In a 2-mile radius around my home in Madison, Wisconsin there are 36 parks. I wanted to visit them all.
I started out in November 2023 and finished in July 2024. What a wonderful way to discover my city.
This is the first leg:
Demetral Park
Demetral Park – 601 N. Sixth St. | First stop on my park trip in Madison, WI: Perfect start to my day.
Filene Park
Filene Park – 1610 Sherman Ave. | Second stop on my Madison, WI park trip: On the shore of Lake Wingra. Nice and peaceful.
Tenney Park
Tenney Park – 1414 E. Johnson St. | Third stop on my Madison, WI park trip: huuuge Tenney Park. It’s my goto park.
Check out this video:
Burrows Park
Burrows Park – 25 Burrows Rd. | Fourth stop on my Madison, WI park trip: On the shore of Lake Mendota. Cool Native American effigy mound I’m learning more about.
Burr Jones Park
Burr Jones Park – 1820 E. Washington Ave. | Fifth stop on my Madison, WI park trip: Going to try the Yahara Bike river path soon!
Emerson East Park
Emerson East Park – 1915 E. Johnson St. | Sixth stop on my Madison, WI park trip: Small but charming.
Second part of my Parks in Madison trip
Wow, I had so much fun biking to the first few parks. Just a part of the 36 round my home. For the next leg of visits, I’m going to:
- Eken Park
- Yahara River Parkway
- Hawthorne Park
- Giddings Park
- Morrison Park
- Yahara Place Park
- Lakeland-Schiller Triangle Park
- Wirth Court Park
Eken Park
Eken Park – 2407 Coolidge St. | Seventh stop on my Madison, WI park trip: Eken Park. Perfect for an afternoon stroll. This is older picture. Today’s picture would have been misty and sad. I like this one better 😊
Yahara River Parkway
Yahara River Parkway – 101 N. Thornton Ave. | Eighth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Great 12-mile paved trail for biking. One of my goto rides.
Picture taken in September. It’s kinda bleak now.
Hawthorne Park
Hawthorne Park – 220 Division St. | Ninth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. With a playground, walking trails, a dog park, and gardens. I’m loving the peaceful atmosphere. Obviously, an older picture.
Giddings Park
Giddings Park – 429 Castle Pl. | Tenth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Beautiful shoreline, open spaces. I’m really enjoying discovering my city this way.
Found a great picture on google maps.
Morrison Park
Morrison Park – 1451 Morrison St. | Eleventh stop on my Madison, WI park trip. A 1.5-acre park, near the Yahara River, with a playground, open fields, and a bike path. I’m excited to explore the bike path with BF!
Yahara Place Park
Yahara Place Park – 2025 Yahara Pl. | Twelfth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Long park with two beautiful shorelines for this park: Lake Monona and Yahara River. Just stunning!
Lakeland-Schiller Triangle Park
Lakeland-Schiller Triangle Park – 651 Schiller Ct. | Thirteenth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Exactly as described: a mini park. A nice slice of green, but not much more.
Wirth Court Park
Wirth Court Park – 2801 Saint Paul Ave. | Fourteenth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. A cozy neighborhood park. Commonly referred to as the Hippo Park because of the Hippopotamus sculpture by Sid Boyum.
Third part of my Parks in Madison trip
Fourteen down, twenty parks to go! I didn’t expect to be so happily surprised with this adventure of discovery. Alright, not so much an adventure, but a lot of discovery!
The next parks I’m visiting are:
- Breese Stevens Field
- George Reger Park
- McPike Park
- Orton Park
- Elmside Circle Park
- Hudson Park
Breese Stevens Field
Breese Stevens Field – 917 E. Mifflin St. | Fifteenth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Beautiful historic stadium. Home of the Forward Madison FC soccer club. One of my BFFs, who identifies as a Latina when it suits her, went there two years ago for the Viva Mexico Festival.
George Reger Park
George Reger Park – 201 Oak St. | Sixteenth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Another wonderful neighborhood family friendly mini parks. I love how the city created them everywhere.
McPike Park
McPike Park – 202 S. Ingersoll St. | Seventeenth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Huge central park. My BFFs wanted to take me to Sessions two years ago, after I broke up with my cheating BF, but it would have been too much for introverted me.
Visited the Eastside Farmer’s Market, which I hadn’t done before. Wonderful experience. It’s only a few minutes by bike. So, I think I’ll go there more often.
Orton Park
Orton Park – 1103 Spaight St. | Eighteenth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Oh gosh, I’ve been living here for ten years, and I didn’t know this is Madison’s first municipal park from the 1850s.
Great spot for a neighborhood festival!
Elmside Circle Park
Elmside Circle Park – 500 Elmside Blvd. | Nineteenth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Cute mini park in the center of a roundabout with a nice playground.
Hudson Park
Hudson Park – 2919 Lakeland Ave. | Twentieth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. This park is amazing. I walked along the shore Lake Monona, taking in its beauty. Didn’t know about the Ho-Chunk nation burial mounds but the connection with history is palpable.
Fourth part of my Parks in Madison trip
More than half of the parks in a 2-mile radius from my home visited. It was such a nice idea to explore the city this way. It really gave a new view of Madison. Just two more laps to go. This is the next:
- Reynolds Park
- Dixon Greenway
- McCormick Park
- Washington Manor Park
- Sheridan Triangle Park
- B.B. Clarke Beach Park
- Worthington Park
- James Madison Park
- R. Richard Wagner Park
Reynolds Park
Reynolds Park – 810 E. Mifflin St. | Twenty-first stop on my Madison, WI park trip.You gotta love this mini park with its very own bike polo court!
Dixon Greenway
Dixon Greenway – 2977 Milwaukee St. | Twenty-second stop on my Madison, WI park trip. It’s so cool to see how the neighborhood started the Dixon Street Greenway Habitat Enhancement Project last year. A small patch of land has been transformed into a thriving sanctuary for pollinators and wildlife.
Like their page here.
McCormick Park
McCormick Park – 702 McCormick Ave. | Twenty-third stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Another cute mini park. The dog off-leash space is its main attraction.
(Image: Madcitydreamhomes.com)
Washington Manor Park
Washington Manor Park – 801 N. Oak St. | Twenty-fourth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Another wonderful mini park near Starkweather Creek. One of more than 624 Rain Gardens with native plants, and great for capturing water into the soil instead of city drains.
Sheridan Triangle Park
Sheridan Triangle Park – 1301 Farragut St. | Twenty-fifth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Really, really mini park in a very nice neighborhood.
B.B. Clarke Beach Park
B.B. Clarke Beach Park – 835 Spaight St. | Twenty-sixth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Wonderful and beautiful small summer beach park on the shore of Lake Monoma. Nice sandy beach. Great for a family outing.
Worthington Park
Worthington Park – 3102 Worthington Ave. | Twenty-seventh stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Large neighborhood park – although I wonder why it opens at 4 AM? Parks Alive summer activities on June 18, July 2, July 16, July 30 to connect with your neighbors.
James Madison Park
James Madison Park – 614 E. Gorham St. | Twenty-eighth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Grand park on the shore of Lake Mendota, south west of my own Tenney Park. 12 acres of sports, rest, fun, and the very cute Gates of Heaven (popular for small weddings).
R. Richard Wagner Park
R. Richard Wagner Park – 728 Jenifer St. | Twenty-nineth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Very cutesy mini triangle park in a nice neighborhood.
Last part of my Parks in Madison trip
I can’t believe I’m almost at the end of my visit to the 36 parks within a 2-mile radius from my home. They are so different, and each one is charming and beautiful. What a wonderful way to get to know my city. These are the last:
- Period Gardens
- Law Park
- Olbrich Park
- O.B. Sherry Park
- Carpenter – Ridgeway Park
- Windom Way Park
- Brentwood Park
Period Gardens
Period Gardens – 110 E. Gorham St. | Thirtieth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Lovely mid-19th Century gardens, almost like someone’s extended front lawn. Volunteers keep the park beautiful. Wonderful history.
Law Park
Law Park – 410 S. Blair St. | Thirtieth-first stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Another beautiful park on the shore of Lake Monona. In the summer, it’s the home of the Mad-City Ski Team, volunteers performing breathtaking water ski shows.
Olbrich Park
Olbrich Park – 3527 Atwood Ave. | Thirty-second stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Wonderful and large lakefront park with its own botanical gardens, Biergarten, and a Gaga Ball Pit (gotta love that name!).
O.B. Sherry Park
O.B. Sherry Park – 22 Leon St. | Thirty-third stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Amazing neighborhood park on the shore of Starkweather Creek.
Carpenter – Ridgeway Park
Carpenter – Ridgeway Park – 1220 Carpenter St. | Thirty-fourth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Friendly neighborhood park with playground, and another beautiful sculpture by Sid Boyum, called ‘The Lantern in Beige.’
Brentwood Park
Brentwood Park – 1402 Mac Pherson St. | Thirty-fifth stop on my Madison, WI park trip. Another very lovely mini park with playground, and green open spaces.
Windom Way Park
Windom Way Park – 1920 Windom Way | Thirty-sixth and last stop on my Madison, WI park trip. I visited 36 parks in a two-mile radius from home. Windom Way Park is another tuft of green that serves the neighborhood (notice Warner Park that’s only a few blocks away!).
