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

Deaver Park

Deaver Park is an older park.  The playground is split into two areas.

The smaller play area (for kids 5 and under) is perfect for small toddlers.  It has low climbing opportunities, a double slide for slide races, a small spiral slide, a musical wall, covered treehouse, and pretend storefront.

The larger structure (for kids 5-12) has two bridges, matching parapets, three slides, and some climbing areas.  This play area would likely not hold bigger kids' attentions for long, but for the kindergarten set, it was pretty good.

This park has tons of place to run around and play.  There are soccer fields, basketball courts, practice fields, and a shaded picnic area.  There are plenty of paved trails to bike ride too.

Deaver Park is on Kelly Elliott, between Sublett and Green Oaks.
5800 Kelly Elliot Road
Arlington, Texas 76017

W.O. & Zeta Workman Park

This park is a hidden gem.  I wish we had found it sooner.

It is a newer park, with smaller trees but plenty of green space.  It has two play areas (one for big kids and another for littles) separated by a great seating area for Mommies to sit and keep an eye on their  charges.  The ground cover for the playground is wood chips, and there are benches all around the park for weary park patrons.

A shady place to sit (directly between the two playspaces)

The larger play area (labeled for children ages 5-12) has three large slides, a tower, and three different climbing apparatuses.
It also boasts a merry-go-round globe, circular rotating monkey bars (that actually seem more the height of an adult) and two swings.

For big kids! 

Extras - a merry go round, spinning monkey bars, and swings

The smaller play area (labeled for children 1-5) has three small slides, stairs to practice climbing on, a little alphabet wall for early learners, and a low, gradual grade toddler climbing ramp.
It also boasts a tiny bouncing elephant sit-on, a sandbox (that needs to be refilled), a spinning chair, and two baby swings.

For little kids

Extras - a bouncy elephant, a spinning chair, sandbox, and baby swings

The park has a large practice field (with football goal posts) with a bike path all the way around (great visibility for letting small bike riders take an independent loop) and a baseball practice field and basketball court farther away.

Fields

W.O. & Zeta Workman Park is located at 6701 Tabor Drive.  If you are looking for a park near the Mansfield city line, this is a great one to visit!  It is tucked in the neighborhood behind Ashworth Elementary at Eden and Silo Rd with easy access to Matlock too.

Cravens Park

Cravens Park is one of our favorites.  It is large, has a restroom, a pond, and an excellent playground.

The play structure for bigger kids (labeled 5-12) is massive.  It has two huge tunnel slides, a double slide, a climbing wall, three levels of play, spinners, monkey bars, and climbing ropes.

Big kids play here!

The play area for little kids (labeled 2-5) is larger than most baby playgrounds, and is probably geared towards older toddlers and preschoolers.  It has two (low) climbing walls, several more difficult climbing areas, three slides, and a cute little pretend car area (with gear shifts and steering wheel)

A playplace for little kids

There are two regular swings, two toddler swings, and a tire swing.  The ground covering is mostly wood chips with small areas of rubber matting.  There are built in sun shades on the playground.

Plenty of stationary extras in this playground.  There is a globe-shaped merry-go-round, a bouncy see-saw, a spinning seat, a bouncy horse, some drums, and a huge sandbox.  It had rained for a few days before our last visit, so the sandbox was a bit of a lake.  Even so, it looked fun, with a couple of backhoe toys and a little sand table.

The baseball fields, basketball courts, and tennis courts are all within easy walking distance of the playground.  Our playgroup has used the baseball fields for some impromptu games.  There is also a large pavilion - great for picnics or parties.  I was struck by the recycling bins - one near every single trash can.  Good job, Arlington!

Cravens Park is located at the juncture of Matlock and Green Oaks, and can be accessed from either road.
400 Cravens Park Dr.
Arlington, Texas 76018

Cliff Nelson Park

This is without a doubt, one of our favorite parks!  It has a massive shaded playground, clean bathrooms (inside Cliff Nelson Rec Center), and an irresistable walking trail.

The playground is all connected, and while there is a small structure for little children, they aren't really separated.  This play structure has tons of climbing activities, bridges, tunnels, more slides than you can count, monkey bars, a pretend store front, lots of spinning apparatus, and four swings (two infant, two regular).

Larger structure

Smaller structure 

Spinning! 

Awesome playground!

A wooded path off of the playground leads you to a pond with fish and turtles.  It makes for a nice shaded walk.

Pond and fountain

Since we generally are only going to a park to play, I won't review all of the 'extras' at this park, but the rec center is just feet away from the playground and has restrooms.  One of our best friends held a birthday there last year, and it is a nice facility.

Cliff Nelson Center

Cliff Nelson Park is located on West Bardin, between Green Oaks and Kelly Elliot.
4600 West Bardin Rd
Arlington, Texas 76017

Treepoint Park

Treepoint is one of the newer parks in Arlington - small and packed with family usability.  Many people call this neighborhood playground the butterfly park, and it's easy to see why.

As you walk up, you encounter a huge caterpillar walkway that turns into some climbing hills (his head).  Just past the entrance is an irresistable to climb butterfly.

The play structure itself is geared for younger children (no monkey bars or high falls).  It has several climbing structures with slides and poles.  It, too is butterfly themed, with 

There are several spinning apparatuses and a two-person teeter totter.  Also, two baby swings and two big kid swings.  There is also a tiny walking trail (paved) and a little three-station work-out area for grown ups, so you could do some sit-ups while supervising playtime.  :)

The piece of equipment that my own children (and the friends that met us there) wanted to repeatedly be on was the 'giant swing' - a sort of conical trash-can lid attached to ropes.  Three or four kids could lay on it and swing or we got 7 kids easily sitting on it.  What fun!

The only drawbacks to this fantastic park is lack of bathroom and substantial shade.  The structures have shade built in, but there are no trees, and the shade moves depending upon times.  This park is out of the question in the summer!

Treepoint Park is a neighborhood park, located near 287 and Little School Road - kind of on the edge of Arlington and Kennedale.  

Treepoint Park

5403 Treepoint Drive

Arlington, Texas 76017

Mary & Jimmie Hooper Park

Hooper park is kind of a hidden treasure.  It is almost always nearly empty whenever we go.  It is small with a lovely view of a lake.  It has a baseball practice field, a basketball court, and a spectacular playground for small children.

This is one of the few playgrounds in which my children are completely content to stay on the equipment designed for their age-group.  The 'little kid' playground has plenty of slides, climbing apparatuses, tunnels and fun!

Little kid heaven!

The 'big kid' playground is also lots of fun, with a climbing wall, tall slides, and lots of monkey bars and firemen poles.  The ground covering is wood chips.  There are two baby swings and two regular ones.

This one's for the bigger kids

The pavilion can be rented (the sign designating whether it is reserved is directly in front of the pavilion), and is just feet from the water, making it a beautiful place to eat lunch.  There are only two tables underneath, so it would have to be a small gathering.

Hooper has a small baseball diamond and a basketball court.  I didn't' get many pictures, since there were lots of people playing and didn't want to look like the paparazzi.

We also found this sign.  How cool!

Hooper Park is located on Pleasant Ridge, between Bowen and Cooper.  It is tucked away, so you may have driven right past it and not realized what you were missing!
2303 Pleasant Ridge Rd
Arlington, Texas 76015

FJ 'Red' Kane Park

Kane Park is an older park with beautiful views of a fountain and pond.  It, like most Arlington parks, has separate structures for big kids and little ones. 

The 'big kid' playground is pretty awesome.  It has a three story climbing structure (as tall as a 3-story building) with three huge slides.  The top level (accessed only by a rung-ladder) is really high up.  I took my kids to this park when they were still toddlers, and it was too scary to let them play on.  But for 4 and up, it is great.  It also features two rock climbing structures and two big kid swings.

This one is for big kids!

The 'baby' playground is fairly small, and may not hold the attentions of an older toddler for long.  There are two baby swings.  

The little kid friendly side

This park boasts a pond with fountain feature, basket ball court, paved walking trail (around the pond), a  flock of friendly geese and ducks, and bathrooms.   There are several picnic tables (in the shade of large trees) to have lunch or do crafts, and plenty of benches for parents of older children to sit and watch.

Basketball court

Pond, dock, and geese

Picnic area

Kane park is located on Southbound Cooper Street, just past Hardisty Dr.  

6500 S. Cooper St

Arlington, Texas 76001