Veteran Acres Park is gorgeous, with a clean and historic nature center and plenty of hiking trails, with water features sprinkled in. I really enjoyed looking at the animals inside such as the snakes, and the trails were difficult enough to be challenging, but easy enough to enjoy the beautiful surroundings. I'm taking a star off because they were spraying Roundup all over the park while we were there, and the lake was quite green. Regardless, it was a fun experience to connect with nature and get off of our phones. We saw some caterpillars, chipmunks, and a lot of turtles. I remember coming here as a child, and will continue to visit when I'm in the area for some fresh air. I didn't see any ticks, but keep in mind there can be ticks and mosquitos in the damper months. read more

See all

We really enjoyed Veteran Acres, saw a lot of wildlife with my boy and his friends, kids were playing Army, I was taking lots of photos as usual n exercising while walking with them!! read more

See all

Though most of the pictures don't show it (I'll try to add more), there's also a playground and splash pad here (though I've never seen the water running). The playground has two sections, one for the younger kids, with smaller slides and stairs, and a larger one for the climbers! There are swing sets with harnesses for your toddlers and regular flat ones for the high fliers! This park is well maintained and great for meetups and play dates. There's also a covered pavilion with several picnic tables if you want to have a meal. In the winter time, sledding is very popular, with some pretty steep slopes for those who like speed. The trails here are scenic and wide, safe for you if you'd like to bring a stroller. There are some parts with wood chips, so be advised. Also, there are public bathrooms on site, so perfect for a longer excursion. read more

Veteran Acres Park - Playground. - Parks Near Me - Crystal Lake, Illinois

Fun trails! They had a slight incline at parts which was cool. Each trail was a little different. My hiking group did them all!

While I only make it to this park 1-2 times per year, I wholeheartedly recommend this beauty for a picnic, a hike, and/or a great place to bring the kiddos. There's tons of nature walks to be had here, and you'll likely run into plenty of pretty wildflower a, winding walking paths, a marshy area, and load of mature trees. If being one with nature isn't your cup of tea, the kids' park is well-appointed and there's a large (covered) picnic area adjacent to the restrooms. There's also a sweet splash pad that my girls were heavily covering after our family picture session was completed. This is a prime park in McHenry county - if you're in the area, it's a must stop! read more

This is an oasis in the heart of Crystal Lake. There are miles of trails, which take you through a variety of ecosystems including a pond, a forest, a prairie, and then a fen when you get into Sterne's Woods. The trails loop and cross, so you can make your run or hike as long or short as you would like. A paved bike trail runs alongside the park, and you can ride all the way to Wisconsin or Aurora on it. To keep your children entertained, there is a playground, a water play area and fishing area. In the winter, you can snowshoe, sled (there is a great sledding hill), cross country ski or ice skate. The park also offers various sporting fields, which are available by permit from the CL Park District. Speaking of permits, you can also get one to use the big fire pit near the nature center. Veteran's Acres is just a beautiful place to spend time all year round. read more

One of the best places in McHenry county to have a wonderful journey and hike. Go there and get outdoors! There are gorgeous hiking trails all around, you can wonder and explore for minutes or hours it's up to you! The trails are fair and some are well maintained or well traveled while others a little more difficult by Illinois standards, But still walkable by even a novice. I loved hiking her me daily for years. It saddens me I still don't have that luxury any longer, however, love to visit any time were near the area! Love the newly renovated park area. It's set up for all ages to enjoy! My two year old loves this park!! Veterans acres is an amazing area to visit. Weather hiking and exploring the trails or just enjoying a swing at their park!! Love I here!! read more

Having lived in the area for my whole life this is a park I've been going to for years. I ran cross country races, hosted gatherings under the pavilions, sled down the main big hill, played baseball games, amongst the many other memories made here. While the new construction of the splash pad is great, it also took away some of the oldest and largest trees. It may not seem like a big deal but when you're into photography and like to pose people in nature settings those trees were the best! It's still a beautiful park with bridges, a pond, and a few miles of trails! If you're lucky I've seen some deer out on the trails! A beautiful place and a gem of CL! read more

There's something about living in Crystal Lake that I can't quite capture in words. One of my favorite things is that we have very well-established parks that promotes an active lifestyle. Great place for kids and adults alike. The only drawback is that some of the paths go from gravel to extremely rocky and it's hard to navigate with a stroller. read more

Veteran Acres Park - Overview of the park from the bottom of the hill - Parks Near Me - Crystal Lake, Illinois

Giant park, giant playground walking trail, nature center, several picnic areas, 140 acres, totally fun. Pack up the cooler, bring the frisbee, bikes, kids, grandma, etc. and stay all day. This place is dog friendly too. read more

Great park with an excellent splash pad and sled hill. We like walking around the pond and looking for new wildlife that we haven't seen there before. We have found turtles, frogs, lots of birds and random small furries that we can't identify yet. read more

This place is great! I take my dogs for walks here at least 5 times a week. Dogs must be leashed and cleaned up after, but there are parts of the trails that you can get away with letting em loose as long as they are friendly mutts. They have many different trails that zig zag through lots of maintained forests and prairies. This is a good place to have picnics in the summer. There is a really nice pond to walk around and picnic tables in a bunch of different nooks. There is a softball field, large hills for exercising and sledding, large playground for children & a nature center with live animals. read more

GREAT park in McHenry County. I grew up coming here for field trips, sledding, family picnics, etc and it has only gotten better with age. Park was remodeled a couple of years ago I believe... where it added a water play area. Lots of shaded areas, picnic tables, etc. Very clean and maintained well... its a great place to take the family in Crystal Lake. read more

Great place for a walk/hike through the woods. There's this exploratory area inside the woods that the children love to climb. read more

Veteran Acres Park - Parks Near Me - Crystal Lake, Illinois

Really gorgeous local park, with a nature center, baseball diamond, playground, and walking trails. The biggest downside is the mountain bikers who don't stay on the trails, but instead tear through protected areas, leaving muddy bike tracks, and, eventually, nothing but bare rock once the plant life is crushed enough that it can't hold the soil in place anymore. Then they find a new place to bike through and destroy. I love this park, and hope that people can learn to stick to the marked trails. The nature center is a great trip for kids, with live animals and exhibits. read more

See all

Nice park to take a walk in on a nice day. Lots of runners on the trails as well. One tip: just keep your dogs home! I've never had a problem with ticks on my dog- the ONE time I took him here, we came home and found 8 ticks on him. After telling random people about this- they've all told me their stories about how Veterans Acres is KNOWN for having a lot of ticks....Brought my dog to the vet this morning to get him checked out after plucking 3 embedded ticks off his head and the vet said that 9 out of the 10 dogs coming in with tick problems were at Veterans Acres. I known it seems common knowledge that ticks are all over woods...especially in the spring, but this seemed a little extreme. It would be nice to have a sign posted before the walking trails warning of high tick population. I would've turned around and said forget it. That forest is swarming with them. Use caution! read more

So pretty! Dog friendly, kid friendly, nature friendly! Includes dreamy fields and enchanted pine forests :)

Okay so we went here yesterday for a quick hike/walk to get some fresh air. It's quiet and definitely a lot to see. But there are just 2 things that keep this park from being perfect: 1. Ticks. I read that there were a lot of ticks here so I didn't bring my dog. I wore long pants tucked into long socks. When I got home, I took off this clothing right away and threw it all in the wash. I did this upon entering my house (garage entrance is the laundry room so I changed before I entered my house). Later that night, I found a red tick on my (indoor) cat's head. So I guess I wasn't careful enough. If you go here, be VERY cautious and definitely do a tick check on yourself afterwards. 2. Teenagers. It wasn't that long ago that I was a teenager myself but I don't remember being such a punk. I really despise teenagers. We were walking aimlessly just following the trail when we came across some woods. Living in this area...you don't see woods/forests! So this was amazing to see for us. We continued to walk through the path in the woods until we came across a clearing and we were horrified to see graffiti on the trees. It looks like some punk kids came here for some prom after party. I know it was teenagers because the word 'PROM' was spray painted on the trees. It's pathetic how kids these days disrespect nature and have no problem defacing something so beautiful. I really, really hate teenagers. While I enjoyed the hike and scenery, I probably won't be back mainly because of the tick problem. I have several pets at home and if I suspect one has a tick or flea, I have to go through all of them and it's a big pain. This park features nice picnic areas, bathrooms, a firepit (with permit), fishing, and plenty of open space to play games. I don't recommend coming here with shorts and definitely leave your dogs at home. read more

What a beautiful park. My wife and I had our wedding pictures taken here. A kids small water play area was installed so its great for pets and family read more

My son loved the splash pad!! The playground equipment is in good condition too! There's plenty of parking.

This is my favorite park in Crystal Lake. The lake is beautiful, rolling hills that are perfect for sledding, walking trails are well-maintained and the playground is just the right size for little kids. read more

Clean and spacious, a great park for families.

I love this place! I grew up playing on the park, hiking in the woods, sitting in the prairie, playing frisbee, and walking around the pond. The nature center is also a very underrated part of Veterans' Acres. There is a lot to do in there, and a lot to learn about the wildlife. It's very beautiful back past the prairie. I like to go running back there and find new paths. You can see deer sometimes, but usually just a few squirrels and birds. In the winter, VA is great for ice skating and sledding. The hills are usually packed with people though, so if you don't like craziness, don't go. read more

Public bathrooms, picnic tables, vending machines, BBQ's, and seemingly endless paths this is definitely a great place to go. Although I did noticed some weird things while hiking like abandoned homeless people's tee-pees that smell a little much like weed and in the middle of the forest there are some weird abandoned climbing structures. read more

I've been to many sledding hills in the area, and this one is the best. The Veterans Park has several runs, not just one, and the height is a reasobable height. Big kids can be on one run and little kids on another. There is no danger of big kids plowing into your little ones. You arrive in the parking lot, and you are already on top of the hill. To get back up, there are some easy to manage wooden stairs on 5 or 6 runs, so there is no danger getting back up and no big line to go down the hill. There is also a bathroom and snack booth. We tried the Fox River Grove sledding hill, and it was just awful. You had to walk through a bunch of foot high snow to get to the hill and then up hundreds of feet to get to the top. Then, it is an extremely dangerous run. Because it is just one very steep run, kids and especially teenagers, get impatient waiting for people to go down, so a group of 4 heavy teenage boys will go down the hill in a big toboggan and plow into your 4 or 5 year old. My son almost ended up in the hospital because of this. I pushed him out of the way in the nick of time. Also, on the side of the hill are heavily wooded steep areas, and if your child accidentally goes down the wrong side, they will bump into trees. My friend's son did this and ended up in the hospital with internal bleeding and a concussion. Stick with the Crystal Lake sledding....much more enjoyable and safer. read more

I've always loved VA, ever since I was a child. There's many great memories of family picnics, parties, wedding and I can't forget sledding or ice skating. Now days, it's nice for hiking, walking, biking and the splash pad is a great addition for the little ones. The park is very large and has many shaded areas, great for a hot day. This is my favorite park, other than 3 Oaks in Crystal Lake! read more

Great place to sled, picnic, hike, and play sports such tennis, basketball, baseball, and football. It is pretty big and has a large prairie. The facilities could be improved. read more

Great park in the area. The trails are awesome and the park has a gem in Wingate Prairie, named after the naturalist that dedicated many years of his life to bringing it back to life. This is a small piece of heaven and you can imagine what the area looked like hundreds of years ago. The prairie is home to several rare and endangered plant species including prairie buttercup, pinweed, queen of the prairie, pale vetchling, purple flowering raspberry, and also rare things such as the silvery blue butterfly. I remember stories about how high prairie grass can get and how someone got lost between Crystal Lake and McHenry back when the entire area between the towns was prairie. read more

Great park.............but no access to nature or bike trails in winter. Great for summer fun, but the park district kind of neglects all the fun you can have in winter, besides sledding. read more