North Converse Park

Location: 8200 Spring Town St, Converse, TX 78109

Amenities: volleyball, basketball, football, soccer, fishing, wildlife (birds), playgrounds, swings, restrooms, bbq, picnic tables, pavilion

Ground cover: sand, wood chips

This place is HUGE.  We got to see a lot of it because we ended up parking by the lake, not knowing that the play structure that is most age appropriate for preschoolers was pretty much on the other side of the park.  It wasn't too bad of a walk, and thankfully the child in question was willing to walk and not be carried.  On the plus side, we got to get up close and personal with some swans.

I wish we had brought something to feed them.  There were also some ducks hanging around looking for handouts :)

 This play structure is closest to the lake.  It seemed like it would be fun for my 3.5 year old as we approached.

 Then I realized half of it was really high up monkey bars.

There is ONE slide on it.  So if you can't reach the monkey bars, you basically can go up stairs or a ladder and go down this one slide.  It would probably be a lot of fun for someone older who could reach those bars. 

She did really enjoy climbing the big rocks that were around that playground.  I think I took this picture to show the pavilion in the background.

There are quite a few volleyball courts.

Here is the playground that is better suited for toddler/preschoolers.  It has a parking lot as well so you don't have to walk across the whole place.  It's actually the first lot on the way in, we just kept going to see what else was around.

There are two sets of swings.  Sixteen swings altogether!  The swings have sand underneath and my 3.5 year old thought it would be a great place to build a sand castle (I should probably take that poor child to an actual beach).  So just know that's there.

And this.  We had one of these growing up and I have not seen one since.  I don't know what it is technically called.

See saws!  This park has it all.

But this was her favorite part.  She had to ride on each one.  Even though some are duplicates.  All in all, this part of the park was really toddler friendly.  There were so many things to play on that it would be great for large groups.

Converse City Park

Location: 307 School St. Converse, TX 78109

Amenities: baseball, volleyball, playgrounds, walking trail, bathroom, pool, pavilion, bbq, sand box

Ground cover: wood chips, poured rubber, sand

This was our first visit to Converse City Park.  We definitely did not get to see it all!  This place is enormous, and loads of fun.  The highlight for my 2 year old was the "old school" playground, with plenty of swings and a stand-alone slide.  She had never seen one before and was drawn to it like a moth to a flame.  We tried out just about all of the playground equipment.  There are two playground areas, the "old school" one near the pavilion and a brand new one at the south end of the park.  If you prefer the newer playground, there is parking available from an entrance off of 78.  It was a bit of a trek between the playground areas, but definitely manageable (probably even more manageable if someone hadn't insisted on being carried).  It was overcast on our visit, but I imagine on a sunny day it could be pretty hot, as there's not much shade.  There are many trees, just not in a position to shade the playgrounds.  However, the toddler playscape is covered. 

 There are SIX bucket swings!  Several of them need some repair, but I was still pleased with how many they are.  Definitely didn't have to wait our turn!

 Sling swings, stand-alone metal slide, and monkey bars.  This area has wood chips.

Pretty sure this was her favorite part.  I don't often see these slides, which were so common in my childhood, so I'm glad my daughter could experience it.

As you can see, there are plenty of sling swings as well. 

 Here's the pavilion.  There are plenty of picnic tables both under the pavilion and throughout the park. 

 Near the swings is a small toddler playscape, with sand underneath.  There is an additional sandbox elsewhere in the park that I did not photograph.

 This is the second, newer, playground. I love these climbing rocks but could not convince my daughter to try them out.  Springy poured rubber underneath.  It's nice to have a break from wood chips (keeping them out of shoes...and mouths)!

 Here is the rest of the playground

 From all the angles

There is a walking trail through the woods that we did not explore.