North Street School Playground - Windsor Locks, CT

The playground at North Street School in Windsor Locks was a pleasant surprise. I knew there was a decent playground (from what I saw out of the corner of my eye while I drove by) but didn't realize there were several play structures!

When you enter through the fence, you are on a blacktop with painted games on the ground, two basketball hoops, and a set of swings (including a chair type seat for toddlers). That really brought me back to my elementary school days when that pretty much WAS our playground!

Past the blacktop is a wood-chip covered area with three play structures. Three! Each have different types of platforms, bridges, climbing obstacles and slides. There is also a small climbing wall and a cool platform that looks like a bench, but is actually on loose enough springs that it bounces. Mommy had fun on that one. 

Beyond this area is a play structure geared toward smaller children that is in its own fenced area. My kids are older now but I remember lamenting lack of fences on playgrounds when my kids were really little, especially with two. You can take your toddlers in here, close the gate, and breath a small sigh of relief that they won't run off when you bend down to tie your shoe or something.

My boys played on every piece of equipment here. When they were done with that, they grabbed a ball out of the van and played on the blacktop. When they were done with that, we went for a walk around the field behind the playgrounds. All of this was fenced in with a chain link fence.

There are the drawbacks that come from being a school playground. There aren't public bathrooms so come prepared (we have a portable potty for these types of occasions). The biggest drawback is that I'm assuming this playground is not accessible during school hours. 

This is a great playground. It has lots of equipment, a blacktop, a field, it is back from the road and all fenced in.  Check it out and let me know what you think!  Have fun!

Directions

Younger kids fenced in area

Field Road Park - Connor's Place - Somers, CT

We go to this playground so much that it feels strange to blog about it, but it is a good one!  


Field Road Park is located just outside the center of Somers, CT. It pops up after passing a bus yard, some service garages, the NE Tractor Trailer Training School, and some self-storage warehouse buildings. The first thing you're likely to notice as you pull up is the playground. Connor's Place is a Boundless Playground (universally accessible). What we've liked about it from the start is the different areas for different aged children. 

There are two sets of swings, including regular swings, two full seat harness swings and two baby swings (which my 4 year old still likes). There are two sets of dome "monkey bars" - one small and one big. There are two sets of playground equipment with slides - one for small children and one for older children. There is a rock climbing wall, a zip line thing, a bouncing car to sit in, a spinner (C's favorite) and a large sand area (T's favorite). There are also seats for parents who get to do that sort of thing.


In addition to the playground, the "upper level" of the park (it slopes down) includes a parking area, basketball court with two baskets (I think), a covered pavilion and horseshoe pits (though I'm not sure if they are in the best condition or even usable).

If you drive past the upper level parking lot and down the hill a bit you will pass a building with bathrooms and a covered area with picnic tables. It looks like they could have a snack bar there but I've never seen it open. There are about five baseball/softball fields (maybe the snack bar is open during games?) in the lower level of the park (and a working water fountain that even tastes good).  The lower level has a dirt parking area right in front of a group of fenced in tennis courts (four maybe) and a fenced wall to play some solo tennis against.

With a playground, fields, tennis, basketball, pavilions, bathrooms, and water, there is so much to do at this great park. One thing to note is that except for the pavilions and a few trees, there isn't a lot of shade so remember the sunblock. Bring some balls - even a picnic - and you can be here for hours!

Map to Field Road Park, Somers, CT

(Please note that photos were taken late in the day so lighting is weird.)

For the younger kids.

For the older kids. 

Dome Monkey Bars

Sand area

T building a sand castle with bucket and shovel that were there.

One of the lower softball fields (photo from ngcsl.org)

Bruce Park Playground, Greenwich, CT

Welcome to my first blog post!  I don't consider myself a "blogger" so please bear with my non-pro writing style.  It probably isn't good form to start out a blog about playgrounds by talking about the mother-of-all-playgrounds, but I'm going to do that anyway.  

I live in northern CT, but on Sunday (4/12) we were in Greenwich, CT visiting family and took a trip to the Bruce Park Playground.  O...M...G!  I think this is the biggest playground I've ever seen!  There were so many different sections of this park/playground.  There was playground equipment for little ones, a large sandbox area, slides built into the side of a hill (two metal slides and two slides made out of some kind of stone), swings, playground equipment with slides and movable platforms, etc. for kids that were a bit bigger, playground equipment that looked like caves and stones with rope obstacles, a spider web climbing thing, and even an old school tether-ball (and an older boy friendly enough to show my 5 year old how to play). 

If that isn't enough, the whole thing is situated among hills, rocks, and trees AND has a small ocean view!  With all that equipment to play with, my boys loved rock climbing and fighting "monsters" just as much, if not more.

This playground also happens to be across the street from the Bruce Museum in case you'd like to take in some art during your outing.

We didn't use them, but I did notice a small building with bathrooms.  The water fountains didn't work but we refreshed with some ice cream from a truck parked in the parking lot.

Speaking of parking, on a really nice day like we had, it may be a bit of an issue.  We parked in the Bruce Museum area in a lot that didn't have signs saying that it was only for museum parking.  A short walk and we were there.

This playground really does having something for everyone.  My kids LOVED it!

Bruce Park, Greenwich, CT - MAP

There are some rope obstacles in the back of this one.

For the younger ones.

Slides

M and C rock climbing (and looking for monsters)

T making his way to a "cave" they found

Sandbox area

Enjoying treats from the ice cream truck