Editing Valparaiso, Indiana (section)

==Parks and recreation==
Valparaiso has an extensive city park district. In 2005 there were 13 parks with another in the planning stages.<ref>Your Guide to Summer Fun!  Indiana Dunes, The Casual Coast; Porter County Convention and Recreation and Visitors Commission, 2005</ref>

===Parks===
[[File:Valparaiso Indiana Fairground Park 37.jpg|thumb|Fairground Park and walking circuit]]
[[File:Valparaiso Indiana Valplayso Glenrose North 07.jpg|thumb|Valplayso]]

'''200 East''' (East McCord Rd) – a community park with a playground; where many of the city's legendary athletes played football as youngsters. Football at 200 East Park is a staple for young kids growing up in the neighborhood. <br />
'''Bicentennial Park''' (Burlington Beach Road & Campbell St) – Provides a full range of activities, including a playground, basketball courts, ball diamond and picnic shelters. A prairie restoration is under way in the north half of the park.<br />
'''Central Park Plaza''' ([[Route of the Lincoln Highway|Lincolnway]] and Lafayette St) – is the centerpiece of the Downtown Valparaiso revitalization and opened the summer of 2011. It has an outdoor amphitheater for concerts and other special events as well as a splash pad in the center of the park for kids to play. <br />
'''Fairgrounds Park''' (Calumet & Evans Avenues) – Has the largest complex of ball diamonds and soccer fields in the city. A playground and basketball court are available. Numerous city sports leagues use Fairgrounds Park for their games and tournaments. The park is surrounded by a paved walking circuit that is well occupied on nice days.<br />
'''Foundation Meadows''' (Campbell Street & Bullseye Lake Rd) – One of the city's newer parks.<br />
'''Glenrose South''' (1500 Roosevelt Road) – Provides several ball diamonds and when school is out, Thomas Jefferson Middle Schools track is available for those interested in walking. Glenrose South has been the home of the Valparaiso [[Fourth of July]] Fireworks display and celebration since 2005.<br />
'''Jessee-Pifer Park''' (Elmhurst & Madison Streets) – a community park with a basketball court and picnic shelter.<br />
'''Kirchhoff Miller Woods''', (Roosevelt Road & Institute St – a community park that provides for basketball, baseball, tennis, picnicking and a playground.<br />
'''Ogden Gardens/Forest Park''' (Campbell Street and Harrison Blvd) – Ogden Gardens is the home of the city's botanical garden. The Campbell Street end is a formal garden with a variety of planting that bloom throughout the year. The Gazebo is a favorite place for weddings, wedding pictures and high school prom pictures. A Japanese garden is included with a 22,000-gallon Koi pond. Forest Park is to the west with an open grassy picnic area below a wooded picnic area with a shelter.

'''Rock Island''' (Coolwood Dr &, Frontage Rd) is a "tourist attraction" found in front of the Strack & Van Til grocery store just off of the US 30 highway. The curb that splits the right and left turn lanes has been responsible for a number car crashes and accidents. Over the weekend between May 17 and May 19 of 2024, community members decorated the curb with rocks, signs, traffic cones, and other miscellaneous decor, including a flamingo and a blanket for one of the rocks. This has since been considered an inside joke, featuring its own Google reviews as an official tourist attraction.<ref>{{Cite web |last=joseph.pete@nwi.com, 219-933-3316 |first=Joseph S. Pete |date=2024-05-19 |title=Long a hazard to cars, Rock Island has become the talk of Valparaiso |url=https://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/long-a-hazard-to-cars-rock-island-has-become-the-talk-of-valparaiso/article_639871ce-160d-11ef-bbd9-774d36e81758.html |access-date=2024-05-20 |website=nwitimes.com |language=en}}</ref><br />
'''Rogers-Lakwood Park''' (Meridian Road (N Campbell Street)) – Provide opportunities for swimming, fishing, and hiking trails. It is connected to the north side communities of Valparaiso by the Campbell Street Bike Trail (hiking and biking).<br />
'''Tower Park''' (Evans Ave and Franklin St.) is a community park that offers basketball, baseball, tennis, pickleball, picnicking, and a playground. During winter months, one of the basketball courts is turned into the community skating rink.<ref>{{cite web |title=Tower Park |url=https://www.valpoparks.org/facilities/facility/details/Tower-Park-16 |publisher=City of Valparaiso |access-date=April 25, 2023}}</ref><br />
'''Valplayso/Glenrose North''' (Glendale Blvd and Roosevelt Rd) is the home of Valplayso, a community-designed and community-built playground. At the other end of the parking lot are several ball fields. Separated from Glenrose South by only the Middle Schools track, Glenrose North hosts over half of the community during the Fourth of July Celebration.<br />
'''West Side Park''' (Joliet Rd) is a community park with a ball field and a playground.<br />
'''Will Park''' (Morgan Blvd and Brown St) is a community park with a basketball court, playground, and picnic shelter.

===Golf===
*Valparaiso Country Club
*Forest Park
*Creekside
*Mink Lake (Closed)
*The Course at Aberdeen

===Bike trails===
Valparaiso is building a series of bike trails across the city. Currently, (March 2012) most of the identified bike routes are part of the county's system of recommended roads and streets.<ref>Northwest Indiana Bike Map, Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission, Spring 2008</ref>

===Biking and hiking===
''Campbell Street Bikeway'' runs from Rogers-Lakewood Park south {{convert|2.5|mi|km}} to Vale Park Road (CR 400 N).  It continues south on the opposite side of Campbell St. base Valparaiso High School, ending {{convert|2|mi|km}} south at Ogden Gardens (Harrison Blvd).

At Vale Park, it connects to the ''Vale Park trail'' to Valparaiso Street {{convert|1|mi|km}}.  A new bike loop {{convert|3|mi|km}} is being built that circles north along Valparaiso Street to Bullseye Lake Rd, east to Cumberland Crossing (not open to the public (2008), south to Vale Park, turning west to on Vale Park to return to the corner of Vale Park and Valparaiso Street.

At Glendale, the ''Campbell Street Bikeway'' connects to the ''Glendale cross town bike lane''.  These travel east {{convert|2|mi|km}} on Glendale, ending on North Calumet at the Walgreens corner.