis out in western Lenexa - you've got running trails sneaking through the woods, kayaks and boats for rent (btw Memorial/Labor Day), roads to ride, dog parks for dogs to frolic, and water to fish. Of all the pieces, I have to say that the running trails win for me here. They crew has done an amazing job maintaining these trails and building on to them over the years. You can also control your distance with ease - want a quicker 2.5 mile smoother route? You got it. You can also stretch it out to 4.5, or even 7 with the additional trails. The park isn't far off of 435, and for a city that loves to drive, it's likely going to take you a little time to get there. Coming from the Plaza area means I have to really plan to come out here, but it always ends up being worth it. Like any great park or patio in KC, this place will be chock full of people on nice days, which I like because it means people are out enjoying themselves. The dog park gets especially packed, with cars manufacturing parking spots on the side roads all around. There's usually dog food trucks on those busy days - where's the people food trucks?! Drive, ride or run out here if you haven't been, it's an amazing, gigantic park worthy of an entire Saturday afternoon. read more

Seriously should lengthen swim beach hours in the summer. Closing 3 hours before sunset takes away a lot of potential revenue

Whether you're looking for trails to run, a place to take the family, kayak and paddle board rentals, or a spot for disc golf with friends, this park has you covered. In terms of size and offerings, SM Park is a joco oasis for nature lovers. You can get lost on trails for hours enjoying the views (and a workout), there's plenty of benches planted around the park to sit back and enjoy nature, and if you like to bike, it offers a nice stretch of road to cycle around. Parking has always been easy to come by and there's plenty of open grassy areas for picnics or sunbathing. read more

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Went here with some of the volleyball group to kayak and it was a ton of fun! The park is nice and clean and the weather was awesome. We rented canoes because I took my son with me and they don't allow you to rent paddleboards or kayaks for more than one person so all the parents had to rent canoes or pedal boats if they have kids with them. So canoes we did. It's $10 for half an hour but they let you rent as long as you like without an upcharge so we only paid $10 to use 3 hours worth of canoeing. Not a bad deal at all! Rental starts at 10am so get there on time because there will be a line. The staff will help you set off as well so that's really nice. We went to the dog park so the kids could play and also went under a tiny bridge where we could see turtles and birds. It was a lot of fun! The boats are clean and in good condition, and there are plenty to choose from. You can canoe, pedal, paddle, or kayak. I think I may invest in my own to avoid renting in the future. Overall, this place is awesome for everything. Shelters are nice as well so you can have a picnic later if you like! read more

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This is one of my favorite parks in Kansas City! It's so big no matter what time of the year I go it never feels packed. There are so many trails to explore and so much to look at. Recently went running there and was treated to a amazing sunset, prairie land and lake views! It's also a great place in the summer to see theatre in the park and movies in the park. Both are great budget friendly things to do as you can bring your own food and drinks in with you. I often hang out before shows with friends and play games. read more

Shawnee Mission Park - Parks Near Me - Shawnee, Kansas

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Shawnee Mission Park is jammed packed with awesomeness. It's got so many things to do! Fishing, hiking, playgrounds, dog park, biking, swimming, disc golf, geocaching, and pretty much everything else you can do outside. You feel like your out of the city, but it's still conveniently located to the rest of the metro. It's a really large park. Plenty of space to escape the mundane of everyday life. Outdoor favorite spot to visit is the dog park. We love that they have a dog beach at the end of the trail. We've also taken the kids fishing at the park a few times. Occasionally we'll stop by for some geocaching or bird watching. Lately we've been hitting up the newly remodeled JCPRD beach house. It's great! You pay admission to use the swimming beach, but the amenities are worth the price. The beach is well maintained and there are lifeguards on duty. The beach house has a concession stand, picnic tables, and bathrooms. There's an outdoor shower too for washing off your feet after a day in the sand. SMP should be on any KC day trip bucket list. Lots to do! Great place for families to get outside and unwind. :) read more

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My wife and kids kayak here, we host family gatherings here, I've caught so many fish from the lake, and I even proposed to my wife at this park. I've been coming to this park since the early 90's, it's my favorite in Kansas! read more

The trails are great! Very natural, not overly "developed" and they follow standardized trail signage and descriptions effectively.

Great big park and they have everything activity wise. Dog park, trails, camping, kayaking, canoeing, swimming, sand volleyball, and the list goes on. read more

Shawnee Mission Park - Parks Near Me - Shawnee, Kansas

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I LOVE this park! It's great!!! It's a relatively nice size park. There's many spots to picnic, a bunch of trails, a lake, and much more! The best part of the park is the DOG PARK! It's a huge dog park. There's trails for the dogs, big open fields for the dogs to run around, and a part of the lake is sectioned off for the dogs to swim! I have a lab mix and my dog LOVES to swim, so I've been taking him here for years. Highly recommend stopping by this park if you are in the area! read more

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Massive park to go walking, running, biking, RC plane flying, fishing, and bbq'ing. There's also a massive dog park with a beach on the water for man's best friend. You can climb a lookout tower and get the full 360 degree horizon view. With that being said, I just come to fish. This place has unfortunately been heavily bank fished; so unless you're really good or really lucky, temper your expectations in the catching of fish department. They do rent small, non-motorized boats, but having a canoe with a trolling motor is a pretty good idea. Getting out in the channel can lead to some bigger catches fairly deep. Caught 2 pretty good sized largemouth bass running a spinner 25' deep. My compatriot caught a couple crappie and a hybrid close to the dam. A couple of years ago, I hooked into a large rainbow trout about 30' off the dam. Just a good place overall to put a line in the water. Negatives? The Man (i.e. park rangers) have a tendency to check your papers if you're fishing, which is fine if you've spent the requisite $68 for your KS fishing license, Joco Parks & Recs permit, & trout stamp. But it's still annoying to have to stop what you're doing and prove you're legal. There have been multiple trips where I was checked multiple times over the span of a few hours. Again, if you're fishing for dinner, this may not be the place for you as the lake is fairly heavily fished by the banks. read more

Great place to get outdoors, shelter houses, lake, paths to walk, well kept up, grass mowed, theater in the park during summer months

We love coming here, the park is great and we love having lunch at the lake. its just a great place to be!

We love this park. The dog park is the best in the area and the lake is just small enough to push back on powerboats and just big enough to allow kayaks and other small crafts plenty of room. The fishing is pretty good and the recent updates have made a wonderful park even better. read more

Shawnee Mission Park is Kansas' quiet answer to the sweeping beauty of Swope Park on the Missouri side. An enormous lake with paddleboarding and beginner sailboats. Long beautiful trails through woods and gently rolling hills. A small beach for those who want to pretend they aren't in Kansas anymore. Dogs are welcome and roam around freely. If you have your own canoe or watercraft, bring it. Lots of programs...including Theater in the Park during the summer. Come check it out. read more

Update on playground by shelter 10: The new playground is amazing!! It doesn't have enough shade in the later part of the afternoon but at about 11 it's got a nice amount of shade. The water feature is quite cool ;-) the metal slide is super hot during a sunny day and super fast always so be ready. Don't use it when it rains because literally every kid that used it got hurt and ended up crying (it will not be safe when its winter). The quality of the park is right there and it's overall safe for toddlers. Most of the items are for kids age 2-5 so it's nice to have a park specialized towards the little ones. The ropes course is great for the older kids. Original post: Nice park. We walk here most nights with the kids. The playgrounds are pretty good but they need a little more maintenance. The rubber on the playgrounds isn't safe when it's this old- it's much safer to just have the wood chips because it doesn't get too hot, doesn't break apart, no heavy metals from the recycled rubber and is much cheaper for the city too. Hopefully they fix it so it's not such a hazard. We don't use the other facilities but overall super nice read more

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lets see - hiking, biking, running, swimming, canoeing, paddle boating, picnicking, disc golfing, horse back riding, dog parking. Yep they have it all covered at SMP. We are lucky to have SMP and Swope in KC, on 2 sides of the city you have some great options. the best part is it's mostly FREE (you have to rent paddle boats, canoes, etc) there is really something for everyone here. read more

Shawnee Mission Park is a beautiful park, about 10 miles or so from 1-35 and Shawnee Mission Parkway. At the main entrance on Renner road, there is a visitor's center where you can obtain a park map and learn more about the natural wildlife that makes the park its home. I come here probably 2-3 month with my dog Charlie because there is an AWESOME off-leash dog park within it. It is about 50-acres and has tons of walking/hiking trails within it so you can walk with your dog. However, the best part is definitely the swimming beach, where dogs are allowed to swim in the lake off-leash. It's so fun to watch all the dogs swimming. Charlie loves it- and it really wears him out. Besides the dog park, if you go at sunset, there are tons of small families (herds?) of deer that come and eat by the road. They are about 15 feet or so from the road and they just watch you, even if you drive by or park your car to watch. It's so beautiful to see them up close and it's a great ending to a good afternoon or weekend. Horseback riding trails, a model airplane field, and archery areas are also provided in the park, with a permit. They also have canoes and boats for rent for the lake during the summer. read more

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Great forest trails even if you don't bring dogs. Lots of trails even connect to the water for a cool hangout spot!

I have utilized the trails for my half and full marathon trainings--it is always kept clean and landscaping is beautiful. The only downfall is that the deeper trails aren't typically maintained too well when it snows (but then again, who the heck would travel 10 miles in just to shovel/plow?!) I very much enjoy the hiking trails as well!! They have signs that you can follow to ensure that you don't get lost. We love to just sit in the grass, on occasion, to enjoy the view of the lake, wildlife, and have a picnic. read more

Shawnee Mission Park - On top of the tower during sunset - Parks Near Me - Shawnee, Kansas