11. Forest Park, Queens

Formed by a Wisconsin glacier 20,000 years ago and the former site of railroad lines, Forest Park is both a gem for nature lovers and very accessible via different buses running in Queens. This  park has a “knob and kettle” terrain, meaning there are stretches of small hills. There are also bridle paths.

Its trail names are easy to remember; there’s the the 1.7-mile Blue Trail, which winds through an old-hickory forest and kettle ponds, the 1 mile Yellow Trail, and the 2.4-mile Orange Trail, which winds along the park’s perimeter.