Adventure Playground

This is one of best parks in Berkeley and perhaps in the country. According to the City of Berkeley's own website:

Adventure Playground [...] has been written up as a top 10 playground in National geographic. It was voted the Best Creative Play space in Diablo magazine. YELP has rated us 4 out of 5. We have been written about in the Chronicle, the Boston Globe and Newsweek as one of the Top 5 play spaces in the country.

So, in a sense there is little left to review. I love that the park gives kids access to tools and raw materials so they can literally help built the park. Last year my kids built a bench for one part of the playground and this week we improved a wagon and added a roof to one of the structures.

I highly recommend that first-timers read over the city's website before going. It has special hours, and you'll have to sign a waiver just to get in. The abundance of nails, raw boards, tools, and wet paint mean two things: wear old cloths and watch out if you take small children.

Mission Accomplished

Let it be known that we accomplished our summertime goal and have now been to all 55 parks in Berkeley! I was going to take it slowly at the end, but my kids wanted to finish before school started. We visited the final three on the night before their first day of school, and it was already dark before we left the last one, Harrison Park. It gave the whole endeavor a marathon-like feel.

I plan to keep writing reviews and posting pictures of the parks. I'm also hoping to create a Google Map with all the parks and perhaps a system of tags to make sorting through the list a little easier. Feel free to leave comments, especially if you've been to a park and have some fun details to share.

Presentation Mini-Park

This is another landscaped corner lot. The only thing worth pointing out is that it sits right on the California Street bike boulevard where it crosses Allston Way, so if you are out jogging or biking with your kids it might be a good place to take a break. There is a tot-sized play structure through the green gate. It isn't owned by the city, but the public is allowed to use it during daylight hours.

 

 

 

Malcom X School Park

You've seen this park if you drive on Ashby near the BART station. It was nicer than I expected when we actually went inside the yard. There are two playground structures that aren't new, but they have a few unique features like a rope bridge and a tire teeter totter (that may be the first time I've ever spelled out teeter totter!). The school yard also has a nice courtyard and garden area that give it a nice ambiance.

 

 

 

63rd Street Mini-Park

This mini-park is very near the Prince Street Totlot. It is almost exactly the same size. It has a newer, fresher feel, perhaps because of the green grass and new wood chips. I liked it, but it doesn't really justify going out of your way for.

 

 

 

Prince Street Totlot

Prince Street Totlot is about the size of the neighboring house lots. It has a couple of larger swings in the back and sand underneath the play structure. Nothing remarkable, about it, so it falls in the catergory of OK neighborhood mini-park.

 

 

Oak Park

Similar to the Frederick Mini-Park, this is really just a landscaped corner lot. It is located just east of the John Muir School (near the corner of Ashby and Claremont). I assume it is nice to sit with a book are walk the dog, but there isn't much to do there with kids.