Friday, September 9, 2016

My Favorite Parks in St. Charles City

Parks are pretty much the best idea ever. I love that cities have set aside little green areas for the community to meet and mingle, and every time we have Zach’s seven- and eight-year-old brothers over to our house, I’m grateful for a free source of entertainment for them. St. Charles has several wonderful parks scattered throughout the city limits, but here are my top four.

For picnicking, festivals, concerts, and frisbee, there’s nowhere in St. Charles that beats this riverfront park. Zach and I walk there almost every night, wandering the paths and watching the river change from season to season. During the summer there are free concerts here every Thursday night, and a host of other festivals throughout the year make their home here. 


I grew up visiting this park often, and for good reason. It has baseball diamonds, football fields, tennis courts, gorgeous old trees, a sledding hill to die for (although you might die sledding down it), expansive picnic areas, ornamental gardens, a swim park, an exercise area, and a massive playground. It’s also one of the few playgrounds in the area with ample shade!


This is a relatively new park, and its playground is the #1 destination in St. Charles for kids. It’s a totally inclusive playground, featuring awesome slides, a “flying saucer” swing, a splash park, musical features, and a giant climbing structure/merry-go-round. When we took Calvin and Preston there, I’ll admit I was pretty envious of them!


This is a name that encompasses several small parks in my native Frenchtown, featuring wildflower gardens, wetlands areas, riverside forests of cottonwoods, hiking trails, a playground, basketball courts, and a dog park. I walked here every day through the winter, noticing the subtle changes of the seasons. During high summer, come walk the trails at night for a display of fireflies that will blow your mind.


What are your favorite parks in your area? 


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