Take advantage of the soon-to-be-gone warm days of fall and hit Millstone Creek Park in Westerville. This is the amusement park of all parks located on the corner of Spring and Maxtown Roads. Seriously, I could not believe my eyes when I saw the enormous play gym, the plethora of swings, the large natural looking sandbox, the small pond and creek for skipping stones, and my favorite – the NEOS 360 music game. NEOS 360 is basically a life-sized sequence game complete with techno, salsa, and rock beats. The kids love to challenge themselves to a little Simon (yes, I just dated myself) or just dance to the tunes.
The park has plenty of picnic benches or places to throw a blanket down for lunch, tons of parking, bathrooms nearby, water fountains, and pathways for a walk. The play area is a short walk over a wooden bridge from the parking lot, and alleviates lugging lunch and the diaper bag all over the place while your kids play. If you get time before it gets too cold, check it out.
745 N Spring Rd.
Westerville, Ohio 43082
If you go:
- Bring lunch and stay a while or hit Mellow Mushroom (located just west of the park on Maxtown Road on the north side of the street) before or after the park.
- Dress appropriately. I always dress the kids in layers and then peel them off as they play and get warm.
- Think about an extra change of clothes. My daughter rather enjoyed making sand angels, and some of that lovely sand ended up in my car. There is also a creek and pond – just sayin’, if your kid likes skipping stones they will probably skip the “keeping dry” part as well.
- Sunglasses and sunscreen. There is no shade on the playground. The picnic bench area is covered offering shade and shelter in case of inclement weather.
- Other helpful write-ups so you know what to expect: The Dispatch and Columbus Parent Magazine.
This looks like a great park to check out!
Your photos remind me of the new Scioto Audobon Metro Park on Whittier. They have that Neos game–which is totally fun! Also a climbing wall and the coolest, most abstract-looking climbing equipment…not your typical swings, slides, and such. Here’s a link, but unfortunately they don’t have any pics.
http://www.metroparks.net/ParksSciotoAudubon.aspx
I was talking to another mom and she mentioned that this park scares her with her 20 month old. The play structures are huge and there can be “blind” spots – and if you look away for a second you can lose site of your smaller children easily. Also, the structures are really high off the ground, so if they fall it could really hurt them.
Just wanted to share that information. People with toddler-aged children may want to stick to the area where the swings and NEOS are located. 🙂
As the designer and sales representive for the Playworld playground equipment at Millstone Creek Park, I was happy to read the comments from visitors.
Millstone Creek Park is by far the most interesting park that I have seen. It combines active play with nature exploration.
I spent a considerable amount of time learning about a variety of disabilities to make sure that all children had the ability to enjoy their visit. I also considered the needs of parents that use mobility devices. Now they have a place to go to interact with their children.
The Neos Wall at Scioto Audubon and the Neos 360 at Millstone Creek Park are all about children interacting with other children and their parents. As the mom of 5, I know how difficult it can be to take children of different ages to one activity. Both Neos structures entertain all ages.
It’s a whole body video game and exercises more than just thumbs!
My office is in New Albany and I have a portable Neos 360 that I lend out to local schools and parks. If anyone is interested, please let me know and I’ll see if I can bring it to your school.
Schools almost out! Enjoy summer with your children!
Patty
888-462-7661