Guy Mason Recreation Center

Guy Mason Recreation Center

 

Location: 3600 Calvert St., NW Washington, DC 20007

Metro: 

Tenley Town - 1.9 miles
Dupont Circle - 2 miles
Rosslyn - 2 miles 

I'd go with Rosslyn since it's a nicer walk across Key Bridge and through Georgetown

Park Website

My Opinion:

 Features:

The playground has everything you'd expect, slides, stuff to climb on, swings, a teeter-totter, and a nice sandbox.  It was upgraded about a year ago.  The original equipment is still there, but they've added some nice new things to play with.
 

What's Unique:

One of the most popular features is the tube the connects two sections of the playground.  It's only about eight feet long, but kids seem to love it.  For little ones, it's a bridge between the smaller play area and a higher section - a place little kids wouldn't be able to get to if not for this cool blue connector.  The tube has port holes every couple feet, so parents can peek in on kids, or reach in a try to surprise them as they crawl through.

There's also a track-like set of monkey bars.  Rather than a series of bars that kids need to swing between, there are just two parallel bars that kids can slide their hands along.  Nice for little arms that aren't long enough to reach form one bar to the next.

This playground was nice before it was expanded - now it's great.  The area that was once just a pile of sand is now a great sandbox boarded by a bridge and a wooden house that seems to double as a lemonade stand for some kids.  Like most playgrounds, the sandbox if full of toys, some a little worse for wear after being outside all the time.

My favorite part of the playground is a circle of stepping stones.  They're made out of a material similar to the rubbery surface some playgrounds have covering the ground, and are spaced just far enough apart of be challenging for kids of all sizes.  

There's also a music area with a xylophone and drums.  

There  used to be a very cool spinning cup that kids could sit in.  It was at a slight angle so by rocking back and forth, kids could really get it spinning.  Unfortunately, the last time I there, the cup had been replace by an orange cone.  Hopefully it will return soon - it was a big hit and on busy days a line would form.


Restrooms:Yes

There are restrooms in the recreation center, but because the center is not always open when we're at the park, we usually just walk to the nearby Whole Foods if there's an emergency.

Sun/Shade: There are large trees around the outside of the playground and another large tree in the center, so part of the playground is shady no matter what time of day.

Surface: Wood chips

Enclosure: The playground is not fully enclosed.  There's a fence the two sides that border a street.  The other two sides have fences for a basketball court and a baseball diamond, but there are wide stretches between with not fence, and there are stairs leading to Wisconsin Ave with not gate.  That said, there's a lot of green space around the playground and I always feel like I'm able to keep an eye on my kids. 

Nearby:

There's a Whole Foods right next to the park.  They have a great food bar and  brick pizza oven if you need something quick for lunch or a snack.  A little farther down Wisconsin on the opposite side there's a CVS and a Starbucks.  Rocklands BBQ is right across Wisconsin from the park - yep, that's where that amazing smell is coming from.  There are a few other restaurants right in that area, and father north on Wisconsin you'll find Cafe Deluxe and Cactus Cantina, both pretty kid friendly.