Lake Shawnee — Attraction in Topeka

Ball fields , play ground, large side walks, and water makes this a great area for a family to enjoy. The area of this review will be the softball fields and playground near them as this was the area I spent time at during this visit.

Parking isn’t horrible even during busy times. There are a few smaller parking lots along with marked parking on the street.

The ball fields are a nice grass complex with a layout to view several games at one time. Each field has a decent amount of bleachers for spectators and a few picnic tables. There is plenty room to bring your own lawn chair and sit where you want if that is your preference. The fields are well kept and the staff including the umpires are a pleasure to be around.

The restrooms, depending on which field you are at, can be a bit of a walk,especially if you have a toddler that has to go to the bathroom. They have a port-a-potty set up onsite but for some reason it is near the restroom building, not on the opposite side of the complex. This is convenient during busy time as is a few steps closer than the restrooms from further away ball fields.

I have not visited the concession stands but the prices appear to be reasonable.

The playground near the ball fields is decent and big enough for several kids to play on. It is also near the waterfront and sometimes you can see ducks swimming on the water. This playground area is not gated in, so having close adult supervision for your littles is a must for this one. There is no way for a parent to sit in the bleachers and watch the game and allow their littles to play on the play ground even when at the field closest to the play ground area. The ball fields are gated in with only one entrance and it is a pretty decent walk from the play...

I sometimes use a mobile scooter if my back is bothering me and it is difficult to get in and out of the dog park itself because of the drop off from concrete to the park itself. Otherwise it is a lot of fun for my dog and myself. Normally there are several other people and dogs there all friendly however on one trip a pitbull type dog did have me concerned because he was very aggressive towards all the other dogs especially one smaller than he and I was a little worried that he might start something. However it's owner paid no attention to it and that concerned me a bit more. Thankfully they left after about 20 minutes. Just a personal opinion but I don't believe aggressive dogs should be allowed or their owner should have enough responsibility to take them to a part of the park away from other dogs perhaps separate but large fencing area for those type dogs should be...

We spread my Mothers ashes out here years ago....and i often come out to the lake..just to reflect and think over everything going on in my life, and of course to talk to Mom, on this particular trio though I went out to fish, my first time....it was quite the adventure i must say... Didnt catch nothing at all...it was also quite a bit colder then it was when i first decided to go...plan on retutning in the near future... Have a date with some fishies....who d love to be caught...lol...my mother would truly get a kick out of the adventure if she was still alive..... Perfect lil place... I swear...the atmosphere was very calming and peaceful and...