Portland, ME 04101

I’ve been to this park MANY many times, although none with the intent of writing about it. Tbis park has been on our schedule for four different weeks and each time something just came up. But today, we made it. The parking is easy to find, especially if you know the area. Parking can be difficult at certain times. Your best best is early mornings to grab a spot. Enter the park on Deering Ave and drive as far as you can but at the same time be looking for a spot to your left. There isn’t a bathroom close by but there are some in other parts of the park. This playground is also partially shaded and has seating for parents. Once you’ve parked follow the hill or steps down. If you have a stroller you could take the hill but it’s steep so I usually follow the path around. I’ll describe it from this POV.

You’ll see a set of swings, I think four, all regular swings under shade. Continue on the path and come to the BIG playground. There are many ways up, including but not limited to, rock walls, ramps, ladders and steps. The top of the playground goes fairly high but there are some areas toddlers could use. At the very top is a double slide that is steep. On one of the sides is a smaller double slide, most accessible near the small steps. The rock walls are tall and there is a variety of them. There’s a long fire pole and a metal circular tube with square holes to look in or outward. There are some balancing seats nearby. One wobbles on a spring and the other moves with the weight of the child. Every board wall on this section of the playground has some sort of entertainment, mazes, knobs, etc.

Next over is a smaller toddler playground. It has a couple ways up. One being stairs and the other being a Boulder rock climbing thing. Atop is one big curved slide. At the top of the stairs is a double small slide and a wall with two steering wheels and a dashboard of sorts. Here you can cross a bumped bridge which leads you to the bigger slide. Underneath this playground is a table for pretend play, a shelf for serving woodchip pie and a couple walls with gears and another steering wheel.

There are some stand alone piece of equipment. Across from the toddler playground is a big curved slide built into giant stones. To get up you can climb these very steep stones or take the stairs to the left. Next to the toddler area is a four person see-saw and a set of baby swings. Next to the swings is a ginormous spider web climbing net. Behind the the toddler playground is a water pump. Kids pump the water and it flows down any of the three paths depending on which flaps kids have chosen to close or open. Tennis courts are behind this. Diagonally from the spiderweb web is what I call the rollercoaster area. There are two circular seats, kids wrap there feet around and hold on tight. There is also a swinging chair that locks. These three things are then pulled to the top and pushed down by parents. The kids ride to the bottom and it comes backwards back to about the middle. There is a field next to this as well as a sanded volleyball court. In the summer, our favorite, is the ravine and splash pad. There’s a bit of a walk to get there but it’s worth it. The ravine, which was closed at this visit, is filled with water from Sebago lake. It reaches up to about a foot of water and getting lower and lower as you enter the splash pad. It is partially shaded so it can ve kind of chilly in the shade. We usually do the ravine first then walk over to the playground so they can dry off in the mostly sun covered playground.

This playground has so much to do and for all ages. I’ve seen kids up to 10 here! With both the big playground and toddler playground in relatively close proximity and benches nearby, it’s perfect for sitting back on a bench and watching your kids on both of the playgrounds. The nearby water areas are essential to us in the summer or on hot days. The fields for running and playing are endless, both near thr playground and near the ravine. There us a duck/goose pond as well. This playground is so worth going to! I suggest packing a lunch, maybe a snack for the ducks (not bread), grab an extra pair of clothes or a bathing suit for playtime in the water and you’ve got half a day at least to spend here.