Area: Pickering North

Age Range: 18 months to 12 years 

Parking:  
Weekends - plenty in the Vaughan Willard Public School parking lot
Weekdays - limited street parking along Glenanna Road

Ground Cover: mulch

Main Equipment:

• 2 swings
• 2 infant swings
• 5 slides
• 2 rock climbing walls
• 1 fireman pole
• 1 play fire truck

Accessibility Features: talking tubes 

Facilities/Other:

• butterfly garden
• 2 soccer fields
• softball diamond
• washrooms (seasonal from 10am until 8pm)
• 4 tennis courts (part of Glendale Tennis Club)

Surrounding Park Area: a nice walking path surrounds the park that winds through the Glenanna neighborhood and past a butterfly garden; a cement pad for skateboarding?? is located at the bottom of the hill behind the playground

Seating: 2 park benches facing the smaller play structure, and a stone wall that can be used as seating wrapping around the back of the playground; there are also a few park benches scattered around the paved trail through the park

Shade: no shade on the playground structure, shade from the surrounding trees over some park benches in the area

Overall assessment: A great central playground for big and small kids.  Even though the rock climbing wall is an older model than some, it is one of the best as it leads to a lookout tower with a fireman pole!  And this is one of the rare parks in Pickering that has a washroom building (operating seasonally 10am to 8pm).  Don't forget to see if you can spot a butterfly in the field of bushes beside the tennis courts (labelled as a butterfly garden)!

Area: Whitby North

Age Range: infant to 12 yearsInstalled: 2007

Parking:  plenty of parking in the McKinney Centre parking lot off of McKinney Drive

Ground Cover: rubber

Main Equipment:

• 4 swings
• 4 infant swings
• 1 saucer swing
• 4 slides
• 1 rope web
• 1 rock climbing wall
• multiple teeter rockers
• multiple spinners

Accessibility Features: saucer swing, ramp to music station, arm pedals, accessible monkey bars

Facilities/Other:

• washrooms (inside the McKinney Centre)
• Splash Pad
• 1 basketball court
• 2 tennis courts
• Skate Park

Surrounding Park Area: a community park with a bit of green space as well

Seating: 4 park benches surrounding the main playground area, 2 benches by the swings, and 3 park benches in the covered shelter between the playground and the basketball court

Shade: no shade on the playground, but some shade provided by a covered shelter right beside the park

Overall assessment: This is a fantastic playground, especially with the rubber surface to cushion the wee ones when they fall.  It is a huge benefit to also have rubber surface on a playground next to a Splash Pad as there are no pebbles or wood chips tracked into the Splash Pad area!  There are so many individual play items surrounding the main playground structure that sharing won't be a problem at this playground, although the one saucer swing seems to be a huge hit for all ages.  This park has something for everyone with the adjacent Skate Park, making it easy to watch over a group of all ages.

Area: Ajax Waterfront

Age Range: 5 and up

Parking:  some street parking on Audley Rd South

Ground Cover: mulch

Main Equipment:

• 4 swings

Accessibility Features: none

Facilities/Other: none

Surrounding Park Area:  large open field off of the beautiful waterfront trail, which leads to Ashbury Park and the Carruthers Marsh Splash Pad

Seating: park benches further along the waterfront trail (not facing the swings)

Shade: none on the swings, some shade along the surrounding tree lined waterfront trail

Overall assessment: Is swinging the only thing your kidlets like to do at the playground?  Do you feel guilty if they hog the swing for a full hour?  Then this is the parkette for them!  Consisting of 4 swings, and no other structures, it is perfect for those who only love the swings; or for parents who wish to take the kids on a walk along the waterfront trail without getting sidetracked by Rotary Park's playground.

Area: Oshawa North

Age Range: infant to 12 years 

Installed: Refurbished since 2012

Parking:  plenty of parking in the lot behind the Northview Community Centre off of Beatrice Street (there is a large gravel lot behind the main community centre lot)

Ground Cover: mulch

Main Equipment:

• 2 swings
• 2 infant swings
• 2 double seat rocking airplanes
• 3 metal slides
• multiple spinners

Accessibility Features: interactive station

Facilities/Other:

• Splash Pad
• 1 basketball court

Surrounding Park Area: a small green park space between the Northview Community Centre and Northview Library 

Seating: 2 park benches (not facing the playground structures) and 2 benches nearby on the Splash Pad

Shade: none on the playground but some surrounding trees offer a bit of shade, the 2 park benches are under a pergola for a bit of shade

Overall assessment: A great little playground that offers a lot of great unique climbing features including leaf steps!  The two rocking airplanes are also unique play structures for the smallest of tykes to enjoy imaginative play.  One toddler play structure (age 18 months to 5 years) and one larger play structure (ages 5 to 12 years) offer play for all ages, however, the larger play structure only has one slide that requires climbing skill to reach (not for the younger kids who want to follow the big ones up to play).  Also conveniently located right beside the Splash Pad!

Area:  Whitby North

Age Range: 15 years and up

Parking:  plenty in the designated parking lot off of Twin Streams Rd (to the South of the park), and some street parking on Baycliffe Drive (just be aware of some no parking zones)

Ground Cover: gravely sand

Main Equipment:

• 3 step ups
• 2 leg lifts
• 2 push ups
• 2 chin-ups
• 1 hyper-extension bench
• 1 sit up
• 1 stretch/squat post

Accessibility Features: none

Facilities/Other:

• see Baycliffe Park post
• seasonal port-a-potty
• soccer field
• 1 basketball court

Surrounding Park Area:  A great big park with a nice jogging path around it (half paved and half gravel) where you will also find the FIT stations.  

Seating: none along the jogging FIT station path
Shade: limited tree shade along the jogging FIT station path

Overall assessment: The fitness equipment is arranged along the jogging path around Baycliffe Park and is meant to be interspersed in a walking or jogging workout. The equipment is all stationary with no moving parts and uses body movement to facilitate the exercises.  The step up station, leg lift station and chin-up station have different heights at them to accommodate people of different heights.  The first station behind the Splash Pad at Baycliffe Park is the step ups.  The last station (or first if you start the opposite direction) is the stretch/squat post at the back of Baycliffe Park behind the soccer field.  (*NOTE it is recommended not to use the equipment when it is wet.)