Walsh (John) Park

I have always enjoyed going to this park. This is the tail end (or front end) of the Bloomingdale Trail. It has a play area for kids (slides, swings, jungle gym), water sprinklers (turned on in late spring/early summer), dog park, picnic area (grass and a few tables and seats). There are also benches around the kids side of the park. There is also a parallel bar near the Ashland entrance/exit. Would have given it a 5-star rating if there was a restroom.

The playground at Walsh Park is a great playground that has two wonderful and unique structures. There is a huge play structure consisting of two towers that are connected by a fully enclosed rope net bridge. The climbing elements are all inside the towers and each tower has a large curving tube slide so while there is no chance of a high fall from the tall structures, it still takes courage to climb and cross them (for child and for parent!). The second structure is harder to describe but resembles a dome with rope netting on the exterior with a variety of climbing elements inside. This is slightly smaller but still a challenging elements for kids who like to climb. Finally, there are some swings (toddler, adaptive, and hammock-style saucer swings), a small curving climbing wall, and a unique pipe drum musical element. There is also a water spray feature in this playground! Small jets of water spout from the ground for a duration of time after a button is pressed. This water feature is quite integrated into the play area (i.e. hard to keep kids away) so probably good to plan accordingly. This playground is located at the eastern end of the 606 trail and despite it's central location actually seems quite removed from the hustle and bustle of the city. That being said, it's also a very popular playground that is used by school and camps groups so it can get crowded. The play area is not fully enclosed but it is fenced from the street. There are large, flat rocks set around the area as benches as well as two picnic tables for seating. The play area itself is bright and open though there are trees dotting the area for some shade and the play surface is wood chips. All in all, this is a great playground - especially for somewhat older children - and definitely a worthwhile destination.

Walsh Park is one of those outdoor spaces that has something for kids of all ages- it’s so good to have a well designed and maintained park at the head of the 606 trail. There is a fenced off dog park next to the elaborate playground that has climbing and repelling opportunity for the young adventurers; swings, and a stunning and dynamic slide and ladder structure - tree house hybrid that’s just the most fun experience for kids to have out here. Highly recommend this place

We love this park BUT it's easy to lose sight of your kiddo. If you have a 6 or below kid. You may find yourself hunting for your little loved one more often than adjacent parks. Our adventurous one keeps putting others into "out of boundary" spots that gets them stuck on the play space which leads to running over and interfering more than other parks. I love that it connects to the 606 bike trail quickly, and the design of the park does a great job keeping bikers separate of the children's park. It is adjacent to a highway, but it's well guarded from the highway. No obvious smells, but lots of unexpected road noises for our neurodivergent sensory averse friends. That said, I have heard no Jake-braking, luckily, so I assume there is an ordinance on the highway. There's a great open space field that's well manicured for sitting on. There is some good tree cover over half of it and the other half is direct sunlight, so you can easily pick your sitting spot. Bring a blanket!

The park is fairly new and has plenty of space. It has space for everyone including a dog park. I often run back and forth on the 606 and this is one of the ends. From here to the other end is 2.7 miles. The park is clean and offers water fountain bike air pump as well as benches to seat. Will definitely come back to it over and over.