Our favorites of 2016

The most asked question about this project is, "so what are your top five parks?"  This question has slightly different answers depending on who you ask.  The big boys (ages 7 and 5) and I went through our pictures to refresh our memories and we actually agree on most of our favorites with a couple exceptions.  The boys are more drawn to unique parks with lots of fun opportunities to climb.  My list is similar but I also consider ease of containing toddler and older kids all in one visible area.  With that in mind, here are our favorites, or as I told the boys, "the parks that every kid in Duluth should visit."

Boys' Favorites:

• Central Hillside
• They liked this park for its "spiderweb" with all of its different materials, and the "turny thing," a circle at an angle that spins when you walk on it.
• Grant
• They enjoyed the rock to climb and the roller slide the most.
• Blackmer
• The favorites here were the monkey bars and bridge, and the path down to the river.
• Hartley
• The river wins hands down at this playground.  All three boys love it.
• Lincoln
• The natural features of this park win the boys over.  They love the big climbing rock, the creek, and all the bridges over it.
• Morgan
• The big kid park is their favorite at this location.  Specifically, the slides and the rock wall.
• Park Point
• They love the ore boat and giant sandbox tires here.
• Playfront
• The ropes for climbing and the xwave are very popular here.

Mama Favorites:

My list only differs from the boys' slightly.  And I like the parks for different reasons.  Central Hillside and Lincoln don't make my list, and I'm adding Washington Square to mine.  On their list I do like,

Grant: I like how open the park is and not nearby any busy roads.  It is near a school, a community center, and residential area, and one side is filled with fields.  None of the structures here scare me too much and I can see all of the park at once.

Blackmer:  I like the shade here!  Many of Duluth's parks are in full sun, which is great for spring and fall, but in the heat of summer, some shade is great.  Again, there are only houses on one side and the rest of the park is fields and trees.  The river is far enough down the path that I don't worry about a kid escaping before I can catch them.  I wasn't happy about broken glass on the path, but it wasn't enough to make me dislike the park.

Hartley: Once again, I love that this area is enclosed.  I can sit down in one spot and see the kids wherever they choose to play.  I love the river feature and that I can let them play in flowing water without worrying that a current is going to sweep them away.  It is also a nicely shaded area (or it was before the storm; it has been closed since so I don't know the damage),

Morgan: I like this park for its wide range of age appeal.  The typical playground was a hit with the 2 year old and the 5 and 7 year olds adored the area with monkey bars, rock walls, and other big kid features.

Playfront: I like this park for its central location, the pavilion right in the middle, walking paths, and once again, appeal to a wide age range.  2 loves the ship, 5 & 7 love all the climbing structures.

I'm adding Washington Square to the list.  It's at a nice location in Lakeside and we almost always run into a friend there.  The sand is clean, the park is clean, there's a big field to run in, and I can see all of the park from a bench.

Piedmont Heights Park

Piedmont Heights is more hockey area than playground, and the parking is a bit confusing.  We followed directions that took us on 23rd street, but that ended at the warming building and was still a decent walk to the playground.  There does appear to be a gravel lot on the other side of the park, at the end of Pineview Ave.  There is also a baseball field on the far end of the park, and there is a porta-potty next to the playground.

The playground is a sand surface, fairly overrun with grass.  The play structures are:

• 2 baby swings
• 2 swings
• Tilting ladder that kids can climb up and wobble on
• Ladders/stairs
• Bridge
• Monkey bars made of hard plastic ropes
• Steering wheel
• Fireman pole
• Slide

Duluth Parks page

Munger Park

Munger is a neighborhood playground in the East Hillside.  It is located next to a church and is tucked into a hill so it's nearly hidden from the road.  There are no swings, just a play structure and a small field, but it should be easy to keep a soccer ball within the confines of the park thanks to the land, buildings, and fencing.

The surface of the playground is sand and the structure has:

• 1 slide and 1 double slide
• Ladders/stairs
• Monkey bars
• Steering wheel

Duluth Parks page

Harrison Park

Harrison Park is a nice square in the Lincoln Park neighborhood.  The street facing the playground is busy and there is a bus stop right in front, but there is also a fence to prevent kids from running into traffic.  The fence has three openings including one right at the front, which would really be much better if it had a gate of some sort.  There is a community center, picnic tables, benches, basketball court, tennis courts, and a rubber-surface baseball field called Miracle Field.  I did not notice nets on the tennis courts, but I may have just missed them.  There is also a porta-potty, but I was told there was a wasp inside.  haha

The playground has a rubber chip surface and two distinct areas.  The first has:

• 2 diggers
• Speaking tube
• 2 swings
• 2 baby swings
• Ladders/stairs
• Slide
• Steering wheel
• Gears

The second area (bigger kids) has:

• Monkey bars
• Ladders/stairs
• Fireman pole
• Bridge
• Steering wheel
• Covered slide
• Double slide
• Rock climbing holds
• Ball maze

Duluth Parks page

Merritt Park

Merritt Park is a neighborhood square with community center, hockey rink, baseball field, basketball court, and playground.  I believe this is technically in the Denfeld neighborhood and the surrounding streets are busier than some parks.
The playground is a sand surface with a rubber mat surface leading up to the accessible swing.
Other features include:

• 1 baby swing
• 2 swings
• 1 accessible swing
• 1 double slide and 1 slide
• Speaking tubes
• Ladders/stairs
• Monkey bars
• Rubber flap bridge
• Pull-up bar
• Track glider
• Balance beam

Duluth Parks page

Norton Park

Norton Park is tucked in on a dead end street in the Norton Park neighborhood of West Duluth.  There is a community center and baseball field, basketball court, picnic table, and large trees to one side.

The playground has a coarse sand surface (almost like gravel is mixed in) and:

• 2 baby swings
• 2 swings
• 2 bouncy riders
• See-saw
• Ladders (NO stairs, but my two year old could make it up one of the ladders)
• Monkey bars
• Double slide
• Swirly slide
• Tunnel
• Corkscrew
• Fireman pole

Duluth Parks page

Morningside Park

Morningside Park, also known as Rose Park/Rose Field is another park that barely qualifies as a playground.  It is a soccer field very popular with the local soccer club, and there is also a worn down basketball court, and this small swing structure.  The playground is a sand surface with:

• 2 swings
• 2 baby swings

Duluth Parks page

Brighton Beach

Brighton Beach/Kitchi Gammi park is a favorite swimming spot at the far east end of Duluth.  It really isn't much of a playground (it is fantastic for walking, swimming, pokemon go stops ;), etc. but it does also have a little tiny park.  Don't go expecting a playground to entertain the kids; the rocks and water do that.  

There are:

• 2 swings
• 2 baby swings
• Pavilion
• Porta potties

Duluth Parks page

Morgan Park

Morgan Park might be a favorite for bigger kiddos, but there is also a typical playground set for younger children too.

The park itself is a large area that features a community center, hockey rinks, basketball courts, disc golf, and volleyball court.  There are gazebos and benches along the playground areas.

The smaller playground has a sand surface and:

• 1 slide and 1 double slide
• Corkscrew
• Digger
• Tic-tac-toe
• Speaking tube
• Stairs and ladders
• "Serving area" (my kids always pretend these are ice cream shops)
• Ball maze
• 3 baby swings
• 1 accessible swing

The other area is directly across the street from the Morgan Park Middle School and has structures designed for about that age.

The surface is wood chips and some of the items I can describe (haha!) are:

• Rock wall
• Monkey bars
• Climbing hold wall
• Stepping stones
• Track glider
• 4 swings
• All sorts of slide-like surfaces and climbing/spinning/hanging items

Duluth Parks page

Blackmer Park

Blackmer Park is pleasantly shaded by large trees, right off the St Louis River in Morgan Park.  There is a softball field nearby and a path that leads to train tracks and the river.  On the day we visited, there was a lot of broken glass at the beginning of the path but as you moved toward the river, there was none.

The playground is a sand surface and has:

• Monkey bars
• Pull-up bar
• 1 slide and 1 double slide
• Speaking tube
• Digger
• Rubber flap bridge
• Tic-tac-toe
• Ball maze
• Steering wheel
• Balance beam
• Track glider
• 2 swings
• 2 very low baby swings

Duluth Parks page

Riverside Park

Riverside park is nestled into a neighborhood in far west Duluth and has a playground next to a very large field and some sort of community center building.  All doors were locked.  The park has a baseball field, basketball hoop in the parking lot, and it appears to connect to some local trails.  There is no shade near the playground so on a summer day, it gets hot.

The playground has a sand surface and features: 

• 2 baby swings
• 2 swings
• Speaking tubes
• 1 slide
• 1 double slide
• Monkey bars
• Chain/foot climbing holds wall
• Bridge
• Steering wheel
• Fireman pole
• Stairs/ladders
• Ball maze

Duluth Parks page

Fairmont Park

Fairmont Park is located right outside the Lake Superior Zoo, but it is a public park with no admission charge.  There are walking paths and a little grove of trees, and you can hear a river bubbling by.  There is a bathroom building and picnic tables.

The surface is a bit unkempt, mixing sand, grass, and weeds.  When we visited, the grass you had to cross to get from the parking lot to the playground was water logged and it was hard to not get muddy.

Fairmont has:

• 2 baby swings
• 2 swings
• 3 steering wheels
• Pull-up bar
• 1 slide
• 1 double slide
• Fireman pole
• Bridge
• Speaking tube
• Ladders and stairs
• Monkey bars
• Tic-tac-toe
• Ball maze
• Digger

Duluth Parks page

Washington Center Playground

Washington Center is a Community Center in downtown Duluth.  The grounds have a nice view, a community garden, parking lot, and playground.  There is fencing on two sides facing the streets.  There are benches and a picnic table.

The surface is wood chips.  This park did have some trash on the ground, despite nearby garbage cans.

Features include:

• 1 slide
• Monkey bars
• Spinning screw
• Corkscrew
• Pull-up bar
• Twisted ladder
• Stairs

Duluth Parks page

Keene Creek Park

Keene Creek park has a playground, skate park, walking paths, basketball courts, and a large dog park all situated underneath Interstate 35 in West Duluth.
The dog park has a large fenced-in grassy area with a portion that is dirt, and a small enclosed area for dogs under 20 lbs.  There are no children under 9 allowed in the dog enclosure and the playground is a good distance away.
The creek is very shallow and rocky and kids really love standing at the edge, throwing rocks in.

There are picnic tables, benches and a grill, but no bathrooms that we saw.  There is also no fencing around anything but the dog parks and the skate park.

The playground is a sand surface with:

• 2 swings
• 2 baby swings
• Monkey bars
• Digger
• Ladders/stairs
• 1 slide and 1 double slide
• Bridge

Duluth Parks page

Dog park page

Hartley Playscape

Hartley Park is a beautiful nature area up near Woodland that has a great nature center, trails for hiking, mountain biking, and cross country skiing, a pond and rivers, a fantastic climbing tree, and a playscape park for little kids.

While my bigger kids are fans of the biking trails and climbing tree, the toddler loves the playscape.  It is located inside a deer exclosure and is only open during the hours the nature center is open.  It is also only available at times that there are no camps, story times, or other nature center events.  Within the exclosure there is also a stage with seating and a yurt.

• They have a great water feature that is like a continuous creek that where there are no worries about kids getting swept along downstream or deep spots.  Warning: they will get in it and they will get wet.
• Big sandbox
• Ropes tied around a bunch of trees
• Little plastic toddler slide with steering wheel
• Paths
• A lot of sticks of all shapes and sizes
• Toy box full of trucks, boats, and buckets

Duluth Parks page

Hartley Nature Center page

Franklin Tot Lot

Franklin Tot Lot is a little playground right next to the Coast Guard station and across Minnesota Ave from a swimming beach and parking lot.  The park is fenced along Minnesota Ave and has one dead end street and one street going straight to the Coast Guard on the other sides of the triangle shaped park.

The playground is a sand surface and has:

• 1 slide and 1 double slide
• Ladders/stairs
• Rubber mat bridge
• Speaking tubes
• Monkey bars
• Pull-up bar
• Steering wheel
• 2 baby swings
• 2 swings

Duluth Parks page

Lafayette Park

Lafayette Park is on Minnesota Point, about 2 miles down the road after you cross the aerial lift bridge.  It has a community center, beach access, baseball field, community garden, tennis courts, and playground.  The entire square is fenced, which is good because there is a good amount of traffic on Minnesota Ave during the summer and it is right on it.  The only thing that would be better is if the entrance had a gate too.

The playground is a sand surface with a structure featuring:

• 2 baby swings
• 2 swings
• Steering wheels
• Ball maze
• Tic-tac-toe spinners
• Pull-up bar
• Track glider
• Stairs/ladders
• Bridge
• 1 double slide and 1 slide
• Fireman pole
• Digger
• Speaking tube

There is also a little plastic toddler structure off to the side in the shade of some tall trees.

Duluth Parks page

Park Point

Park Point is a beautiful park out on Minnesota Point.  You have to cross the aerial lift bridge and then drive about 4 miles down the point to get to the park, but on a hot day when you want a cold beach, it's worth it.  The beach is three miles long and the water is cold.  Be careful to watch for poison ivy along the trails to the beach and hot sand on the way down to the water.  There is a lifeguard on duty in the summer and a beach house along with volleyball, walking trails and other fun stuff.
But now for the playground!  Park Point has one of the most unique playgrounds in Duluth.  There is the regular playground structure like you will see in other locations (Chester Park), featuring a sand surface and:

• Track glider
• 2 double slides
• Spinning wheel monkey bars
• Ladders/stairs
• Rock climbing holds
• Pull-up bar
• 2 swings
• 2 baby swings

The more interesting part of the playground is a replica of a great lakes freighter made out of wood.  It's really just for kids to run around and pretend that they're on a laker, but they sure love it.  There are also two giant tires at the end, filled with sand a la a sandbox.

Duluth Parks page

Wheeler Field

Wheeler Athletic Complex is a huge area of baseball fields, tennis courts, a skate park, and a field house with bathrooms.
The playground is near the fields, so it would probably be great to have little siblings to play at while a game is going on for the big sibling.  It is also right next to the parking lot and has picnic tables nearby.  The playground has a sand surface, and as my 5 year old told me, "this is the Y park."  They're beginning to identify the identical play structures.  :)
This one has:

• 1 slide and 1 double slide
• Corkscrew
• Speaking tubes
• Ladders/stairs
• Rock climbing holds
• Monkey bars
• 2 baby swings
• 2 swings
• Digger

Duluth Parks page

Irving Park

Irving Park is a nicely fenced park in a rather quiet area (at least when we were there).  Interstate 35 is nearby, so there is noise from that, but it is nothing like some of the parks on main streets in town.

It has a large field area for soccer, football, and basketball courts.  There are a lot of trees bordering the park and shady areas to rest.
There are a couple of benches around the playground area, which is a sand surface.  The play structure has:

• 2 swings
• 2 baby swings
• Speaking tubes
• 1 slide and 1 double slide
• Digger
• Stairs/ladders
• Arm pedaling crank
• Monkey bars
• Fireman pole
• Corkscrew
• Tic-tac-toe spinners

Duluth Parks page

Lilliput Park

Lilliput is really just a small neighborhood park in a grassy lot.  It is located right next to Essentia Health so there is zero parking to be found.  There is a lot right next to the playground but it is for Essentia employee parking only.  We had to walk a good block to get to the park and there wasn't much to hold the kids' attention.

There are mature trees, 4 benches, and 2 picnic tables in the grassy area.  There is also some sort of garden to the uphill side of the lot.

The playground is a sand surface with:

• 2 baby swings
• 2 swings
• 1 slide
• 1 double slide
• Ladders and stairs
• Monkey bars
• Steering wheel

Duluth Parks page

Grant Park

Grant park is a playground that we had visited right after moving to Duluth, but had completely forgotten about.  It is a really nice playground right next to Meyers-Wilkins Elementary school and has a community resource center on site.  There are soccer fields, basketball courts, and a community garden.  I did have to watch the two year old near the garden boxes since he thought it looked enticing but after that, they playground captured his attention.  The park is fenced on two sides and there is only one road nearby.  It might be a concern on school days since it appears to be the school entrance, but it was very low traffic when we visited. There are picnic tables, benches, and shade trees.  It is in full sun and we got pretty hot before 10 a.m.  I assume there are bathrooms inside the community center but there was a group using the center when we were there and I didn't want to intrude.
The playground is sand surface with some rubber mat beneath the main steps.  Some features are:

• 2 swings
• 2 baby swings
• Bouncing circle to stand on
• Rock structure (no holds)
• Rock wall with holds
• 3 slides
• Speaking tubes
• Corkscrew
• Monkey bars
• Plastic ladder nets
• Ladders and stairs
• Pull up bar
• Spinning wheel to hang from
• Fireman pole
• Steering wheel

Update August 2017: the roller slide has been removed and replaced with a wavy plastic slide.  The covered corkscrew slide has been removed and replaced with a rock wall with holds.  My boys were very sad to see the roller slide gone but it's still a quiet and large park that is very pleasant to visit.

Duluth Parks page

Washington Square

Washington Square is a nice grassy area filled with trees plus a playground area, surrounded by housing.  It is right off Superior St, but the playground is on the opposite end of the square.
The playground has a sand surface and benches and picnic tables.  Some features of the playground are:

• 2 swings
• 2 baby swings
• Digger
• Tic-tac-toe
• Gears
• 3 Steering wheels
• Monkey bars
• Fireman pole
• Ladders and stairs
• 1 slide
• 1 double slide
• Bridge
• Pull up bar
• Speaking tubes

Duluth Parks page

Portman Park

This square is made up of a community center, hockey rinks, basketball courts, and baseball diamond in addition to the playground.  There is a hill to roll down and mature trees throughout.  There was no potty that we could see, but there may be one in the community center when it is open.
There are two areas of the playground.

A small area has a rocky/sandy surface and is closer to the road, featuring:

• 2 baby swings
• See-saw
• 2 bouncy riders

The larger area is a sand surface with:

• 1 slide
• 1 double slide
• Monkey bars
• Rock climbing wall
• Bridge
• Ladders and stairs
• Stepping stones
• 2 swings
• Pull up bar

Duluth Parks page

Grosvenor Square

EDIT 6/1/17: This playground is no more!  The play structures have been removed.  :(

Grosvenor Square is a little playground next to a soccer field right off Superior Street in the Lakeside neighborhood.  It is a pebble surface with one structure and a little tunnel.
The structure has:

• 2 slides
• Fireman pole
• Ladders and steps

Duluth Parks page

Observation Park

This park is part playground, part dog park.  There are two sandy playground areas separated by some great climbing boulders, a basketball court, two fenced in dog areas (one for <20 lbs), and a large field that used to hold hockey rinks.  The field is separated from the playgrounds by what I'm assuming was a warming building.  It is now a community center managed by a boxing gym.

One of the playgrounds is the "adventure ship" that we have also seen at Memorial Park and Playfront Park.  It has:

• 2 slides
• Speaking tubes
• Ladders
• Periscope
• Steering wheel
• 2 baby swings

The other playground is sort of a mystery to us.  We aren't sure if parts have been neglected and broken or what their intention is.  But things we could identify were:

• 2 side-by-side track gliders
• Swiveling wheel for hanging
• Standing bouncy circle
• Pull up bar
• Two games - an arm wrestling challenge and a broken pinball game

Duluth Parks page

Dog Park page

Portland Square

Portland Square is a large square in a neighborhood with housing on three sides and some business, including Ski Hut, on the other.  4th Street is a fairly busy road but the playground is situated a good distance from it.  There is currently one porta-potty on site.
The park has large trees and some grassy area, plus a large circular sidewalk that is great for practicing riding bikes up and down hills and there is a sprinkler in the center of the circle that we have only seen on a couple of times.
There are two separate playground areas, one for younger children and one for older.  There are no baby swings at this park.

The little kid area has:

• Gears
• Xylophone and drums
• Spinning seat
• Steering wheel
• Connect four
• Porthole
• Mirrors
• Periscope
• Steps
• Double slide

The big kid area has:

• 4 swings
• Tire swing
• Corkscrew
• 1 slide
• Triple slide
• Rock climbing wall
• Bridge
• Fireman pole
• Spinning wheel monkey bars
• Monkey bars
• Ladders and steps
• Speaking tube
• Finger mazes
• Steering wheels

Duluth Parks page

Morley Park

Morley Park is a square in a residential area with the playground area taking up half the square and the other side filled with grass and small trees.  The streets are rather low traffic and there is a decent distance from playground to street.  It is a wood chip surface and has benches and a picnic table.  There was no porta-potty when we visited.
The park is quite far up the hill and has no large trees so it gets a good amount of sun.  We like to visit on cooler days when the ample sunshine will help keep us warm.

Some features:

• Tire swing
• 2 baby swings
• 2 swings
• 2 bouncy riders
• Rock wall structure with "grill" in the middle (standing platform made up of metal bars)

There is a little structure off to one side of the playground for smaller kids with:

• Steps and ladder
• Corkscrew
• Slide

The large playground structure is almost an L-shape and features: 

• 3 slides
• Monkey bars
• Spinning oval
• Climbing wall with holds
• Ladders and steps
• Built in picnic table and benches

Duluth Parks page

Endion Park

Endion is a little sand surface playground in a square in a residential neighborhood and next door to a synagogue.  It is much like other playgrounds in the city, but also has a grassy area that would be good for tag or a little soccer practice.  Parking is on the street but we had no trouble finding a spot.  The park is surrounded on its non-synagogue sides by tall trees.  There was no porta-potty in view.

It has:

• 2 swings
• 2 baby swings
• Digger
• Speaking tubes
• Fireman pole
• Monkey bars
• Ladders and steps
• 1 slide and 1 double slide
• Corkscrew
• Tunnel connecting platforms
• Benches and a picnic table
• Tennis and basketball courts

Duluth Parks page