Splash pad and playground is a great, free activity for kids under 5 to do for a couple of hours on…read morea hot day. Bring a lawn chair, so that you can sit underneath a shady tree. Also, have kids wear water shoes because the ground is hot. The splash pad consists of 10 or so (very little) jets of water, just enough for the little ones to get wet. Public bathrooms available. I believe the splash pad water starts at 11:00 a.m. When we were there there was an ice cream truck so make sure to bring cash just in case.

This park is great! Super clean and had a play structure for bigger kids as well as little ones…read more Plenty of swings... 4 regular ones, 2 baby ones and 2 of the plastic chair type ones. It's on padded turf. There's a picnic area with plenty of tables. Lots of benches around the playground too. There is very little shade at this playground. Plenty of parking.

There's nothing like a early Saturday morning walk at the lake. Such a lovely scenery.read more

Papaianni Park is synonymous to celebrations and events and a park that does it by a calendar…read morewithout missing a single beat. We have been here for a lot of events all these years. Their fireworks for Diwali is the best highlight of all and they light up the sky as equal to July 4th. We got here for a stroll around the lake and it was a nice calming experience. We wish the splash pad was open but it wasn't and the parking is humongous.

Beautiful park with wonderful light displays! I think it's great that they're celebrating their…read morediverse population by putting up lights for Diwali. The park is beautiful. It has lots of nature and ducks. However, there are many barricades due to unsafe parts around the walking path. While it's nice that they're keeping people safe, at this point those issues should have been fixed.

I have always love this park and today it felt like the right day to visit despite the cloudy sky!!…read moreI have been here before but it's nothing to visit more than once!! They have picnic tables to eat your lunch or just enjoy the scenery!!

Washington Rock Park is more of a scenic overlook than it is a park and unfortunately you're not…read moregonna find any Hiking Trails or outdoor Picnic Areas with Grills anywhere near here, but it is still a pretty cool Historic New Jersey Landmark plus it was an important part of the Revolutionary War.     In May of 1777 this mountain overlook provided General George Washington's Army a vantage point in order to see the British encampments below which solidified an edge for any future troop engagements.    Long story short, the mountain's sheer height and location made it the perfect observation site and natural defensible fort. Definitely worth checking out if you ever find yourself in this immediate area. Come And Get Your History On!!

You can hardly find this park if you are driving in oak tree road ! They have multiple entry points…read more.. the back entry near Popeyes is really bad . Smells weed when you walk through that path . Good for dog walk through that path . There is also a main entrance on the other side . Parking isn't too bad . Not too big but fits most of the people visiting this ground . We actually liked the main side of the park . Nice play area .. I liked the pickle ball courts . Nicely maintained . We also saw that most of the courts were available . There are also place to camp and sit / eat with friends . Basket ball court was also well maintained ! Liked it overall except the walkway on the backside ! 4 stars !

After months of renovation, Putnam Park is finally the modern recreational space that South…read morePlainfield deserves. In addition to the repaved parking lot which was full of potholes before, there are ~4 new curbside spaces outside of the entrance. Both the entrance and exit have been designated as one-way streets in order to better facilitate vehicular traffic. Putnam now has new fitness stations on the walking path and a brand new playground set built on rubber turf. The covered pavilion which used to be on the northern side of the park has now been demolished and rebuilt closer to the middle of the park with ~6 picnic tables and ceiling fans to keep insects away and people cool. The tennis and basketball courts remain intact as they were before. The fields that were disturbed or displaced due to construction are currently being reseeded with new grass. I am overall very excited about this update and hope that other locals will appreciate it as much as I do.

This is great place for morning walk or evening walk. I and my husband spend evening at the park…read morefrom our daily busy schedule. It was very peaceful and relaxing. You can watch sunset between woods. This park has picnic area and barbecue grill. They also have outlet for phone charging and music system which is very cool to have in park. They have few court for playing like tennis and baseball. They have little walking trail and gazebo and also it two playground for kids. And that's not it, they do have changing room and bathroom.

First time mom here! Favorite park so far! This park is stroller friendly! The walking path can fit…read moreup to three moms with strollers, which is important to me because I always walk with a fellow mom! Most parks paths are narrow so we end up, one infront of the other, yelling our conversations over our shoulders. I also like that this park is so spacious and well kept. Picnic tables and grills are amazing. Had I known about this park sooner (I just moved in the area recently), I would have come here from the beginning! Mommy approved!

As a student at Rutgers, this is probably my favorite part of campus. Located on the Livingston…read morecampus, the ecological preserve is footsteps away from the business school and has several miles worth of trails to travel. I tend to do this trail pretty often for running and to make things interesting I'll change up the trails. A lot of the trails are interconnected which can be confusing, but the trails are marked with some signs and trees which are marked with the color of their respective trail. The trail also extends from Livingston Campus all the way to Johnson Park and everything in between. My favorite trail is the blue trail which runs alongside one of the creeks and heads towards Johnson Park. Having run it in different seasons, I'd say the best time to do the trails is in spring/fall where the weather isn't too hot or cold and there's plenty of foliage. In the summer, it can get really hot and humid along with the many bugs that live there. (Be on the lookout for the many spider webs that you may encounter on the trail!) The trail is not paved, so be prepared for mud after the rain. Also, if running, be on the lookout for the many tree roots and changes in terrain that can trip you up (as I've done plenty of times). There are plenty of deer, squirrel, raccoon encounters so definitely be on the lookout. On one occasion the preserve was closed due to an "aggressive" coyote, but I have never made such an encounter. Overall, the Rutgers Ecological Preserve makes for a fun and interesting trip whether its hiking, running, biking or anything in between. I'd definitely recommend it, especially if you're a student.

This preserve is tucked away North of the Rutgers main campus. It offers a collection of hiking…read moretrails which are mostly well-marked, flat, and very clean. The small parking lot is easy to miss and don't be fooled by a chain halfway across the entrance to it, it is open for parking with no parking pass needed. The trails can be muddy in certain areas after a good rain, so hiking shoes are recommended over sneakers.

We brought our son here last year when we noticed they re-did it. The new equipment is well…read moremaintained and much nicer. There's a smaller section for small toddlers (smaller slides, a little house attached to it, etc.) and also a larger section for kids 5+ (larger slides, balance ropes, etc.). Both sections have some overhead coverage but the park itself is not shaded. There's also a separate area where the swings are and also a climbing rock/boulder. There's basketball courts adjacent to the kids playground and a good amount of parking. It's definitely one of the cleaner and newer parks around and would definitely recommend checking it out.