Banner Park

Banner Park Address:
52nd and Virginia Street
Bellevue Nebraska
Park Size: 23.5 Acres

Whether you prefer to call it Banner Park, or Hastings Banner Park, the entrance sign to this Bellevue Nebraska park identifies it as H W Banner Park.

This park is only 23 and 1/2 acres in size, but offers ball fields, soccer field, playground equipment, jogging trails, picnic area, shelters, and parking, according to the Welcome to Sarpy County Website.

Though rather small, the playground should offer enough more than enough equipment for a family outing. A picnic table is located near the playground area. If you are planning a picnic or other event there on a hot Nebraska day, be advised that there is a lack of shade.  A few smaller young trees are growing, so perhaps someday shade will be better.

Keystone Trail bicycle riders in this area will pass by Banner Park. Of importance to bike riders may be the small porta potty between the parking lot and the connector trail. I am unsure as to whether or not this restroom is available year round.

Glenwood Lake Park

Glenwood Park Address:
100 Lake Drive
Glenwood,  Iowa (Mills County)
Park Size: Medium, Lake Size Small

Glenwood Lake Park is located “not too far” from Council Bluffs Iowa and Omaha Nebraska in the town of Glenwood Iowa. This medium sized park has a lake small enough to walk around for most people, and there is a nice cement walkway circling the lake.

If you would like to just sit and admire the lake, there are a number of benches near the sidewalk, so you should be able to find one oin the sun or in the shade, depending on your preference.

Glenwood Lake Park offers camping (712-527-3334), picnic shelters, playground equipment, fishing, and most important of all, it is a pleasant spot to spend a few hours.

Do you know the Iowa state record fish for common carp came from this lake? It was caught by Fred Hougland in May of 1969, was 44 inches in length, and weighed 50 pounds. For other Iowa state record fish, you may wish to visit the Iowa DNR Website.

Mills County Historical Museum is located at the Glenwood Lake Park, and of particular interest to myself is this threshing machine

After sending a copy of this picture to my mom, she emailed back to say it was very nearly the same as the one my grandfather used on his farm in Wisconsin (1920s-1940s, I think). During harvest season the farmers would get together, sharing the work of harvesting as they moved from farm to farm.

Railroad buffs of any age may enjoy poking around this Burlington Northern caboose at the Museum. Not pictured here, but the museum also includes a very small brick jail, and a genuine outhouse from the old days.
Note: On the Glenwood Lake Park ground is also located the Davies Amphitheater, offering quality family entertainment during the summer months. This facility is also sometimes used for weddings and church services, and is available for public rental.

Unfortunately, internet searches failed to reveal the size of this park or its lake. If you have that information, please post it in the comments section. Thank you.

Halleck Park

Halleck Park Address:
Halleck St and South Beadle St
Papillion Nebraska
Park Size: Medium. Lagoon Size 4 Acres

Halleck Park in Papillion, Nebraska is a medium sized park with an abundance of blacktopped trails wandering beneath mature trees. Benches are conveniently located in many spots next to the trails for those that wish to pause and enjoy the setting.

A nice four acre lagoon has a concrete trail circling it. A short bridge leads to a small island in the lagoon.

Haworth Park

Haworth Park Address:
Highway 370 and Payne Drive
Bellevue Nebraska
Park Size: 153 Acres

Just a bit south of Omaha, Nebraska, Haworth Park in Bellevue offers camping, Missouri River access, and a playground, among other things. Many older trees enhance the quality of this park.

Note: Hayworth Park is not the correct spelling of this park, it is Haworth, without the letter y, although it is pronounced Hayworth.

A playground is located near the camping area. This campground offers 109 trailer spaces, and 20 tent spaces. This campground has: water, electricity,trailer dumping station, flush toilets, fire grates, drinking water, boat ramp, fishing, and showers.

The nearby Missouri River is scenic, and adds appeal to this location. However, the proximity of this river to Haworth Park can cause flooding problems in the park if there has been too much rain.

There is a nice trail that runs along the Missouri River, with benches if you want to sit and enjoy the view.

If you feel energetic, the Bellevue Loop Trail can be accessed from the park. The Bellevue Loop Trail is listed on the Bellevue Chamber of Commerce website as being ten miles in length.

Having ridden only a portion of this trail (on bicycle) , we found it to be fairly level, wide, and smooth. The portion we were on was mainly farmland, with little shade, and would be a nice place to see just how fast you can go on a bicycle.

This trail, or at least the section we rode, had no benches, nor were there any bathrooms along the trail. However, near the trailhead at Haworth Park one will find these, if needed.

Overall,  Hayworth Park as quite nice, and it must be added that this park has more bathrooms than expected, and most of them are better quality than will be found in Omaha city parks.

Heron Haven Wetland

Heron Haven Wetland Address
11809 Old Maple Road
Omaha Nebraska
Size: 25 Acres. Several Ponds: Sizes Unspecified

Heron Haven Wetland is an easy place to get to. It is right along Maple Road, a busy well traveled street.

This is a wetland area, covering 25 acres, and the water comes from 6 underground springs. Having never read the entire history or purpose for Heron Haven Wetland, it appears to be intended for the serious birdwatcher in Omaha.

Yet we go there just for the enjoyment of an outdoor walk, and the chance to watch the geese and turtles, and the more shy long legged white birds that may be there. We don’t know our bird species, but we enjoy seeing them nonetheless.

We did take a midwinter walk once at Heron Haven. Didn’t see much wildlife, but there were lots of different looking little footprints in the snow. Interesting.

If you were to cross this bridge, the trail will take you to the bird blind. It’s not a real long ways in (remember, Heron Haven is only 25 acres). At the bird blind a pair of binoculars and a camera with a nice telephoto lens would be nice to have.

This portion of the trail is fairly representative of all the trails at Heron Haven, including the trail which leads to the nice boardwalk and observation area seen in the top photo.

There are bathrooms inside the “headquarters” building next to the parking lot.

Indian Cave

Indian Cave Nebraska State Park Address:
65296 720 Rd (NE Spur 64E)
Shubert Nebraska
Park Size: 3,052 acres

According to Mapquest, Indian Cave is a little over 92 miles from Omaha. Its quite a ways, but worth at least one trip just to see what this huge Nebraska State Park is like.

The cave itself is not quite as big as we hoped, but it is neat. Take your time examining this cave, and see how many of the ancient Indian pictures you can locate on the walls and rocky hillside.

Access to the cave itself is a fairly easy walk in on the board walkway. You can no longer get right up to the cave and touch the walls. Plan on spending quite a bit of time at this highlight of the park.

Other features of Indian Cave State Park include the old St. Derion Cemetery, Old Town St. Derion, Missouri River access, and an overlook with quite an impressive view. The official state website classifies the 29 miles of trails as mostly strenuous.

If this is your first trip to Indian Cave, and aren’t sure what to bring, you may want to bring a camera, a pair of binoculars (especially at the overlook), and a picnic lunch, or at least something to drink and a snack of some sort. There are quite a few nice places to park and have a snack, and we observed quite a few hawks through our binoculars while having our picnic.

Located in Indian Cave State Park, an old Nebraska schoolhouse is part of Old Town St. Derion, which was established as a trading post in the 1840s. This school building was used until 1944, and restored in 1978.

 

Located in Indian Cave State Park, this old Nebraska schoolhouse is part of Old Town St. Derion, which was established as a trading post in the 1840s. This school building was used until 1944, and restored in 1978.

Be sure to pick up a park map at the office, otherwise you may miss the narrow one way road into St. Derion. Don’t get discouraged driving in, the road does really go to the old town, but it’s quite a ways in.

Keep your eyes open for deer while on this road, we saw several here, as well as along the road to the boat launch.

Beyond this old Nebraska town, the road will take you to the overlook, where you must get out, take a few pictures, and put those binoculars to use. There are nice benches there if you want to sit and enjoy the view.

Eventually the one way road will take you back to the main part of the park.

Mile Hill Lake

Mile Hill Lake Address
US Highway 34
3 miles Southwest of Glenwood Iowa
Park Size: 39 acres. Lake Size: 12 Acres

Mile Hill Lake is not what you might consider a park, perhaps think of it as a nice place to get outdoors, enjoy the scenery, fish, boat, or go for a short hike. Don’t look for playgrounds, picnic tables, or even a restroom here.

This 12 acre lake is located in 39 acre Mile Hill Lake/Scenic Overlook, a Mills County Park which offers canoeing, hiking, lake fishing, and 2 acres of prairie, according to the Mills County Conservation Board.

We missed the turnoff for Mile Hill Lake, and needed to turn around and retrace a bit before arriving here. The entrance to this lake is near the top of a hill, which was an unexpected place to find a lake entrance.

Near the parking area we soon discovered the reason for placing the entrance on top of a hill. An excellent view is available of Mile Hill Lake from the well constructed overlook, which is high above the lake.

Near the overlook is a somewhat steep trail leading down to the lake. Expecting to have to return up this trail, we had to have a closer look at the lake, so went down this path. To our delight, there is a road leading back up the hill from the lake, which we used for our return to the overlook.

Mile Hill Lake is a ways from Omaha, and, unless you plan on doing some fishing or boating, may not be worth a special trip just to look around. However, Pony Creek Lake is nearby, and a day at Pony Creek Lake may also be a good time to have a look at Mile Hill Lake.

Platte River State Park

Platte River State Park Address
14421 346th Street
Louisville Nebraska
Park Size: 418 acres

Nebraska’s Platte River State Park offers cabins, 10 miles of trails, 135 picnic tables (82 grills), fishing, swimming pool, paddle boat rental, and a snack bar (at Jenny Neuman Lake). The official website even says you can rent a teepee!

This state park is about 32 miles from Omaha, according to Mapquest.

Walking in to the Platte River State Park waterfall is not too strenuous a hike, and make sure you bring a camera with. The trail through the woods to the falls crosses a couple nice little bridges. Our first hike in to the falls seemed long, but subsequent hikes in didn’t seem far at all.

There is a nice little waterfall is fed by Stone Creek.

We’ve only made a few trips in to the waterfall, have never really seen at an impressive level. We have always been able to cross Stone Creek without getting our feet too wet, of course it may not be that way year round.

Near the parking lot and trail entrance there is a small picnic area. If the birdhouse is still there, you may want to have your picnic as close to the birdhouse as possible. A small bird (wren?) nesting there did not seem to mind our presence at all, and made quite a few trips back and forth as we sat less than ten feet away.

There is a not too bad pit toilet here, but, as with any pit toilet, we’d recommend it for emergency use only. No running water!

Prairie View Lake

Prairie View Lake Recreation Area Address
180th St (1/2 mile south of Hwy 36)
Omaha Nebraska
Park Size: 80 Acres. Lake Size: 42 Acres

Prairie View Lake Recreation Area is mainly all lake, but you will find parking, boat launch, picnic shelters, a small island (accessible by bridge), and a bathroom at the place.

The bathroom is not modern, but has been fairly clean on our visits here

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There is a crushed gravel trail circling Prairie View Lake, fine for walking, but maybe not quite as fine for bicycles.

Most of the trail is without shade, and the little tiny bit of shade offered at this bridge is welcome, and makes for an ideal place to stop and cool off if you are making the trail circuit of the lake.

Prairie View Lake Recreation Area should be a pleasing experience if you are looking for a nice walk, about 1 1/3 miles once around the lake. If you are making a clockwise walk, you should reach the above bridge (the 2nd bridge on  the trail) about 3/4 into your walk.

Don’t forget to bring something to drink, especially in the summertime.

Keep in mind that Prairie Rose Lake and Prairie View Lake are two different places.

Schwer Recreation Area

Schwer Recreation Area Address
702 W Centennial Road
Papillion Nebraska
Park Size: Unspecified Acres (medium sized park). Lagoon Size: Unspecified

Schwer Recreation Area is a nice park in Papillion, complete with quite a large lagoon, picnic shelters, barbecues, an acceptable bathroom, playground, and well constructed trails.

We observed and talked to several people fishing, and they didn’t have any luck the day we were there, but remember, a bad day fishing is better than a good day at work.

A fairly wide and smooth concrete trail circles the lagoon at Schwer Recreation Area. The trail does have a couple hills on it, not high, but hills nonetheless.

There is a drinking fountain outside the bathroom near the parking lot.

Walnut Creek Lake

Walnut Creek Lake Address:
I-80 Exit 439, E. 5 mi., S. 1 mi., W. 3/4 mile
Papillion Nebraska
Park Size: 450 Acres. Lake Size: 105 Acres

Walnut Creek Lake is part of the Papio Missouri River Natural Resources District, and is a worthwhile location for a walk, a bike ride, fishing, RV camping, or a picnic. You won’t find trash cans here. Bring it in, take it out! The main entrance to this recreation area has a playground for kids, both the main entrance and the boat launch entrance have bathrooms. No, they are not flush toilets, but they are better than nothing.


Confused by the address? From Omaha head South on 84th Street till you get to Highway 370. Turn right. Keep going till you see the sign for Walnut Creek Lake (it’s on the left side of the highway). If you take a left here and drive past the main entrance to Walnut Creek Lake, don’t worry, you can go a bit further until you reach Schramm Road, turn right, and you’ll get to the boat launching entrance to Walnut Creek Lake.

Walnut Creek Lake Trail is three miles long, about ten feet wide, concrete surface, and nice and smooth! Signs advise hikers that is about a one hour walk.  The trail has a few steeper slopes in some areas.

Along the trail we did see a good sized snake (don’t they always look big?). We did not see it till next to it, and it let out a warning rattle as we passed by. Research tells us there are 29 species of snakes in Nebraska, including four venomous snakes: timber rattlesnake, prairie rattlesnake, copperhead and Massasauga.

If you are patient enough (and lucky enough) you may get a few pictures of airborne waterfowl at this Nebraska lake. If not, you can just sit back on one of the many benches along the trail and enjoy the outdoors.

Walnut Grove Park

Walnut Grove Park Address:
15050 Q Street
Omaha Nebraska
Park Size: 55 acres. Lagoon Size: Unspecified

Not a huge park, but a nice park.

Walnut Grove Park has nice concrete trails, lots of shade, picnic areas, and mature trees.

The lagoon was quite muddy the day we were there. I don’t know if the muddiness was the normal state, or just something temporary.

Muddy or not, a child and his father were spending some time fishing here, though we never saw them hook anything, and it appeared they left empty handed.

Wehrspann Lake

Wehrspann Lake (Chalco Hills Recreation Area) Address
156th and Giles
Sarpy County, Nebraska
Park Size: 940 Acres. Lake Size: 250 Acres

 A simple to remember way to get to Chalco Hills Recreation Area and its Wehrspann Lake is to head south on 144th Street from West Center Street.

Chalco Hills Recreation Area is a place worth multiple trips. There’s too much to see in one day unless you have a high energy level and don’t pause too often to admire the lake or wildlife you may see. Keep your eyes open for white tail deer! You won’t see them every trip, but you’ll never know when one or more will appear.
In my opinion, this is one of the best places to spend a few outdoor hours in the Omaha area.

If you like to walk, jog, or bicycle, the seven miles of trail here should be more than enough. Overall, the trails are smooth, wide enough for bicycle traffic and hikers to share, and you can circle Lake Wehrspann on the trail!

Scenery along the trail is varied enough to make a trail bike ride or walk a pleasure. Although the bathrooms along the trail are not top of the line, there are more restrooms than expected at Wehrspann Lake. Yes, they are mostly pit toilets, but sometimes that really doesn’t matter. Benches are also fairly numerous along the trail.

Trails here are not without hills and turns, but overall they are not bad at all. Don’t be too surprised to see someone out pushing a friend or relative in a wheelchair on a trail here. It’s smooth enough in most places for that to be enjoyable.

Wehrspann Lake has several sources for its water, and the stream pictured above is the largest.  Waterfowl are fairly common here.

The most common fish in the lake include Largemouth Bass, Catfish, Walleye, Sunfish, Crappie, and it is stocked by the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission.

Spring, summer, fall, or winter, this is a great place to be!

Zorrinsky Lake

Lake Zorinsky Address
3308 South 156th Street
Omaha Nebraska
Park Size: 1,023 acres. Lake Size: 255 Acres

Lake Zorinsky Park has over 7 miles of hiking and biking trails. Near the main parking lot you will find the “better” bathroom, picnic shelters and picnic spots, barbecues, and a playground.

The area near the parking lot is a nice spot to sit and watch boaters on the lake.

The trails near the main parking lot are the best trails at this lake, at least in our opinion. They are blacktop, wide enough for bikes and hikers, and not too steep, though there is a hill if you want to go to the top of the dam.