With hiking trails, as well as a swimming area, this park is a wonderful outdoor space for families to enjoy.

West Bush Lake Park is a jewel in the Bloomington park and trail system. This place is just lovely. I love the combination of woodsy hiking trails, with a lesser-known beach area. It's a great combination.

We love to hike the trails at this park. While they're not paved trails, I would definitely call them stroller-friendly, as there's little elevation change, and the trails are not rough or overgrown with a root system. The trail is also quite wide, so there's lots of room to maneuver, should you need to. Anyone who's pushed a stroller on an unpaved, wooded trail knows there are so many different factors, but it doesn't have to always be paved in order to be stroller-friendly.

I love this wooded area, as it offers deep wooded cover, so while I still highly recommend adults and kids wear sunblock on these trails, there is a bit of shade offered. While this isn't foolproof for keeping you protected from the sun, it does help with the summer heat a bit. The scenery along the trail is really pretty, starting right at the parking lot. You'll find Bush Lake immediately to your left, and wooded forest to your right. Another really fun feature is that there are many little "secret beaches" as we call them that you can discover immediately off the trail, along the lakeshore. Basically, you'll find tiny offshoots from the main trail, which pop out at the lake and offer a tiny sandy spot all your own. The girls love looking for the secret beaches.

While we love hiking these trails, we also love playing at the little beach here. It's not a fancy, sandy beach, but more rugged and basic, but we love it. There's a giant rock the girls love to jump off of, and they love fishing with their dollar store nets. They often catch lots of sunnies, but we always throw them back. I highly recommend packing a picnic lunch for this park and making an afternoon of it. It's a wonderful park for families.