County Grounds Park — Attraction in Wauwatosa

Lots of history on this soil and I'm so thankful this piece of land was preserved for anyone to enjoy. It's beautiful, especially when the sun is just about to set. There is plenty of parking because this is kind of a hidden gem, not a whole lot of traffic.

I've known about this trail (gravel, not paved) for some years, but this was my first time getting to experience it myself. These grounds hold years of precious memories to my family and I. Growing up in the late 80's to early 90's, these soil provided food for my family. This land used to be a community garden, a place we came to harvest and enjoy the outdoors. We played in the field, catching bugs, ran through the forest, walked the dirt paths, crossing the railroads to enjoy a swim at Hoyt Park. Those huge-old trees on the north side parallel to Swan Boulevard, I'm so glad they kept them! We used to play under those line of trees. It was a heart felt experience coming back here after many years.

If you want an out of city experience without going out of the city, this is a nice quiet place for a...

The County Grounds I've been a long time favorite place to get outside and get away from it all, in the middle of it all. Wildflowers dominate the hilly plains where long trails meander and disappear through the grass. From the top of Discovery drive and be gathering circle, you can see much over the distance. Trees at the Forest Exploration Center to the North and the old asylum wellness trails to the East can cover you and pull civilization that much further away. Expect to see a few dogs enjoying nature while on your hike; this has long been a favorite place for dog lovers to let their furry ones...

Loved it. Especially when I stumbled on an abandoned train track that likely once brought coal to the old county ground energy plant. It's a little grown over on a less traveled deer trail that was hard to follow. I always find interesting things when I go off the beaten path. I set trail markers so I could find my way out, but the tracks lead me right to the parking lot by the cemetery placket for the Insane asylum where the tracks disappear. So good luck trying to find them from there. Might be...