Southwest Park — Attraction in Archdale

8-15-21

Probably under utilized per its location. A lot going on however. First time here.

I come to parks for trails but the other stuff should be mentioned. There are 5 excellent shelters spread throughout with bathroom access to every one. Well maintained. Park office has small concessions for sale with info for launching boats on Lake Randleman. Pier fishing beside the boat launch area. Playground near shelters 1 and 4. Two baseball fields, a dog park, a gazebo, and a book box are at the lot closest to the entrance. While I didn't utilize most of these features (I used the bathrooms near shelter 1), Southwest Park looks like an excellent option relative to other Guilford County parks.

I came to sample the walking trails. I uploaded a picture of the park as it is really hard to explain each trail in its entirety. I walked every trail and they are all pretty much the same. Sand with roots, some hills but mostly flat. LOTS of webs with lower canopy. Trails can move slow because of this. Had I not had a picture of the park map I would have been wandering around. This helps. Each trail is color coordinated with accompanying numerical markers. These are better for maybe families with children as none of the trails are scenic and are frankly boring. Not somewhere I would go out of my way to hike. Look elsewhere if you want something scenic. The trails are a 2-star walk for my taste.

I do love the the paved walking trail around the baseball fields and this would be great for folks of all ages during cooler temps. Strollers, the elderly, etc. Great addition.

Not a hiking trail destination for me but the aforementioned features can't be ignored. Families with...

We visited this dog park while visiting family in NC. First, it is off the beaten path. When you first turn into the park, there is a small building that has a small sign that says Dog Park with an arrow pointing toward a dirt path. You go for a short hike through the woods which could be a problem for an older person or a disabled person because there are many tree roots in the path. Just when you start to think it can't be back there, you see another small blue sign that says Dog Park and there it is to your left. First, poop bags are not provided. You must bring your own. There is a little dog area, but the park is fenced in cattle fence. Some very small breeds might be able to get through the fence. I'm pretty sure my dachshund could have, but she didn't seem inclined. However, the large dog area is separated from the little dog area by a cattle fence. My dachshund had no problem scooting right under there. She came back because our cockapoo couldn't fit under. Apart from that, it is one of the largest and nicest dog parks we've seen. There's a bit of a wooded area in the small dog area that our dachshund very obviously enjoyed following smells and digging in fall leaves. We will definitely be bringing our little girls again when we visit family...

First time going to this park since it was a nice afternoon in February. The park it’s self was decent. Everyone there was on one side. There are two separate fenced in areas, same size, one for small dogs and one for large dogs. It felt a little crowded due to everyone in the same fenced in area. Other reviews mentioned something about the park having community water bowls out and filled. I saw a couple out, only one was partly filled. Other owners brought there bowls. (I would recommend bringing your own water source and bowl) I’m not a fan of community water bowls because drinking old or warm water out a bowl that probably doesn’t get cleaned often, or water that gets drunk by multiple different dogs can mess with a dogs bowls. The park is off a trail, basically it’s an open secluded wooded area, just beware of the previous weather conditions as most of this park is bare ground. I liked how it was kind of off by it’s self, and secluded and not very busy as other parks. Makes it nice to control dogs better when it’s not over packed with people or dogs. Overall had a good experience there for...