Shawnee Mission Park

Shawnee Mission Park is Kansas’ quiet response to the extensive beauty of Swope Park on the Missouri side. An enormous lake with paddleboarding and beginner sailboats. Long wonderful trails through woods and softly rolling hills. A tiny shore for people who would like to pretend they are not in Kansas anymore. Dogs are welcome and roam around freely. In the event you have your own canoe or watercraft, bring it. A lot of programs… including Theatre in the Park during the summertime. Come check it out.

Get yer Robin Hood on! The archery range is one of the greatest activities, probably least mentioned, and definitely most unique attributes of this park. It has multiple distance targets, some benches, and close parking. For $ 15 you can get an annual pass and shoot till your heart’s content. There’s always friendly archers out there to converse with, and if you are a rookie, they are usually more than willing to help. Shawnee Mission Park’s archery range should get more recognition, but with so many other awesome things to do at this park, it’s not surprising it gets overlooked.

Been to this park a few times with one of my good friends. Mainly go to the dog park and recently we’ve stopped and played some disc golf. The dog park is very nice and it’s wide open so your fury friend has plenty of room to explore and run. They also have a trail down to the lake where the dogs can go swimming, which is really nice.
Recently we went to go play a round of disc golf and I must say the course is good also. Unlike some of the other disc golf parks I’ve been to some of the baskets were missing because careless people would take them out with their vehicles for whatever reason, but these baskets are all there and most of them are in view. The last basket isn’t in view because it’s down the hill and to the left but the other ones are pretty easy to find/​see. Be a good course to check out if you are an avid disc golfer. I do have to say though in the grass I would watch out for snakes. My friend nearly stepped on a snake in the grass while we were playing a round. We also got a chance to see some deer run through the field.

I mostly only go to the dog park here but it is one of my favorites. It is the biggest one in the KC metro and has a dog beach and wooded walking trails! It is so big you can’t even see the fences that keep you in. If you have a dog that likes to wonder this one might not be the best for you though. My dog loves coming here and so does everyone else because the place is always packed on nice days. Only thing I wish it had more of is paved trails or at least well maintained gravel for days that are muddy. There is only 1 short paved trail that goes down the to beach.

as always, loved the park, went on the 3 mile one way hike, crossed over a small creek and climbed the hill to the off leash dog park where the dogs were all swimming in the lake. perfect day!

Shawnee Mission Park is my office on days off of work. This place is an oasis out in western Lenexa — you’ve got running trails sneaking through the woods, kayaks and boats for rent (btw Memorial/​Labor Day), roads to ride, dog parks for dogs to frolic, and water to fish.
Of all the pieces, I have to say that the running trails win for me here. They crew has done an amazing job maintaining these trails and building on to them over the years. You can also control your distance with ease — want a quicker 2.5 mile smoother route? You got it. You can also stretch it out to 4.5, or even 7 with the additional trails.
The park isn’t far off of 435, and for a city that loves to drive, it’s likely going to take you a little time to get there. Coming from the Plaza area means I have to really plan to come out here, but it always ends up being worth it.
Like any great park or patio in KC, this place will be chock full of people on nice days, which I like because it means people are out enjoying themselves. The dog park gets especially packed, with cars manufacturing parking spots on the side roads all around. There’s usually dog food trucks on those busy days — where’s the people food trucks?!
Drive, ride or run out here if you haven’t been, it’s an amazing, gigantic park worthy of an entire Saturday afternoon.

I recently visited this park for the first time after reading reviews discussing the running trails. Since moving to the Kansas City area, I have been really impressed with the parks, and Shawnee Missing Park is no exception. I came here one afternoon and parked near the Police station and visitor center. Near here is a trail which I jumped on to enjoy a short run. While I was there, a lot of people were playing Frisbee (Disk) Golf. I also noticed a few groups taking walks along the trail. I easily swerved past the other visitors enjoying the park without disrupting myself or them. The park is large enough that people do not get crammed or clumped together much. I only visited a small portion of the park, but look forward to visiting here again, especially when it’s time for a longer run, so I can explore the rest!

I was hosting relatives from out of town over the summer and this place was a hit for several reasons: 1) several nice disc golf courses 2) swimming at the «beach» 3) paddle boating 4) other activities to observe such as a local car show and jousting tournament.
Our family also loves the off-​leash dog park and beach.
Wonderful, Johnson County park.

Great park which caters to many different outdoor activities. Dog park is a great place and a safe and secure place to let puppy get exercise. Bikers will find the roads to be biker friendly and challenging. Families and water lovers will enjoy the beaches and marina with rental boats
Overall– a great place for cheap enjoyable fun or great place to exercise.

One of the best parks I’ve been to. Well for the kc area. First off it’s pretty big, in fact it has its own lake and mini dam surround by plenty of greenery to keep the traffic noise away. Very well kept over all, clean, nice shelters and plenty to do. The lake alone has fishing and boating and even has a miniature beach you can play and swim at. It also has a dog park (with access to the lake), archery range, rc plane runway, viewing tower to see the whole park as well as bird watching, hiking trails, biking trails, horse back trails. Honestly it is a wonderful oasis in Kansas. Plus what other park can say they have oysters and wild turkey, both I have seen and pointed and had confirmed by a third party, sadly the turkeys got spooked when I tried to take their picture and ran and the oysters were in water and I didn’t want to risk getting my phone wet?
If you’ve been wanting to plan a nice picnic or just spend some time outdoors, don’t bother traveling all the way to Colorado, check this place out first, it will surprise you.
Only reason it’s not five stars is because I’m disappointed in their dog park, though even so it’s still a great place (would have preferred 4.5 stars).

I have utilized the trails for my half and full marathon trainings – it is always kept clean and landscaping is beautiful. The only downfall is that the deeper trails aren’t typically maintained too well when it snows (but then again, who the heck would travel 10 miles in just to shovel/​plow?!) I very much enjoy the hiking trails as well! They have signs that you can follow to ensure that you don’t get lost. We love to just sit in the grass, on occasion, to enjoy the view of the lake, wildlife, and have a picnic.

Dog park is awesome, fishing is awesome (watch for snakes), airfield for remote planes is awesome, picnic area is awesome, marina provides great service options (awesome), and room for walking and riding bikes on roadways is awesome.
Looking forward to checking out the hiking/​mountain biking trails next.

This is a great park right near my house in Johnson County. There are always people in the park enjoying the outdoors. Great running on the MTB trails. Park at the Marina lot.

I really enjoy this park. It has all types of activities to do throughout the year! It’s also conveniently located! My favorite things to do at this park is go hiking on the trails, bike or run the park, kayak the lake, picnic with the kiddos, feed the ducks. Right now the leaves are changing and the view is fantastic!

Biggest park I ever been to. I thought Loose Park was huge until I came to Shawnee Mission Park.
Shawnee Mission Park was the destination for the latest Kansas City Instagram Meet-​up (yes, it’s a thing!) and we had an amazing time taking creative and fun photos on top of their outlook tower and by the shore line of the lake.
The park is so overwhelming huge that I have no idea where to suggest that you go. The Welcome Center was very efficient in providing me a map and directions to help me find my friends when I first got there. I’m sure there are a ton of activities and cool features at this park, for now I can tell you that the lake and the tower are fun!

June — August from 6 — 7:30 pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays the beach is open for open water swimming. They have 3 buoys and lifeguards out for about a 200 m loop. It is $ 4, and usually draws a good sized crowd, but a perfect place to get practice before a race or try out your wetsuit. I also love coming here for the people. Gets a little more crowded before a big race and you are sure to meet someone to share stories or tips with.
Make sure to bring your ID and a swimcap. Tons of paved trails so you can easily get a brick in if you bring your bike or running shoes for after the swim.

Best dog park ever! Lake front, woodchipped trails, and a ton of happy pups? What more could your furry friend ask for! Oh, and its free! On Saturdays they usually ahve some kind of truck out in the parking lot for the dogs, one I have seen you can wash your dogs in the truck for 10 bucks! The other one that I have seen many times is treats for the dogs like a hotdog stand! So cute and a great way to enjoy KC!

I’ve always enjoyed Shawnee Mission Park.
PROS
* Theatre in the Park. great shows, cheap prices, bring your own chair and picnic
* swimming area
* kayak, boat, paddle boats available for rent
* well «guarded». there is generally a patrol car seen during a visit
* pet park area
* very clean
* clean bathrooms where available through the park
* wildlife
* huge space. you can always find a «quiet corner» even though there are a lot of people around
*shelters available for those hot Kansas days
*FREE
*open late in the summer (11pm) through October (I think)
*people really seem to take care of the park when they visit

Shawnee Mission Park is Kansas’ quiet answer to the sweeping beauty of Swope Park on the Missouri side. An enormous lake with paddleboarding and beginner sailboats. Long beautiful trails through woods and gently rolling hills. A small beach for those who want to pretend they aren’t in Kansas anymore. Dogs are welcome and roam around freely. If you have your own canoe or watercraft, bring it.
Lots of programs… including Theater in the Park during the summer. Come check it out.

Last time I was in this park I was a teenager, lets just leave it at that.
On this visit I was there for Labor Day «Pops In The Park.» I had read that it was cool to bring wine and coolers to this event, so it sounded like a perfect evening. Although we arrived about 2 hours after the gates opened, we got a relatively close parking space. We walked down the hill and scored a space in the blanket only section. We set up our portable picnic table, busted out the plastic wine glasses and lit our candle. Let the music begin!
If it hadn’t been for that Russian mobster family that almost took off my toe with a stroller, it would have been a five star night.
What a wonderful event… and it was completely free!