The Loop Playground — Attraction in Mountainside

This is a must do playground when my grandson visits. He is 3, but I see children here from 10 months and to 10 years all having fun. There are two sub areas one for kids under three with safer drop-in swing and one for older kids with more adventurous slides and a wonderful rock mountain to be climbed. There are benches for the parents to sit (and play with their smartphones) as the kids expend all that energy There is sufficient parking and picnic tables.There are huge pine tree with thousands of pine cones to be gathered. There are clean restrooms and a snack bar in the summer about 300 feet away (one can drive there or walk). As you can see from the map, you can get there via Tracy Drive from Glenside Ave, the north road though the reservation or Deer Path,...

Far from traffic, lots to do. There are bathrooms, which seemed to be closed (likely due to lockdown nonsense) so there were porta potties in front of them. Unfortunately, they were placed in direct sun and therefore hot and uncomfortable to use.

The splash pad is a little weird and doesn't even look like a splash pad. It looks more like 2 big flower sculptures on a concrete pad but, is a nice addition. It wasn't turned on but, looks pretty cool.

The pavilion was a great addition for lunch and escaping the sun. There were also trash and recycling cans throughout to add greater convenience!

FAR out of the way for us but, well...

Kids had a BLAST! Clean, well-kept and sturdy. An interesting amalgam of fun and "safe" 😁 as the floor seemed to be made out of a rubbery, real-looking wood chips that had a cushiony feel. The design, layout and aesthetics of the activities/obstacle courses were very nice. Some of the larger spots looked like a real tree! And another like a REAL large rock that the kids could climb up and down. There were two areas: one designated for kids 2 to 5 and the other from 5 to 13. Oh... And there was a cool-mist water/cooling area with these BIG flowers! Made me wish I was...