River Legacy Park

River Legacy is the largest park in Arlington.  It has every park feature you could possibly imagine, but since we focus on playgrounds, that is the only thing I am writing about.  And, the playground alone is worth the trip!

There is a children's wonderland treehouse fort for bigger kids.  There isn't much missing - slides, climbing, tunnels and bridges, hiding places, and imagination booster galore!

Tree fort

Tree fort tunnels and bridges

Inside the trees, there are fun things to look at and do.  There are tables, store front windows, animals carved into the walls, and even an interactive animal sounds tracker (kids press a button and it tells all about the animals as well as it's sound).

There is a smaller tree for the younger kids.  It has a fun cave inside, several ways to climb up into it, a spyglass to view the surroundings, and a double slide.

This one's for the little kids

There is also a free standing hollowed out log, a dinosaur skeleton to crawl inside and on top of, spider-shaped climbing web, a small bee to climb on, and plenty of swings - two regular, two baby swings, and two special needs swings with harnesses (one small and one large).

paleontology climbing fun

Spider and bee

Swings for everyone!

One big bonus to the bigger parks is access to a (clean!) restroom.  It is a little walk, so warn your little ones not to wait until too late.

See the building back there?   The restrooms are there... just a little walk

There is also a large, shaded picnic area and pavilion right next to the playground (along with bike and hiking trails).

River Legacy is located on NW Green Oaks (where Cooper dead ends into Green Oaks).  You have to pass up the Nature school entrance and take the big gated entrance to the west.  Once in the gates, you can follow the signs to the playground (it will be off to the left) - there is plenty of parking right on the playground.
703 NW Green Oaks Blvd
Arlington, Texas 76006

BC Barnes Park

We were excited to try Barnes Park again... we went earlier this year and it was under construction.  What that means is that it is now a brand new park!

This park is very small - just a playground, a field, and a small picnic area settled in the middle of a neighborhood.  Perfect for just going to the playground, since it is never crowded!  There are three play areas - one for children 1-5, another for big kids (5-12) and a bonus area with some extra apparatuses.

The little kids area is designated for ages 1-5.  It has several safe stairs, a little storefront window, a couple of low slides, and an aesthetically pleasing ABC climbing wall.  It has a built in sunshade.

The 'little kid' playground

The big kids area has a climbing wall, two taller slides, monkey bars and spinning wheels, plenty of things to climb and a built in shade.  Best of all, it has a little sliding trolley thing.  At 5, my kids were too small to do it alone, but made me help them onto it until I wouldn't cooperate any more.  Very cool play area.

The 'big kid' playground

Sliding trolley ride!

There is a 'bonus' play area up some stairs.  It had two baby swings, two regular swings, a tire swing, a free standing climbing area, a spinner, a balance beam, and a bouncer.  Any playground with a tire swing is a winner in my kids' book... and a workout for me.

The park is directly behind Amos Elementary.  The school is fenced off, but it is possible that the school uses Barnes as an extra playground on certain days.  Otherwise, it is generally uncrowded.

BC Barnes Park is located off of Mayfield Road (near Collins) in a quiet, older (slightly run down in areas) neighborhood.
3000 Daniel Drive
Arlington, Texas 76014

Bob McFarland Park

This park is perhaps the most heavily treed in Arlington, so on a hot day, it would be perfect.  The shade covers most every part of the playground areas.

Tons of shade!

There are three playground structures.  All are old, but not run down.  And they held the attention of my kids for over an hour with no other children there.  The first one seems to be for smaller kids (lower climbing areas, small slides, safety stairs), but it also has a large area of monkey bars and climbing apparatuses attached to one side.

The second play structure area is larger, with more tunnels, bridges, slides, platforms, and hiding spots. It has a little store front, a high double slide, a tunnel slide, and climbing access from every angle.

A third play area looked at first to be an exercise area.  It is mostly for older children - too many spinning platforms, high climbing areas, and risky jumps for kids under 6.  It's super modern look made my small kids want to be on it, so I ended up hoisting and hand holding a lot.

There is a small maze in between all of the different structures.  It is easy to navigate and has several entries/exits.

There are plenty of little extras all along the playground, too.  Sprinkled in are a free standing climbing wall, a two person airplane bouncer, a very long moving balance beam, and a springboard bouncer.

This park boasts lots of swings (2 baby swings and 7 regular ones).

And the best bonus?  An old-school four square court.  Bring a ball and teach your kids the fine art of four square!

The park has a basketball court, a small pavilion, wooded trails, and three playground structure areas.  It is a beautiful old park with plenty of shady places to sit.  It is directly behind Williams Elementary, so I suspect they may use it as a second playground for recess.

Bob McFarland Park is located on Embercrest just off Matlock (between Bardin and Green Oaks) at the street's dead end.
410 E. Embercrest Drive
Arlington, Texas 76018