Washington Park

Hit or miss with this park. I love the the dog park, but it seems like a lot of people bring their dogs who are not spayed or nurtured. This is kind of a turn-​off as you have to be on guard with your own dog. Big area for the larger dogs to run around in and play fetch, get dirty and have a fun time. Smaller dogs even have a little separate area too. Watch your step as a lot of people leave their dog poop, even though there are bags available to throw it out. Again hit or miss depending on the crowd, but a great place to socialize your dog either way.

This is for the dog park.
Only a 3 star dog park because of the giant sand pit/​mud pit in the middle, terrible idea.
Loses another star for the kind of owners that visit this park. see below.
I’ve heard some negative things about the kind of people that go to this park (people bringing sick contagious dogs to the park, etc.) and went here a few times when there were only 1 or 2 other dogs there. Really nothing bad to say about the other visitors other than the expected occasional misbehaved dog, child, or even annoying owner who doesn’t clean up after their pet… which is pretty par for any dog park.
This time though, there were multiple dogs that were not neutered or spayed there. Who brings a dog that is not fixed to a dog park?
To make it worse, 2 men were arranging to have their pit bulls mate. Only 1 in 600 pit bulls that enters a shelter gets out alive, so many pit bulls enter shelters and very few are adopted, breeding these dogs is so irresponsible.
After hearing that conversation, I really began to question how responsible these owners were and if these dogs were up to date on their shots and flea protection.

My kids call this the dinosaur park. Nice play area with swings, slide, climbing structure, and of course dinosaurs. There is not a lot of seating right at the play area, but there is a covered picnic area just behind it up a small hill. There are a lot of walking trails and there is a dog park on the other side of the park. There is also a baseball diamond. I would have given it five stars but it has some negatives. It’s easy to miss. The entrance is right next to the power plant. The park is practically on the power plant. It’s a small hike to the playground from the parking lot and the bathrooms were locked. There was an out house in the parking area though. Overall, nice clean park and a huge score for the dinosaurs!

Only took our two girls here so they could tire themselves out. And girls i mean dogs. But this park could use a few upgrades and safety modifications. The fence is high from the ground in the small dog area that my pom could almost shimmy through the bottom of the gate. And i think the larger dog area could benefit from maybe some obstacle course placed in. Its just a huge sand pit they run around in.

Update… Walking on the trail today I seen some dogs that weren’t on their leash. Read & respect the rules. If your not in the dog park, that’s fenced in, please have your dog on a leash & in your view.

We went here for a change of pace from our normal dog park. I think this park is too crowded and you do not have a good sight line to properly keep an eye on your pet. I also didn’t like the sand in the middle of the park and the water was not working. There was a huge mud puddle. There also seems to be a high dog to person ratio which was not so good. There have been some improvements with water fountain and separation for dog sizes.

There is a lot to really like about this park. It has your typical ball fields, basketball court, pavilions, kids playground, etc. What elevates this park is Salem creek, natural areas, dog park, and the paved greenway that runs through it.
The greenway is really cool and goes along another 4 — 5 miles through part of the city all the way to Salem Lake. Lots of people walking, jogging and riding bikes on the greenway.
Now you are asking, what’s up with the 3 stars? Well, there is no missing the fact that this park is right in the middle of an urban setting. It has a power station to one side of it, with power lines running parallel to a portion of the greenway. The neighborhood on one end is not the greatest. Lots of visible trash. I even saw a Big Lots shopping cart in the creek. There was a camping tent at the edge of the park. My assumption is a homeless person is staying there, but I guess it is possible some neighborhood kids were just camping (I doubt it though).
Despite the issues noted, it is a decent park to visit, especially if you want to take advantage of the dog park and greenway.

In general the park is decent, I like walking the greenway and visiting «dog beach» (a sandy part of the stream) with my dog in the summer, but I have not had good experiences with the dog park. I’m not sure if it’s because of the location, but lots of the dogs that come here have little to no training and their owners use this as their only exercise. So the dogs come in totally wild, humping and harassing other dogs and the owners sit on the benches and do nothing. Obviously not everyone that comes to this park is like this, but in comparison to Tanglewood’s dog park, there is a huge difference in the types of dogs and owners.

The dog park has seen some updates since some of the other reviewers have been. They now do have two separate areas for big dogs and small dogs (under 25 pounds). I went on a weekday in November and the place was pretty dead. There were a few people riding their bikes and running on the trail but only one other person made their way over to the small dog area. My puppy enjoyed the sand pit that they have and I did appreciate that they had a water station. There was a bit more activity over in the large dog area but only two people. If you are looking for a spot to bring your dog where it isn’t crowded I would suggest heading on over here during a weekday in the fall.
I did feel a touch uncomfortable with like literally hardly anyone else being in the whole park while I was there but it did seem safe enough. The pups and I will be back for sure.

DECENT DOG PARK.
First and foremost – I never go to the dog park on the weekends because it gets WAY too crowded but if you are able to bring your dog during the week, its a great little park with several tables and its about half shaded which is nice. There is a water station inside (for thirsty dogs) and outside (for paw washing).
— there is a kiddie pool that is fun to play in
— there are lots of poop bags available and trash cans all over
— there is not a separate area for big dogs vs. small dogs but I’ve never seen this be a problem
— there are some muddy spots so don’t go if its raining or freshly rained on
A couple of other reviewers commented on the safety of the neighborhood… its not a great neighborhood but during the day I (SF) feel totally safe and the park has plenty of people in it.

For walking, running dog mingling, great. If you want to take your toddlers to the playground, poor. The slides are steel. It’s 10am and the slides are so hot, my sons balls would stick to the slide and tear free if I were to put him on one. The playground architect was a sadist.

Decent park that appeals to the masses. Whether you want a work out, run/​walk, doggie park, basketball court, picnic… etc it’s all here for you.
There are multiple areas within this park that allow you to relax and enjoy the scenery.
Don’t know that I would venture out in this park after dusk. Seems a bit suspect.

The dog park is nice, but needs better lighting. The softball fields there are decent for an inner-​city park. The arrangement of the park and the parking takes a little getting used to, since the park is seperated by a creek and you have to know which area to park in or hoof it to the other side of the park.
***The park is okay during the day usually, but one side of the park backs up to a high crime area. If you are there at night, stay in a group – not alone.***
There is a small playground area on one side of the park (near the lone softball field on the back side) and there is a walking trail. There are not alot of ammenities and I have never seen the concession area open, even during busy ballpark days. Bring snacks and drinks with you as there are limited water fountains. One of the fields is farther back in the woods and has VERY limited bleacher seating (team supports are sitting in the same bleachers and there is even limited space in the dugouts).

My dog loves the fenced area here. I wish the actual dog run had street lights like the rest of the park. There’s a creek a little way down the paved road that she enjoys swimming in. A great place to excersize the poochie :)
In response to the heinous murder comment– that is obviously not characteristic to to the park, bad things happen in good places all the time. It is not in a rough neighborhood and as a young female walking alone here at any given time I have never felt threatened. There are always families with young children at the ball park in the afternoon. I doubt they’d hang out there if it were dangerous.

This is a great park! There are wooded trails, a playground, picnic shelters, softball fields, a basketball court, workout area, dog park, and it’s connected to a greenway! Generally feels safe during the day, and there are almost always a dozen cute dogs to watch in their fenced-​in area. Go on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon and you can even take the greenway to the $ 2 theater! Of course, I’m a bit biased… I live in the adjacent neighborhood that shares the same name.