County Grounds Park

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 out for a run.

Too many roads running through the ‘park.’ No play equipment for the kids. No paved pathways, picnic tables, bathrooms, or coal bins yet somehow it’s a ‘park?’ Not to mention all the dogs wandering off leash. If you want a real park with all the amenities listed above, try Hoyt park - just north of County Grounds ‘Park.’

Very unique rolling grassy hills less than a mile from the Medical Center of Wisconsin. Very nice trails too. Super scenic for being in the heart of Wauwatosa. Also very surprising to run into the former grounds of the Milwaukee County Hospital for the Insane. Definitely coming back.

Really nice place to take your dog or go for a run!

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 fun if you do!