Rock Park

I’ve been looking for an ideal spot (clean, with lots of grass, nice shade, river nearby, serene, with not too much dog and human traffic for letting dog loose to play) that I can take both my one year old and dog and this has got to be it! The pavement trail doesn’t loop but it extends very far in both directions from the parking lot (making it ideal for cyclist). The trail really is nice with only industrial businesses (like Fedex) neighboring by with little to workers in sight. I loved that the trail was nicely paved, lined with trees, and wasn’t just straight. It was interesting with lots of curbs and tranquil with the sounds of the river playing in the background. Right next to the parking lot is a shaded eating area and playgound and very large grassy area. The grass was well kept and seemed very clean.
The only con to this place is I that I saw three cardboard boxes on the floor near the bridge meaning there most likely are some homeless people floating around. Heck, I’d pick this park if I were homeless. Fishing, scenery, clean grass. Hahaha.
I’ve been to:
*Virginia Lake Park (Nice for taking baby to see animals, too dirty for dogs — geese droppings everywhere. Park across street has lots of cigarette butts laying around. has a nice loop for walks around a lake, great shade for parking and walking)
*Huffaker Park (insufficient shade and grass area for dog and baby to play around)
*Damonte Ranch Park (high in dog traffic and grass not as clean in feel, though nice long 4mile loop for walking with not much shade)
*Idlewild Park (grass area not big enough for me)
*Davis Creek Regional Park (no grass area to hang around, but nice short hiking trails in the wilderness, only 15min drive on freewar from reno)
*Mayberry Park (top 2^nd choice, but too far a drive from my house. has a nice river and trail, lots of clean grassy areas with shade from trees, bbq grills available)
*Rancho San Rafael Park (there are dog restricted areas)
*South Valley Regional Park (love this park on the weekends and evenings when there aren’t any baseball games going on. they leave the field open at all times and the huge grass area is nice play on. well kept and super clean)

When I’m training for longer runs, this is absolutely my go-​to park. It gets tiring trying to figure out a 10-​miler from my house and around the neighborhood, but this place makes it super easy. A nice, scenic run along the river that has many areas of shade, seclusion, and even bathrooms and water fountains along the way. Big thanks to whoever marked the half-​mile and mile points along the trail. Though nothing too steep, there’s a few hills along the way that challenge the muscles and provide a nice change from an otherwise flat run.

I pass this park, driving down Rock, all the time, but I always considered it an inconvenient place to have a park. Sure, it is easy to access, but who wants to go to a park located on the side of a busy road? Well, this parkland goes along with the saying «Never judge a book by its cover.» My husband, daughter and I decided to come here and check out their trail. It’s surprisingly beautiful! (Especially right now, with all the leaves changing colors!) We walked along their trail for sometime and still didn’t reach its end. I was so surprised by how big this place actually is. They have a cute, little playground and some swimming/​fishing spots along the river. Of course, it has some rough spots (i.e. graffiti) but it is a really sweet spot, in Reno, to enjoy a bike ride, walk or run! I will definitely be back to explore more of what the park has to offer.