Where is the best park? Blogger helps you pick

From today's Briefing:

Helen Bonlie takes child’s play seriously.

For two years she’s been blogging about some of the Dallas area’s best playgrounds, helping her readers find unusual climbing structures and shaded parks across a six-county area.

The blog, dfwparks.com, offers photos and commentary on parks from Arlington to Rockwall , DeSoto to Allen. Helen welcomes guest bloggers to fill in on cities she can’t reach as often.

I spoke with Helen this week about her blog and some of her favorite parks, just in time for springlike weather and outdoor adventures. Here are excerpts from our conversation and her blog.


Why did you start the blog?
My son was 2, and he was — is — very active. He wants to climb everything and do everything. I was trying to find the best parks in the area, and there was no one good source online to find everything.

You’d have to go to each city’s website; and then some had pictures, some didn’t.

I thought, “I’ll have to do it myself.”

What makes a playground a good one?
It depends on the mood of the kid that day. Some days it has to have swings, some days it has to have the latest, space-age looking kind of things. Some days, just the good, old-fashioned wooden park is what you need.

Kids want something different every day.

As long as it’s safe and clean, that’s all that matters much to me.

What has surprised you on your quest for the best parks?
I’m surprised by some of the cities that haven’t put any effort into updating their parks. They have only tiny parks with really old equipment. It’s a big draw for families to have a nice park.

I’m also surprised that there are so many parks in Dallas-Fort Worth.

After visiting so many parks, do you have park etiquette advice for parents? What bothers you when you’re out?
People who let their older kids run free, knocking over little kids, not letting them get a turn. And dirty diapers or trash lying around. It’s not fair to the kids that they can’t go someplace clean.

What are some of your favorite parks in the area?
Grapevine’s Parr Park: Three play structures (two are very toddler friendly), plenty of swings, a sand volleyball court, a basketball court, a football field, a soccer field, two baseball fields, hiking/biking trails, a gymnastics/balance bar area, a covered pavilion, lots of picnic tables and benches, water fountains, and a restroom.

Arlington’s Gene Schrickel Jr. Park: A great place for climbing, spinning, running, fishing, and just about anything else you can imagine. The unique playground structures leave endless possibilities for the creative climber. The park is right next to a busy road, so keep an eye on runners, and there is no restroom (although there is a gas station right across the street), but there is a water fountain. There is a paved trail through the park, several picnic tables, a covered pavilion you can rent, and a fishing pond.

Rockwall’s Northshore Park: At the top of the cool parks list for sure! Of course we wish it were bigger, but you can’t have it all. With a small, yet really cool playground, a basketball court, hopscotch and foursquare boards, a Wiffle Ball field (with the balls and bats!), swings, one picnic table, and the very cool Neos 360. This park doesn’t have a restroom, but it does have a water fountain. The park is right next to a school, so you might want to avoid it during drop-off/pick-up times.

Tyra Damm is a Briefing columnist. E-mail her at tyradamm@gmail.com.