Clarenford Station (22201)

While my big kids have been enjoying VBS this week, the two year old and I have been on the prowl, checking out parks.  It was a shaping up to be a hot summer day when we stopped by Clarenford Station.  Although the playground has a tiny footprint, I was happy to see it is very nicely maintained and quite shady.   It’s nestled in the Ballston – Virginia Square neighborhood, which is mostly zoned for permit parking, but we found plentiful parking along 13th Street, which is zoned for 2 hours in front of the playground.  The park abuts I-66, which adds a little white noise, but otherwise wasn’t noticeable.

This is a great park for younger kids.  It is completely enclosed with a chain link fence and has a mulch surface.   There are two play structures, the larger of which says it is designed for ages 5-12 (this did not deter my 2 year old from playing on it).  Adam enjoyed the bucket swing, but I know my older kids (6, and 5) would have been bummed by the lack of regular swings. The small sand area looked clean and had several diggers and buckets left for community use.

I was pleasantly surprised to discover a small merry-go-round at this newish looking park.   Not as big as the one at the Great Falls Grange Park, but still fun. Another nice feature of this park is that it has plenty of seating — two picnic benches inside the playground and at least two benches.

All in all, this is a nice little park – especially on a hot day when you want to get out of the house and find some shade.

Smaller/Younger Play Structure:

Big Play Structure:

Swings:

Sandbox:

Merry-go-round:

Picnic Bench: