Shawnee South sits across the street from Pauline Central School and next to the Montara neighborhood and is well-marked with signs. It is located near Forbes Field and was part of 175 acres aquired by Shawnee County in 1975 that was once used by the United States Air Force at Forbes Field.

This 60-acre park has something to offer every member of the family. Take the first entrance east of NW 43rd and Kansas Ave., and you'll find the four-diamond softball complex, soccer fields, tennis courts, sand volleyball courts and playground. You'll also find the 15,555-square-foot community center, which features meeting rooms, two preschool classrooms, an aerobics room, a weight room, a dance room, an art room and a kitchen/dining room. The community center was once the Shawnee County Poor Farm.

Shawnee County's largest and finest recreation spot, Lake Shawnee offers generous entertainment options for all. The centerpiece of the park is the lake, which stretches across 410 surface acres with about 2.75 billion gallons of water, providing a home for waterfowl and a popular destination for fishing, wind surfing, swimming and boating. The lake also can be enjoyed from picnic tables and shelters that surround the lake.

From SE 5th and Norwood, follow the sign pointing east to this park and community center site that stretches behind houses and a church. Inside Rice Community Center, you'll find a gym, game room, computer lab, universal weight system in the fitness room and classroom space. During the school year, the center is open 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 11 a.m.-6 p.m. on Fridays. During summers, its hours change to 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday through Friday and 4-7 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Oakland Billard Park, located in the Oakland area not far from the Sardou Bridge, has a little bit of everything, from a playground to a community center. Park goers will find a small swimming pool and baseball and softball backstops. Basketball hoops are located off the parking lot. Oakland Billard Park also features a concrete refuge for skateboarders, known as the Mouse Trap Skate Park. For children, its play area includes some classic playground toys, including teeter-totters, a kid-powered merry-go-round, swings, a slide and a climbing toy that resembles a car.

Hillcrest Pool provides cool stopping grounds for Hillcrest Park, but there's lots more to check out beyond the pool's zero-depth entry, frog slide, drop slide, diving board and rain-drop waterfall. In the park, beautiful, mature trees provide welcome shade on a sunny day. The trees can be enjoyed from the benches that dot the landscape or the way they help keep the smooth basketball and tennis courts just a little cooler. The park also features an open-air shelter, grills, and a mix of modern and older playground equipment, including swings, teeter-totters, slides and a merry-go-round.

Garfield Park has held a special place in the hearts of North Topekans for more than 100 years. Dating back to a time when soldiers used to camp in the area along Soldier Creek (before the main channel was redirected to the north), the 32-acre park still has a lot to offer. In addition to the usual park amenities of playground equipment (swings, slides, climbing, etc.), benches, picnic tables and BBQ grills, the park features a community center, a large shelter house, a small swimming pool, a bandstand and an outdoor basketball court.

This park has something for just about everyone in its grounds that extend from Gage to Fairlawn along Shunga Drive. Start near Gage Boulevard and pick up the Shunga Trail at a green tree-lined stretch. From there, the park wraps west past Edgewater Park providing an endless park scene and the perfect spot for bikers, runners, walkers and parents pushing strollers to pass through. Around Shunga and Eveningside Drive, the scene changes when Crestview Community Center, Heartland BMX and a pool come into view.

Named for its location in the heart of the city, Central Park is a 15-acre all-purpose park that includes a community center, a fishing pond, a walking trail and an open-air shelter for family picnics and other group functions. There's a wide variety of play equipment for kids, a landscaped pergola on the north end and a football field with a gravel track on the west side. Abundant large trees offer plenty of shade.

Formerly a city-run community center, Abbott is now in the hands of the non-profit group Community First. Abbott stays hopping year round with a variety of programs for school-age children. In the evenings the building, including its gym, game room and fitness room, is open to the public, although a paying membership is required. Golden Gloves amateur boxing takes place at Abbott on Monday, Wednesday and Friday evenings. Abbott is located at SE 10th and Indiana, just west of Samuel Jackson Park.