This can be the summer to ride a horse, pedal a bike, rent a boat, go for a walk, see the wildflowers, watch birds, hike off trail or go fishing close to home in Washington County.

Here’s a list of seven public spaces with short and long trails, lakes and streams to do those things.

• Ride a horse at Mingo Creek County Park, which has the most different things to do at any local park. Along with trailer parking and trails marked for horseback riding, people walk, run, take nature hikes, and go mountain biking. Trails pass through wooded areas or have a good view of the woods. Wildlife can be seen. The Washington County Parks & Recreation has scheduled dozens of activities at the park.
• Ride a bike on the crushed limestone surface of Montour Trail. It connects Coraopolis to Clairton. Along the way, it passes through Washington County for 23 miles. Small towns, fields, deer and rivers can be seen. If someone doesn’t have a bicycle, one can be rented before buying. E-bikes, or electric pedal assist bikes, are popular – people can turn on a motor for a long-distance ride.
• Go boating at Canonsburg Lake, a 76-acre recreational lake that’s popular for public fishing and boating. Boats have to be unpowered or have an electric motor – diesel power isn’t allowed. They have to be registered or have a valid launch permit. A launch ramp is available. There’s parking.
• Walk the relatively flat Panhandle Trail. Rolling hills, rocky hillsides, animals, creeks, bridge crossings and many trees can be seen while walking the trail. There’s no motorized vehicles to get in the way of enjoying nature. People walk half the distance they can handle, then turn around and return to the access point where they got on the trail.
• Wildflowers and clover were planted at Cross Creek County Park, which is mostly a public fishing lake. The flowers have drawn nearly 200 species of birds to watch plus wildlife. County Parks & Recreation scheduled a handful of activities there this year.
• Hike off trail at an undeveloped park – Hillman State Park in northern Washington County. It’s an ideal space to getaway from everything for a few hours. Being undeveloped, it’s closer to nature. Keep an eye on trail markers to avoid getting lost.
• The PA Fish & Boat Commission owns and stocks Dutch Fork Lake. It’s a narrow lake of 90 acres that stretches about a half-mile. The lake has a population of largemouth bass, saugeye and walleye, and coldwater trout for year-round angling. Shore fishing is permitted. Commonwealth Inland Regulations apply.

This list of places to do things this summer is enough to fill up anyone’s summer.

Places to do things this summer