Champdoré Park

It was hard to pick a cover picture for the photo above because there are so many awesome products at this park, and I wanted to show them all in one image, but it was too busy-looking. So there are a silly number of pictures in the photo gallery. You should totally look at them all! 

We loved, LOVED this park. Renovated last year, the playground now includes areas for children 0-2 years, 2-5, and 5-12. It’s fun, creative, and original. And has products we’ve never seen anywhere else. StrollerDad even got in on the action and climbed wayyyy up high to do some rope-walking. “You’re really taking this park-testing seriously!” I yelled up. 

The nature-themed playgrounds are separated into three distinct areas, with good sight lines between two of them, but the older kids section is rather hidden behind large bushes. Smack in the middle (and also surrounded by shrubs) is a small, older splash pad, which is essentially a few posts with water sprays. Not too exciting, but hey, it’s water!

After parking on Champdoré Street, we ran up the tree-lined path, and the boys immediately had to stop, stare at the giant “tree” and figure out just how to play here.
And then they were off. And up, and over, and across.
This tall, metal structure is SO COOL. Older kids can challenge themselves by doing an obstacle course up the tree, across ropes, pause in the hammock, balance across the stumps and beams, and then down the slide. In the wood chips below are some bowl spinners (which are probably not a great idea right after breakfast.)

Around the hedge is the 0-2 section with its adorable mini Nook from Landscape Structures. There’s a “doorbell”, mirror, windows, items to touch and turn. We basically never see any products for this age range, so it was very exciting to try something specifically geared to the tiniest people. Nearby are two mini picnic tables. My only concern is that this area is on sand; for new walkers and crawlers, I’d prefer if this whole section was on poured rubber…
…Like how the toddler area is on rubber! Right beside the infant area is the 2-5 section with its lovely treehouse/chalet play structure with ladders and easy to climb stairs; and at ground level there is a large log to crawl through, mushrooms and stumps to climb, and a couple of saddle seat spinners. It’s all very pretty and I LOVE themed parks. Even the rubber surfacing is reminiscent of a stream passing beside fallen logs. 
Note that there are no “normal” swings at this park. No baby or adult swings, but there IS the new 5-person family swing. 

A lovely touch here are the swinging benches with their funky modern shades which run alongside the two younger play areas. There are benches and picnic tables right beside the playground, as well as nearby under some trees.

In the rest of the park you’ll find a beautiful artificial turf soccer field (that was busy with early morning players), a new mini-soccer field, basketball court, lots and lots of picnic tables, benches, a drinking fountain, and a chalet with bathrooms. 
Note on the bathrooms: We were at the park from about 8am-9am, and the doors were locked the whole time, and there are no posted hours for their opening. A TON of joggers passing through the park tried out the doors and were grumpy that they weren’t open. 

Things to note:
-The city says the hours for the splash pad are from 9am-11pm.
-There is no fencing, but the playground is far away from the road. 
-The park is bordered on the north by Champdoré Street, on the east by Iberville Street, on the south and west sides by Frédéric Back Park. We found parking on Champdoré.
-We have yet to visit the MASSIVE Frédéric Back Park, so you can read more about it HERE. It might be fun to play at Champdoré, and then bring a picnic into Frédéric Back and explore a while. Bring sunscreen and water too!

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