Kingston, Ontario – Lake Ontario Park

150 Canada Playground Badge (1)

Driving back from our Picton-area Thanksgiving, we decided to take the scenic way along Highway 2 because it was a gorgeous fall day, AND because we wanted to check out some playgrounds on our way home. 
We stopped here and ended up staying over an hour because it was new, big, beautiful, and unique.
Right on Lake Ontario, this park recently underwent a complete revitalization and reopened in 2013. 
We pulled into the driveway, all excited, and then we all went “Oh” as we saw the old and weathered playground equipment and swing sets with peeling paint. We almost left to find something a bit more exciting, but drove in a bit more and…..Tada!
An amazing playground, splash pad, and waterfront. 
The play equipment is fully accessible on a springy rubber base. The climber from GameTime has stairs, slides, ground level activity Gizmos, bongos, swinging stepping stones, stand-up spinners, and sky wheels (monkey bars). Great for toddlers and big kids. 
There is a powered-by-dad spinning rope climber; a Kompan seesaw; and baby, big, and adaptive swings. 

Just beside the playground is the splash pad by Waterplay Solutions which has a tall turnable sprayer, giant globe fountains, and water jets from the wall and ground. Lots of space, and because there’s no sand, kids can play and then run through the water.
There are plenty of picnic tables and benches, and even bbq stands. Just steps away is a huge covered pavilion with washrooms (that were open on a holiday in October!), and there is even a family/wheelchair accessible washroom. 
We played for quite a while, then walked past the trees bursting with colour and down the path towards the water. We saw the giant sandboxes, listened to the crashing waves, and walked along the shoreline. You can actually swim here, though the water is wild and there is no supervision. 
The boys LOVED sitting on the giant slabs of rock and searching for “special” rocks and pebbles to take home. It was soooooo relaxing. After lading me down with about 10 pounds of rocks, we scampered (I groaned) up the hill to the playground again, saw the boatlaunch, peeked inside the “Round House” washrooms (there are showers!), and then walked past the beach volleyball court to the older playground we’d seen on the way in. 
There is no fencing around either of the playgrounds, and while there is a lot of shade around the equipment, the play areas were in full sun while we were there. 

Nobody really wanted to leave but it was time to head for home. 
This is a great example of an inclusive playground and is beautiful place to stop awhile. 

Feature
Toddler park (2-5)
Fenced toddler park
Baby swings
Big kid park (5-12)
Big kid swings
Parking lot
Street parking
Shade
Water fountain
Picnic tables
Benches
Seasonal Bathrooms
Green space
Soccer fields
Baseball field
Tennis courts
Basketball
Splash pad
Pool
Reduced mobility swings
Dep nearby

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