Minneapolis’ "Central Park"

OK, it’s only 743 acres, compared to its (much more) famous peer’s 843 acres. And it’s technically located on the city’s west side.

However, for sheer sprawl, topography, and wildlife (animals, not people), Minneapolis’ Theodore Wirth Park arguably rivals — or surpasses — New York City’s Central Park.

And if you consider Theodore Wirth as part of the City’s famous Chain of Lakes (Calhoun, Lake of the Isles, Cedar, Harriet, Nokomis) — which makes sense, because it’s all physically contiguous — the total acreage is easily 3x-4x the size of Central Park.

With a whole lot fewer people . .