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George Rogers Park
By admin | May 6, 2008 Email Post Print Page
What’s to Love: George Rogers Park is located on the south side of downtown Lake Oswego. If you live in Portland, it’s worth the drive. This is definitely a “destination park” featuring hiking and biking trails, an easy-to-find Letterbox, an interesting historical past, a decent beach, tennis courts, big baseball field, and some of the nicest picnic benches and grills you’ll find in a park setting.
Did I forget to mention? George Rogers Park has an outdoor play structure that is certainly above average. It’s almost like a minature version of the Rose Garden Children’s Park. It has bridges, planks, steps, dips, dives and tube slides! There are some nice swings as well. In addition, near the play structure is an outdoor sculpture that looks like a big dinosaur pelvis. Your child will have fun climbing in and out of all the tunnels and holes.
As of now, the main biking path was closed due to a mudslide. Hopefully, that will get cleaned-up pretty soon. We went to George Rogers to look for the Letterbox, but we stayed for quite awhile. My son was having such a great time on the playground. Because the picnic area is so nice (and has outdoor grills!!!), we will come back soon for a BBQ.
Caveats: Approaching from the north (downtown Lake Oswego), you cannot turn left into the park, which is pretty much the only downer about this place.
Website: Lake Oswego Parks and Recreation
Distance from Portland: Within 10 miles of downtown Portland
Recommended Ages: Great park for the whole family
Parental Stress Factor: George Rogers has the feel of a neighborhood park. The play structure is actually across the street from some houses. It’s very relaxing.
Physical Difficulty: Some of the trails are accessible here. Overall, the hiking trails are easy.
Family Fun Factor: Parks can be hit-or-miss, but this park has so much to offer. I’m giving it a rating of Medium - High. If your family is active and enjoys picnics or BBQ-ing, you’ll have a blast at George Rogers Park.
Pet Friendly: Dogs on leashes
Weather Considerations: The paved pathways and historical significance (old iron smelter on premises) offer something for those rainy days.
Insider Info: George Rogers appears to have some interesting mountain biking opportunities. I don’t know if this is a sanctioned activity, but it does have a review on a mountain biking website.
Surprisingly, Lake Oswego doesn’t have a lot of quality food options. My favorite place to get a nice, gourmet-quality sandwich is Port City Pasta. It’s a little Italian Grocery store in the strip mall (east-side) just north of the park entrance. It’s definitely worth a stop. I still have dreams about their SW turkey sandwich. If your family likes Mexican food, stop by El Ranchito - it’s pretty good, and they’re very friendly.
Family Tips: Seriously, the quality and cleanliness of the picnic areas and outdoor grills cannot be stressed enough. It’s almost impossible to find outdoor grills at Portland Parks. If you want to grill in a Portland Park, you’ll almost always have to bring your own grill. There is access to the Willamette River here, and your kids will have some fun playing on the beach. Jogging strollers and/or backpacks are both a good idea here. The trails are short enough for most young kids to go without.
I almost forgot to mention the killer sandbox!!! This is such a nice space for kids to cut loose a bit. The best part - it’s stocked with all kinds of toys, trucks, front-loaders, bulldozers, backhoes, etc.
Technorati Tags: George Rogers Park, Lake Oswego Parks, sandbox, hiking, biking
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Topics: Biking, Hiking, Parks Playgrounds Pools |