Oshkosh Menominee Park 2025 03

Originally I had planned on visiting this park to see the ice shoves. Every spring after the ice breaks up on Lake Winnebago, the wind pushes the ice up on the shore line around the lake. This year however the wind was out of the south and pushed all of the ice to the north end of the lake. There is very little ice on the shores at Menominee Park this year.

Key Features

• Zoo: Home to a variety of animals.
• Lake Winnebago: Providing stunning views.
• Playground: With a variety of equipment.
• Tennis courts: Available for visitors.
• Baseball field: For playing or watching games.
• Beach: For relaxation and sun.
• Hiking trails: To explore the natural beauty.
• Picnic areas: For meals with family and friends.
• Events: Including concerts and festivals.

Review

My wife and I still decided to walk the trails at Menominee Park. At the beginning of the week the temperatures were fairly nice and the lake ice melted and what remained was pushed north by the wind. By Wednesday however a late March snow storm dropped a slushy snow on the area. That snow was completely melted by Friday.

When I looked at the weather on Friday for Saturday during our planned walk time, it was supposed to be mostly sunny with a rain or snow storm possible late Saturday night. So while we wore warmer coats we did not anticipate the sting of the wind.

Parking on the North end of the park in an area called Millers Bay Restoration site, our first section of the hike was out on the peninsula. This peninsula and a square shaped island separate Millers Bay from the rest of Lake Winnebago. The park area wraps around this bay. With the main area of the park to the south of the bay.

As we started we could hear Red Wing Black Birds calling out and flocks of duck and geese floated in the bay. We continued south on the peninsula, stopping to take photos of the ducks every once in a while. Once we reached the end of the peninsula I took some pictures of the lake, making sure to photograph the east shore.

One of the great things about this park is that it is in the middle of the west shore of Lake Winnebago. When you visit Lake Side Park in Fond Du Lac you cannot see the north shore or High Cliff due to the curvature of the earth. However at Menominee Park in Oshkosh you can look north to see High Cliff and the northern shore. And you can also look south to see Fond Du Lac.

We turned around at the end of the peninsula and started to walk the path around Miller’s Bay. This is when the wind chill kicked in. Out on the end of the Peninsula walking north we were walking into the wind. And the wind was cold, colder than we anticipated, but we trudged on. Reaching the end of the peninsula the trees and houses kept the wind calmer and we were able to continue walking on the trail.

We started south toward the main sports area and zoo. The black top trail provided an easy hike from the tip of the peninsula south into the park. It wound around the boat launch and through the base ball diamonds. On the south end of the boat launch the trail splits to encircle the small zoo.

We crossed the road and followed the trail to the right. Going to the west of the zoo, we crossed another road and hooked south of the tennis courts. We crossed one more road in the park and passed the play equipment. Returning to the shore of Lake Winnebago, the trail turned north near the Menominee Park Beach.

We continued hiking north along the shore to the east of the zoo, we could smell the animals. This time of the year the zoo is only open during the week but the animals are still in their pens as we walk by. We continued past the zoo and approached the Chief Oshkosh statue.

Chief Oshkosh, of the Menominee Indians, lent his name to the city. In 1911 this statue was erected to honor the Chief and remind visitors to the park of the cities namesake.

After we passed the statue the trail approached the channel separating the park from the square island in the bay. the trail then turned west back toward the fork. We crossed a metal bridge just before returning to the fork in the trail. This bridge crossed a small stream that connected the two ponds in the park to the bay.

We approached the fork in the trail and started to head north to our vehicle. The wind chill returned as we walked north though the trees and houses to the north west of us protected us better than while we were on the peninsula.

We enjoyed the walk even though it was cold walking into the wind. But the best part of the hike was seeing all of the ducks floating in the bay. There were hundreds of black and white ducks in the bay on Saturday, we later discovered that they were Lesser Scaup. These diving birds, that nest in Canada and Alaska, were most likely stopping at Lake Winnebago on their way back from the southern US where they winter.

Menominee Park is a great park to visit through out the year. With frequent festivals and the zoo there are plenty of reasons to visits. I can remember my wife and I bringing the kids here to visit the Zoo. Years ago there used to be a wooden playground maze, however that has been replaced by a modern playground with rubber matting on the ground. And many residents of the city use the beach on warm summer days.

Let me know if you have any fun memories of Memorial Park in the comments. And thanks again for visiting my blog.