Looking to get outdoors? Here's a list of Louisville's major parks

In the mood to get outdoors? Louisville is home to more than 120 parks and recreation spaces that offer chances to play ball, bicycle, walk or jog, or just soak in some sunshine.

The city's park system also boasts more than a dozen parks – including Cherokee, Iroquois and Shawnee – designed by famed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, who designed New York's Central Park.

These parks "provide a respite to the stresses of modern city life," according to the Olmsted Parks Conservancy, which works with the city to revitalize them.

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Another of the city's jewels is the 85-acre Waterfront Park, which opened in 1999 on the downtown riverfront and offers concerts, playgrounds, swings and walking paths as well as access to the Big Four Bridge, an old railroad span that has been converted to allow pedestrians to cross the Ohio River to Jeffersonville, Indiana, where they can enjoy shops and dining.

And the Parklands at Floyds Forks, in far eastern Jefferson County, is among the nation’s largest and most ambitious new metropolitan park systems. The donor- and visitor-supported system covers nearly 4,000 acres and offers varied recreational opportunities along an approximately 20-mile ribbon of trails, picnic and playground areas, woods, meadows and creeks.

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Here's a closer look at Louisville's major parks and some of the activities that you can do at each. Get those sneakers on.

Waterfront Park

The park on the city's downtown riverfront offers a front-row seat for the annual Thunder Over Louisville fireworks show and is the setting for many other Kentucky Derby Festival events. But when its not Derby season, the park still has a lot of neat features.

It is a great place of riding bicycles — which can be rented — and also offers a variety of food vendors like Moe's BBQ, Joe's Crab Shack and Big Four Concession.

As mentioned above, it also offers access to the Big Four Bridge, a connector between Louisville and Southern Indiana. It's a great spot for an evening stroll, but people can walk it at any time, any day of the week. "The entire distance totals two miles," according to the Waterfront Park website. "You are sure to get a good workout if you walk from one state to the other and back again."

Once in Jeffersonville, you can get an ice cream, or dine at one of the local restaurants open by the river, including Parlour and Red Yeti.

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On the Louisville side, you can enjoy public art, including a 12-foot Abraham Lincoln statue that recognizes his connections to Kentucky, or stroll along the walkway and stop to enjoy some time on one of the many swings facing the river.

Waterfront Park is also host to the WFPK Waterfront Wednesday concert series every summer, with free shows once a month at the park.

Cherokee Park

Cherokee Park, 745 Cochran Hill Road, offers activities like walking, biking and golfing. It's "main feature is the 2.3-mile Scenic Loop," according to the city of Louisville website.

This is one of the major Olmsted parks. The scenic route was part of his vision, and it can be traveled by foot or car.

The Scenic Loop has a lane for cars, and Olmsted Parks Conservancy advises drivers and walkers to keep turning left to enjoy the continuous loop. When people want to exit, they can just turn right.

Beargrass Creek runs through much of the park. Major landmarks include Big Rock, a large rock in the creek that is used for picnics, and Hogan's Fountain, which sits atop a hill on the Scenic Loop.

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Seneca Park

Seneca Park, 3151 Pee Wee Reese Road, was the last park in Louisville designed by Olmsted's firm in 1928, according to the conservancy.

The park is near Cherokee and they share some similarities. Both have a golf course and a walking trail, and they have a connecting path. But Seneca has a formal style and also includes baseball fields, basketball courts, biking, cross country trails, field hockey, soccer, volleyball and horseback riding trails along with a popular 1.2-mile walking path.

Iroquois Park

Another Olmsted-designed park, Iroquois, at 5216 New Cut Road, is in southwest Louisville and is popular with walkers and runners from across the region.

It has an amphitheater that seats more than 2,000 people and has drawn musical acts from across the nation.

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Another fun fact: The 725-acre park is believed to have the largest tulip tree in Louisville, according to the city's website.

The park offerings include archery, basketball courts, tennis courts, golf, mountain biking, picnic areas and playgrounds.

But note that no cars can currently access the road to the top of the park "due to serious erosion issues and road stability concerns." It can only be accessed by foot or riding a bicycle.

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Shawnee Park

The Olmsted-designed Shawnee Park, 4501 W. Broadway, abuts the Ohio River in western Louisville and includes nearly 285 acres.

Olmsted used its "low-lying riverfront setting and topography" as inspiration, according to the Olmsted Parks Conservancy, and it was intended to be used for large formal gatherings.

It is a place for picnics and sports, and it features "a state-of-the-art outdoor athletic complex" at 230 Southwestern Parkway. Sports playable at the park there include baseball, basketball, golf, tennis and volleyball.

The Parklands at Floyd Fork

The Parklands at Floyd Fork, as mentioned above, is nearly 4,000 acres and supported by donors and visitors. It is divided between four parks:

• Beckley Creek Park, 1411 Beckley Creek Parkway

• Pope Lick Park, 4002 South Pope Lick Road

• Turkey Run Park, 8203 Stout Road

• Broad Run Park, 11551 Bardstown Road

The four parks are unique and offer different specialties. Beckley Creek Park has a community garden in which you can reserve a space to plant your own flowers or food, and in Turkey Run Park you might encounter deer or a wild turkey, according to the park website.

Possible activities include fishing, hiking, cycling or just settling in for a picnic.

The four parks are connected by The Strand, "the central puzzle-piece of The Parklands connecting its northern and southern parks," according to the park website. The Strand contains five miles of the famous Louisville Loop, a 100-mile trail that gives people a path for hiking or cycling. The loop can be accessed through any of the four parks.

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Kirby Adams contributed to this article. Reach Ana Alvarez Bri?ez at [email protected]; follow her on Twitter at @SoyAnaAlvarez

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville parks: Here's a list of the biggest spots to get outdoors