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    Stage Nature Center

    4.6 (17 reviews)
    Closed 9:00 am - 3:00 pm

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    Holly N.

    A beautiful, peaceful place to hike to get away the noise of the city and the hustle and bustle. Best of all admission is free and the trails are open everyday from dawn to dusk. There are 4 small trails totally about 1.5 miles. Lots of animals can be spotted: white-tailed deer, chipmunks, garner sneakers, birds, and box turtles. Note that bathrooms are located in the visitor center, and not open after building hours. Also, no running is allowed on the trails and no dogs. The indoor exhibit center has live reptile and amphibians, a beehive observation, a research library with many children books. The Mastodon Dig site is a favorite for the kiddos where they can dig for bones and fossils. Many programs and activities are offered throughout the year for all ages such as live owl encounters, Maple-Syrup Time, Mindfulness workshops, yoga, and an annual Native Plant Sale. I highly recommend the Owl Encounters. An Owlsome learning experience for all!!

    Stacia G.

    Such a cool spot! Went on the owl tour and tons of nature abounded on the day we went. Turkeys, deer and the owls that they have been rehabilitating. Enjoyed the naturalist who gave us information about the owls that they help and brought out a screech owl fir us to see up close and personal. It was a bit cold out and it may have also snowed lol! Will definitely come back to check out more stuff.

    Shuocheng J.

    Nice small park. If you show up at right time all kinds of local wildlife's are expected to see.

    Stage Nature Center
    Jamie H.

    What a perfect indoor and outdoor place for a relaxing and educational time of play and nature! It was warm but drizzling outside, but I really wanted to get me and my son out of the house. My trip to Stage Nature Center was kind of impromptu, but I'm so glad we went there! Easy parking, completely free experience, super engaging indoor nature center with tons of fun, interactive activities for younger students and toddlers. The staff was incredibly sweet and welcoming, and we loved seeing various types of real owls, the duck pond, and enjoying the forest and various trails. We even saw two wild turkeys in all their glory! A perfect place for my son to play and explore! . We will definitely be back there soon!

    Shelly K.

    Lovely place to walk. Lots of shade, boardwalks, bridges and sightings of deer, birds & other creatures. Trails are open dawn to dusk 365 days a year. Check the website for nature center building hours. It's cute and has nice restrooms.

    A mink I found in the center of the photo!
    Elizabeth S.

    This is almost certainly one of the best nature walks in the area. Some of the reviews mentioned yoga and rated the nature center itself, but the best thing to do in a heavily forested area with a trail is take a walk. However, if you have kids there are activities for them and they are always in need of volunteers to help clear the trails. The trails are really well-kept and there are a variety of animals: white-tailed deer, snapping turtles, box turtles, skunks, foxes, garter snakes (I've never seen a massausaga here, which is another plus for the trail) and it's a great place to bird watch (lots of woodpeckers, owls, and hawks). I try to walk here a few times each week, and aside from some noisiness on the weekend and the occasional teenager emerging from the forest reeking of a plant that I don't believe grows here, it's usually pretty quiet and calm. If you live in the area, you should visit!

    Mastodon dog site for the kids

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    2 years ago

    Very nice . Easy walking trails and tons of wildlife. Worth the trip. I will visit again.

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    Review Highlights - Stage Nature Center

    The Rouge River runs through the grounds so there are little pockets of flowing water.

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    Innovation Hills Park - Treehouse front slide has large gap that is not connected to tree house

    Innovation Hills Park

    4.7(42 reviews)
    2.5 mi

    Let's get this part out of the way - The park itself? Amazing. It is modern, has plenty of options,…read moreis well maintained, and has some great nature paths outside of the playground area. In an area that features many great playgrounds and parks to take your family to, Innovation Hills has always stood out. There is a lack of options for younger children though (no infant swings?). The three stars? One of the new features of this park is the addition of Park Mobile being introduced for the main parking lot. Signs everywhere reminding you that you better have paid your $1.50 an hour! There is of course a free dirt lot across the busy road for your convenience. Or a parking 'annual pass' you can purchase from the Rochester Hills website. Our society struggles with the concept of 'the third place'. Parks and playgrounds are a haven for families and a community builder outside of work and home. What in the world is the motivation behind suddenly charging for parking? 1 - The City of Rochester Hills wants to prioritize park access for its citizens? Charging for parking doesn't keep out non-residents and in fact just causes Rochester Hills citizens to pay more for something they are already paying for. 2 - The park is often extremely crowded so charging for parking may reduce visitor count? If this was the motivation I am confident this strategy is not working. 3 - We want to encourage more families to park in the dirt lot across the street and attempt to cross a highway? I have more faith in humanity than that. Oh, I think I got it! To quote Tim Robinson's sketch 'The Driving Crooner' - "I gotta figure out how to make money on this thing..it's simply TOO GOOD!"

    After a long school day, we took the kids to Innovation Hills Park, and they had a blast! The park…read morewasn't too busy, and the kids explored everything, from the playground to the jungle gym. I loved the artificial turf--it keeps the area looking nice year-round. This park has everything--playgrounds, walking trails, a serene area with ducks, and even bathrooms. I'd recommend it to any family looking for a fun day out. Definitely a great spot for outdoor fun!

    Photos
    Innovation Hills Park - Tree house slide

    Tree house slide

    Innovation Hills Park - Lights for Christmas.

    Lights for Christmas.

    Innovation Hills Park

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    Bloomer Park

    Bloomer Park

    4.6(30 reviews)
    6.1 mi

    Bloomer Park is an excellent place for hiking and mountain biking. It's has technical mountain bike…read moretrails as well as moderate and casual. These levels are the same for hiking, so you can get a great workout regardless of experience level. There are multiple wood staircases of varying lengths, so it's great for stair climbing exercise. I've been coming here on/off for several years and have never had a bad experience. I've gone to other state parks where I've gotten swarmed by a lot of bugs, but for whatever reason, not at Bloomer. It's also great that it's located next to downtown Rochester, so food and drink after a casual stroll is accessible. I highly recommend Bloomer Park for hiking and biking activities.

    My family and I went to Bloomer Park for their recent, Fossils and Riverside Campfire event (cost…read morewas $10 per person). We had a great time. It was our first visit to this city park, and I was happy to see it was nicely maintained. We only stayed and hiked through a small section of the park, but it was very clean, bathrooms were available, there was a playground for kids, small grills in sections, bike repair areas could be found, and the trails had been recently upkept. The paths we followed were simple and good for families, although I would not recommend dragging a wagon or anything like that with you. There were easy to hike sections, as well as smaller, more off-road trails perfect for those that enjoy mountain biking. There was plenty of wildlife around to view, wooden bridges for crossing streams and marshy areas, and beautiful areas to relax near the Clinton River. It was honestly a great outing, and we'll definitely be back.

    Photos
    Bloomer Park
    Bloomer Park - The park is beautiful in fall

    The park is beautiful in fall

    Bloomer Park - River next to one of the many trails

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    River next to one of the many trails

    Harold Wilcox and Anna Warnes Nature Santuary

    Harold Wilcox and Anna Warnes Nature Santuary

    4.7(3 reviews)
    12.1 mi

    Great paved walking trails. Lots of wooded area. Perfect place to take your dog. Poop bags are…read moreavailable on location.

    It's no Stony Creek, River Bends or Polly Ann Trail but then I guess it's no joke like Harrington…read moreTrails Park either. A heavily wooded, overgrown plot of land I'd driven by a couple times and vaguely noticed as some sort of nature park, I then saw Wilcox-Warnes reviewed right here on Yelp and made it a point to turn into its little blink-and-you-miss-it lot. I was kind of up that way for my cousin's graduation party anyway. I had to duck under some low hanging branches, likely from a tree felled in one of the intense storms we've had here in Michigan this summer. The planks which alternated with plain ol dirt for the trail came in handy but in a few places the path was very nearly lost in foliage. But with no machete I still managed to make my way through. It really was like a whole little other world as soon as I crossed that first trail blockage. The trails here aren't the longest but I wasn't really expecting them to be either. I got in a nice little hike right before the sunset with the only other nature goers leaving just as I set off. These woods seem like they'd be loaded with mosquitoes but i just roll with a bottle of Off! in my glove compartment these days so I emerged from my trail walk bite free. There's a little bridge in one place but what looked to be a creek bed was nothing but mud. Odd since we've gotten loads of rain recently in southeast Michigan. Someone build a dam near here or something? The laminated sign reading TRAIL ENDS was also odd in a way that was both hilarious and disappointing. There's room here to just have a trail that loops around instead of just abruptly ceasing so you have to double back but whatever I guess. There's one nice little meadow but other than that Wilcox-Warnes is heavily wooded. And you can hear noise from the road in places but it is a nice little respite from outer suburbia. Truthfully, it's nothing too special and I wouldn't go too far out of my way for this nature reserve with the superior options listed at the beginning of the review but Wilcox-Warnes does offer something pretty rustic if basic. I thought about three stars, but given that this land could easily be eaten up by brown and beige McMansions, condos, strip malls or other insidious, encroaching developments, I'll give WW a four.

    Photos
    Harold Wilcox and Anna Warnes Nature Santuary
    Harold Wilcox and Anna Warnes Nature Santuary
    Harold Wilcox and Anna Warnes Nature Santuary - Summer meadow amongst thick woods

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    Summer meadow amongst thick woods

    Stage Nature Center - hiking - Updated May 2026

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