Little Hiccups: Codornices Park, Berkeley

Friday 15 June 2012

Codornices Park, Berkeley

I seem to be on a roll with the playground posts tonight so why not add another one?

Here in Berkeley there is a hidden gem of a playground in Codornices Park. Ok, so it's not really all that hidden, but it's new to me.

A while back I read about some amazing concrete slides in San Francisco. For some reason I was talking to a staff member at our local Trader Joe's supermarket (local as in the supermarket under our apartment) about these slides and he mentioned that Berkeley has it's own concrete slide. Huh? How had that slipped past my radar? As soon as I got home I got online to find said slide - to the detriment of my perishable groceries which were left out while I scoured the internet! It turns out the concrete slide is located in Codornices Park, a favourite amongst Berkeley locals. Codornices Park was added straight to my "must do" list.

A few weeks later we happened to be catching a bus that went straight past Codornices Park. On our way home we stopped off and made a bee-line straight to the slide.

Now, although incredibly popular with kids, this slide is not for the faint of heart. It's 45ft long, barely wide enough for an adult's backside and made of skin grazing concrete. To avoid tearing off skin, and to make yourself slide faster, it's best to slide down on a piece of cardboard, especially if you're wearing shorts. We had no cardboard with us but luckily there's quite a lot of it left behind by previous sliders.

Ava slides down at high speed.

Ava was a little scared to begin with and would only slide down if Kim went with her. After a while though she was an expert and zoomed down the slide over and over and over. Ava convinced me to slide down once and while it was exhilarating I think I'll wait for a day when I'm NOT wearing a skirt to go again! I was so self conscious about the people at the bottom of the slide being able to see up my skirt that it made the whole thing a little awkward :)

Ava's first go on Daddy's lap

Weeeeee!

A little braver this time

Off she goes...

Byeeeeee!

Sliding down

The concrete slide at Codornices Park is set amongst a lush garden and winds it's way past a lovely, sprawling tree as it goes down. There are several paths to take to the top and each one feels like you're exploring an enchanted forest.

Trecking up to the top of the slide, cardboard in hand

Here comes Ava, ready for another go

The slide may be the main attraction at Codornices Park but it's not the only one. The park features a decent playground with swings, climbing equipment and yet more slides. A fenced toddler playground features a sandpit and wooden cable car for the little ones to "drive".

This slide is a little more Lola friendly

The park, which also features a basketball court and baseball field, is a popular picnic spot.

At the bottom of the park there is a tunnel which leads under the road and across to the Berkeley Rose Garden. The Rose Garden is quite pretty, although completely unaccessible with a stroller as we discovered! We ventured a little way into the garden but ended up turning around due to Lola's stroller and a wedding that was taking place at the bottom. We'll have to go back one day without the stroller and explore both the Rose Garden, and Codornices Park, a little more.