So Much Fun at Kreag Road Park

We have lived in the Rochester area for almost six years, and I had never known about Kreag Road Park until last month. One of my fellow ROCmommas suggested it for a play date, and I'm so glad she did.

Kreag Road Park is located at 555 Kreag Road in Pittsford, NY - although technically, it is part of the Town of Perinton. The parking lot is adjacent to the playground, so it's a short walk if you're hauling diaper bags, lunch bags, or just your kids. There are two play structures with lots of areas to climb up and slide down. One of the structures is larger and geared toward older kids...

...while the other play structure is better suited for younger kids.

You'll also find a swing set with two regular swings and two infant swings, a basketball court, tennis court, baseball diamonds, plus a large sandbox under a big shady tree. There are some toys already available in the sandbox, or you may bring your own.

If you bring lunch or snacks, there are several picnic tables located under trees for shade. Then when it's time for a potty break, the restrooms are close to the playground and sandbox. One note on the restrooms: there are no diaper changing tables.

If you are visiting the park with older children, you may want to take a short walk beyond the playground area to sit or walk along the Erie Canal. There is a new boat dock with a beautiful view of the canal. 

It's a great spot to watch the ducks and kayaks go by.

We even made up our own version of Pooh Sticks where we threw dandelions into the canal and watched as the current swept them away. The dandelion in the lead was the winner of that round.

Kreag Road Park is now one of our favorites, thanks to the fun playground, large sandbox, and access to the Erie Canal. We will definitely be regulars this summer!

What is your favorite playground in the Rochester area? Post a Comment and let us know. As always, thanks for reading.

Mendon Ponds Park

Mendon Ponds Park is one of those places you can go back to and visit a different spot each time. There are hiking trails, recreational areas, ponds, wetlands, playgrounds, as well as special features such as Sharon's Sensory Garden and Wild Wings. Mendon Ponds Park has glacial features that make it a Natural Historic Landmark.

The park is approximately 10 miles southeast of Rochester, located south of the NYS Thruway I-90 in the Towns of Pittsford and Mendon. It is bordered by Clover Street on the west and Pittsford-Mendon Center Road on the east. Click these links for directions or a park map.

During our last visit, we used the Canfield Road entrance from Clover Street, turned right on Douglas Road, and followed the sign for beach area parking, on the right side. First we had to try out everything at the playground. My boys love the train and they will sit on it for the majority of our visit, each time. The train does not actually move, but they have fun pretending to be the engineer and driving to different locations. We stop at the Grand Canyon, New Jersey, and California. How's that for living large?!

The playground has smaller structures with slides and tunnels...

...as well as a larger structure with plenty to climb on and slide down. There are also swings (baby swings and regular swings), picnic tables, and restrooms. This area is stroller friendly, but the restrooms do not include baby changing tables.

After the playground, we walked to the pond to collect rocks. That's the Hundred Acre Pond in the background.

When we were finished in the beach area, we hopped back in the car to continue down Douglas Road, and kept to the right onto Pond Road until we reached the Nature Center, on the left. Sometimes you can see horses in the training area, adjacent to the parking lot. However, the horses were not out during our last visit. So we walked past the restrooms and Cottage Store, and into Sharon's Sensory Garden.

This garden is designed for people with visual or physical disabilities, and has features that highlight all of the senses. The plant labels are even in Braille. There are whimsical bells that jingle in the wind, or when a two-year-old is nearby.

There are wooden chimes that can become a symphony in the hands of a five-year-old.

The waterfall was not working during our visit, but the boys usually like to watch it and try to touch the water. Oh well.

When we exited the garden, they wanted to go exploring. There is a great path nearby through the woods that is fairly level (no climbing required) and goes in a big square, so you really can't get lost. Plus there are a few small shelters along the trail with interactive exhibits, designed to teach about the soil, animals, and plants found in the area. The exhibits have not been maintained well, but my kids still like to explore them.

The sensory garden is stroller-friendly, but the walking trail is not. While the path is level, there are still the obstacles of tree roots and rocks that would make it difficult to push a stroller. While there are restrooms by the Cottage Store, they do not offer baby changing tables.

Behind the Cottage Store and Sharon's Sensory Garden, you'll find Wild Wings, a not-for-profit educational organization that houses and cares for permanently injured birds of prey. It is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. every day except Wednesday and Thursday. We didn't have time to stop by, but right now you can visit 21 birds of prey and a bobcat named Tara.

These are just a few highlights within Mendon Ponds Park; there are so many more. In the summer you can hike a trail, utilize their boat launch, or go fishing. In the winter you can go sledding, cross-country skiing, or snowshoeing. There is even a Mendon Ponds Winterfest in January.

If you haven't already visited, pack up a lunch, print out the map, and go explore. Be sure to Post A Comment and let us know about your experience. As always, thanks for reading.

Wickham Farms

In the fall of 2008, we had been in the Rochester, NY area for a little over a year and we wanted to take our son (then, not quite a year and a half) pumpkin picking. My ROCpoppa's co-worker recommended a place in Penfield called Wickham Farms, so we decided to check it out. Four years later, and we are now taking both of our sons there, year round.

Wickham Farms has become part of our regular rotation of family field trips. We can play a round of miniature golf, visit some farm animals, sit on a tractor, dig in a huge sandbox, bounce on the jumping pillow, climb on the playground, and get some ice cream. There are even batting cages, but I'm holding out a bit longer before they can try those out.

Tuesday is a great day to visit since miniature golf is $2 per player ($2 for TWO-sday; normally $5 per person), plus you get double punches on both the ice cream and the golf/jumping pillow frequent buyer cards. Not bad. There are other specials available too.

There are 18 holes on the mini golf course, and each one has a little obstacle to it. But they are all easy enough that the kids won't get frustrated. Along the way, you'll also pass the chickens and goats, which always provides some entertainment. Then the final hole looks like a chicken coop, which is kind of fun in itself.

After our 18 holes, the kids usually want to bounce on the jumping pillow for a bit ($5 each; if your child is under 5, you pay their age). Shoes must be removed, and I strongly recommend socks. The jumping pillow can get hot in the sun, and burn those little tootsies*. The nice thing about the jumping pillow is that you get a bracelet after paying, so the kids can go on and off as often as they'd like during your visit.

*UPDATE: If your kids are not wearing socks when you visit, and they'd like to try out the jumping pillow, you can purchase socks in a variety of sizes in the barn.

If you wander around a bit, you'll notice a cow that the kids can "milk" (it's just water, but it's still fun), a tractor to sit on, some photo-opp stands, and a bunny garden. There is also a playground with two climbing walls, two slides, a bridge, and more. The playground is available free of charge. Another freebie is the huge sandbox. We usually bring some pails, shovels, and trucks with us, or you can rent a tractor there for $2 each.

Inside is a cute shop where you can buy honey, cheese, pancake mix, syrup, salad dressing, salsa, spices, and random trinkets. Seasonally, they also sell plants and flowers. If you're hungry, their menu includes pizza, sandwiches, sweet potato fries, and ice cream.

During the fall, Wickham Farms also features a kiddie train ride, a corn maze, tractor ride, an "apple orchard" just for kids to pick, and a carved pumpkin display.

Wickham Farms is located at 1821 Fairport Nine Mile Point Road, Penfield, NY (right next to the Eastside YMCA). The entire farm is stroller-friendly, and the restroom inside the barn has a diaper changing table. There are two outhouses by the miniature golf course (with running water!), but they do not have diaper changing tables in either one. While there are lots of options on the menu, you may also bring your own food as long as you enjoy it outside the barn.

Next time you're looking for something to do with the kids, make your way to Penfield and give Wickham Farms a try. Don't forget to Post a Comment and let us know about your experience.

As always, thanks for reading!

5 Reasons to Love Perinton Park

Perinton Park is my favorite park in the ROC area and it was introduced to me by my fellow ROCmomma Corie. It is located at 99 O'Connor Road, Fairport, NY (at Fairport Road & O'Connor Road). There are so many reasons why it's my favorite, where do I begin?

First, it is one of the few playgrounds in the shade. Huge trees surround the play structures so they don't get scorching hot, and we stay cooler as well. We've been to plenty of playgrounds where the equipment was so hot, we couldn't even stay to play.

Second, below the play equipment is sand, rather than wood chips or gravel. My kids love to dig so we usually bring a few pails, shovels, and plastic trucks. I've learned to bring extras, because other kids always want to join us. One tip: label your sand toys with your last name using permanent marker. Sometimes a borrowed toy will inadvertently end up in another part of the playground, and this makes it easy to claim it back.

Third, there are three different sections to the playground structures. There is a larger, higher section for bigger kids, a medium section...

...and even a lower, smaller section for little ones. There is a yellow slide behind my son in the picture below that has such a low incline, even a tiny tot can slide down.

There are also rocking toys (pictured below) and swings - baby swings, regular swings, and one swing for children with special needs.

The fourth reason why Perinton Park is my favorite is the Erie Canal. We usually bring our big red wagon (we used to bring the stroller; the park is definitely stroller friendly) and once the kids are tired of the playground, we walk past the basketball courts and up to the Erie Canal path. Your kids will have fun counting the ducks, boats, and kayaks. Plus it's a really pretty walk.

Another thing we love about Perinton Park is the train tracks. When you get up to the Erie Canal path, if you walk to the left, you just might see a train. There are a couple of spots where the tracks are visible right from the path. Or, when you're ready to leave, you can turn right out of the parking lot and follow O'Connor Road around the bend, and there are two railroad crossings. On the left by each crossing, there are businesses with large parking lots. We usually trespass for about 15-20 minutes in one of those lots to eat a snack in the car and wait to see a train pass by.

Added bonus: on the other side of Fairport Road, before turning on to O'Connor Road, there is a gas station with a Dunkin Donuts drive-through window. Such easy access if ROCmomma or ROCpoppa needs a tasty beverage before or after the park!

To be fair, I have a few complaints as well. First, there are only about five picnic tables by the playground and people often "claim" them for their entire visit. I have watched families finish their lunch, then leave all their sippy cups and water bottles on the table while they play. They return to the table only when they're ready to pack up and leave, and meanwhile the table has been unused and unusable (is that a word?) for an hour or so. It would be so much nicer if groups could use the table to eat lunch, then pack up and leave their belongings off to the side so that another group might eat their lunch at the table afterward. It just seems like the courteous thing to do, but, ah well.

My other complaint is that there is a bit of a walk to the restroom from the playground. As much as we encourage, "Don't wait til it's too late," we usually end up with wet pants if the restroom is more than a few feet away. If your child waits until they're hopping on one foot before telling you they need the potty, I recommend bringing a couple changes of clothes just in case.

As always, thanks for reading. Be sure to Post a Comment the next time you go to Perinton Park and tell us about your experience.

Have You Been to Kings Bend Park?

The other day, after subjecting the kids to running errands and dragging them to more than a few stores, I wanted to treat them to some playground time. They were so well behaved, which is no easy task for a two- and four-year-old. Into the car seats, out of the car seats, into the shopping cart, don't touch, we're not getting that today, out of the shopping cart. Repeat.

But, where to go? There are myriad playgrounds in the immediate area and my kids love them all. The problem is they love them too much. It's hard to limit our time; once we're at a park, we're committed. We run, swing, slide, and climb til we drop. No amount of bribery seems to work; they won't just leave without a huge scene unless they decide they are done playing. Usually, that's not a problem.

On this particular day, we only had about 30-45 minutes before my younger son would need to nap. I needed somewhere low key...so I turned onto Jefferson Road and pulled into Kings Bend Park. Perfect!

If you've never been to Kings Bend Park - 170 West Jefferson Road, in Pittsford - after pulling into the parking lot, continue around to the right and park close to the playground. There is a playground structure with a climbing wall, a few climbing/swinging features, a bridge, slide, and more. Not too big; not too small.

There is a separate, smaller structure with a slide that's perfect for toddlers. Plus there are swings - two regular and two baby swings. A few benches line the playground perimeter for pooped parents.

The pond beyond the playground gives us a nice break. My boys like to take a walk along the fence to count the number of ducks they can find. And the super-colossal, can't-be-beat, stupefying bonus of this park: A TRAIN. Yes, there are train tracks on the other side of the fence running along the parking lot. The highlight of our day was getting to see a diesel engine pulling some tanker cars and box cars. Life doesn't get much better.

The one down-side to Kings Bend Park is that the restrooms are only available when the lodges are open. (there are two winterized lodges on the park grounds, which are available to rent) Be sure to "go" before you go.

As always, thanks for reading. I hope you have fun with your kids at Kings Bend Park soon.