Im going to level with you right away, this trail is my favorite trail within a 20 mile radius. What makes thi trail so great? You may ask, well I will tell you that the trail has it all. In a 45-60 minute hike you are able to see beautiful views of a river, the woods, some ponds, and even a nice lake with a few islands in the middle. Highly recommend checking it out if youre looking to see the natural beauty in life!

Awesome place! Good fishing, warm water for swimming, very peaceful early in the morning!

Excellent bike trail that connects to several other trail systems. Largely shaded and fairly heavily trafficked (on summer Saturdays anyway). If you are up for a little longer ride, I highly recommend extending up to Sibley Park (about 1.5 miles north of the YMCA) and/or Rapidan Dam park (3 miles south of southern terminus).

I enjoyed it finding this little gem hiding in the back there.Word of caution: swimming is amazing but the drops are quick and sudden!

I take my son here all the time for swimming, hiking and bicycling. Great park.

Loved it great bike trail even for a 4&8 yr old

Great spot for bike rides, hikes and even some river fishing!

The parking at the swimming area is really limited but it is a nice place to swim and hike

Beautiful area to go on a walk or bike ride.

Beautiful park for pictures. Too bad locals leave trash everywhere.

Beautiful place to hike, swim and enjoy the outdoors.

Beautiful place to ride bike, take photos, river fish, grill, and nature walk in!

Loved it. Best place to visit But not in winter only during spring or summer.

Multiple trails, lots to check out, overall a great outdoor space with a lot going for it

What a beautiful nature area. There is something for everyone to enjoy

Ifnyou enjoy nature this is a nice spot

We had a relaxing day for fishing.

Absolutely beautiful! The investment that MANKATO makes in itself is one of the reasons why MANKATO is one of the best places to live. Quality of life is key. Also enjoyed the walk around the lake on the other side of the road.

Nice hiking trails and good views.

Great place a low key afternoon. No permanent restrooms. The water quality is great for swimming. Beautiful scenery.

Spend time with family in this wonderful spot created from history. ( An adventure awaits. )

Amazing scenery. Very clean.

Beautiful park for the family!

Our family loves going out here

This place is one of the coolest place to hike or bike around Mankato the views are amazing and the history behind the place is pretty cool they have plaques and other things that you can read to learn about the bridge and the Quarry by far my favorite place to go around Mankato for outdoorsy stuff

Considering this is a new park in the Mankato region, its a good start. The beaches are decent with room for groups and families to swim at. Getting to the beaches is very easy as a short walk down a sloped hill is all. The water quality is amazing and the temperature of the water is pleasantly warm. Garbage cans and rest rooms are in perfect locations and easy to spot. Great place for kayaking and canoeing as the wind is generally not bad at all. Overall a great place for a day out but it lacks things like permanent restrooms, showers, rental of fishing gear, bikes or water craft, pavilions. A TON of opportunity is here for this park to be one of the best in the area but it just needs to be done.

Good place to swim.

An amazing newer park.

Nice addition to the area. Its not in too bad of shape after the mining operation left. The water is clear and full of fish. Plenty of mature greenery and rolling hills. The beach needs some improvements before Id recommend it for a family. The water depth drops off quickly, the beach itself is steep and ungraded, and there are no picnic tables/grills or anything like that.Overall, as long as you are OK with and expecting a rustic undeveloped experience, you will like this place! It really is beautiful!

This is going to be a pretty nice park, but work is still being done. The lake/pond is really nice for kayaking or canoeing. The water was pretty warm and theres lots of nooks and crannies to explore. Bring your fishing rod to catch sunnies and smallmouth bass. There is also a beaver dam on one of the islands, so keep your eyes open for them swimming around.

Amazing views from the bridge.

You should visit this place

Nice place to visit on a hot day.

Fun little area, not so much there for really little kids, but for hiking, biking, walking, etc, this is a great option. varying levels of terrain and different options for trails. My family had a great time!

Beautiful scenery, specially this time of the year

A nice quiet park out of town with lots of water and a few trails. Great place to bring a dog.

Paved trails overlooking valleys and beautiful wooden bridge spanning over the river. Wildlife often seen while walking.

Beautiful place — if not entirely natural, then at least not overrun with unruly people in bad moods recklessly piloting their obnoxious pollution-producing, pedestrian-killing machines. A great place to get back in touch with what it means to be really alive, so dont be afraid to put away your cameraphone and experience it in person for at least a few minutes.Enjoyable at whatever level youre willing to experience it. Certainly you *can* stay in your car if so inclined, and nobody will bother you. A brief walk of a few hundred meters in practically any direction will, however, open up entirely new vistas, and possibly even inspire you — if you will let yourself be so inspired — to explore places you cannot reach by car, at all.Personally, I love how well-designed the park is for bicyclists. The deeply beloved Red Jacket Trail (from Mankato to Rapidan) runs atop the old railroad trestle, and is reachable from the scenic park below the bridge either by means of a paved trail or staircase. (Both are beautiful in and of themselves, incidentally.) The trail from this point out to Rapidan is particularly magical, and well worth a ride from Mankato all on its own.The trail is wide enough at all points for opposing bicycle and pedestrian traffic to continue in their respective directions without conflict, and the people using the trail are generally polite enough to acknowledge your passing while deeply involved enough with their own experience to not get in the way. The grade is easy, with just a tiny handful of gently rolling hills, all the way from Mankato to Rapidan. (The Mankato YMCA is a bit more than 3.5 miles away. I made it out to the dam and back, while out of shape, on a singlespeed 40:18 bicycle with no problem.)At risk of over-improving the place, I will point out that when I was there the water spigot did not work. There was, therefore, no drinking water to be had. Its obviously wise to be prepared before heading out here. A bicycle repair stand would have come in handy, too, such as they have already, say, at Weagel Park, a short way down the trail heading back towards Mankato.Ill definitely be coming back here soon.

Excellent place to access the Red Jacket and other bike trails. Covered picnic tables available.

Great park. Quiet and scenic with nice trails.

Good swimming, catching sunnies and bluegill. So much potential! Great add to Mankato area!

Unfinished, but great potential. good scenery.

Great photo opportunity. Beautiful

Great fishing clean water kids love it.

Amazing view well maintained very very nice

LOVE

Beautiful!!

Sand beach, paddle boating at times.the park is still being renovated.

Great trails and amazing park

Best place to swim

New park give it time :)