Summer is the time to get out and play in the water
Parks throughout the city offer families a watery break from the sweltering heat
When it’s hot in the city, where can you take the kids to get some relief ? How about one of the many splash pads that have popped up in city parks in recent years. In no particular order, here are some Montreal Gazette picks for places to cool off and get wet.
St Michel Park Corner of Laurier Ave. E. and St-Dominique St., Plateau Mont Royal Open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily until early October
When temperatures rise, Plateau families flock to the splash pad at St Michel Park to cool off.
One of the highlights for the little ones is a “tube” you can run through made of four red hoops that spray water. There are some tall structures (one shaped like a palm tree) that offer showers from above, as well as jets that shoot up from the ground. The soft, rubbery padding underfoot offers some relief when excited kids running in all directions inevitably collide. Young kids will be impatient for their turn to climb all over the big plastic frog and the alligator.
When the novelty of water features is exhausted, try out the play structures (one for two-to-five year olds; another for five-to-12 year olds). Parents can relax on a big plastic lounge chair in the “beach” area (no, this is nowhere near any real body of water) featuring permanent umbrella structures as kids dig in the sand.
This park is easy to get to via transit (either the St-Laurent bus or the Laurier métro will bring you relatively close), but be forewarned that finding parking will be a feat. There are no public toilets, but if you herd the kids over to nearby Guillaume (5134 St-Laurent Blvd.) for a delicious pastry treat when you need a break, you can probably take advantage of their facilities. — Emma McKay Valois Park 40 Baie de Valois Ave., Pointe Claire Open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily during the summer
An intense amount of water awaits you at the Valois Park splash pad that opened in PointeClaire last year. It has everything you would expect: rubber floors, a changing room and picnic tables nearby (one of those tables is even accessible for wheelchairs). What it doesn’t have a lot of is shade for those who don’t want to get wet.
The standout feature of the park has to be the dumping wheel, called the super wave, which soaks users with a comically large amount of water. But younger kids who shy away from big splashes can also find plenty of structures to play with.
The splash pad is well situated near St John Fisher Elementary School, and Valois Park also has a swimming pool near the splash pad. It’s accessible by transit, with buses that stop nearby and the Valois train station just a short walk away, and there is plenty of parking on nearby streets. If you want to make an outing of it, there are places to eat and shop in the Valois Village.
— Jason Magder
Trenholme Park 6800 Sherbrooke St. W., Notre Dame de Grâce Open 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily until Aug. 19
The old wading pool at this venerable park in western NotreDame-deGrâce was perfectly fine. The recently renovated/reopened version is perfect.
Among the neat, new touches are private family changing rooms and an outdoor shower to rinse off; a communal box of water toys; and a couple of splash-pad-type structures for kids who want to do a little more than just wade.
A “quick” recent visit to the stillgleaming pool with a four year old and a two year old in tow lasted for more than two hours — and would have gone on even longer if they had had their way! It was also extended by a visit to Ca Lem, the wonderful and popular ice-cream shop located just west of the park on Sherbrooke St.
Ample street parking is available around the park, and you could easily while away an afternoon with a pool visit, a pop-in to the adjacent playground and a picnic in the park.
One note though: because wading pools require lifeguards, the Trenholme pool’s opening hours are not as copious as those for splash pads. (The lifeguards also vigorously police the pool’s nophotos policy. Don’t ask how I know.)
— Basem Boshra
Walters Park Corner of Pine Beach Blvd. and Lakeshore Rd. in Dorval Open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily until September
This splash pad boasts a view of Lac St-Louis so pastoral it will soothe the soul of harried parents arriving for a day of fun in the sun, lugging sunscreen and hats and folding camp chairs and towels and a cooler filled with snacks and water bottles. At least there’s parking, so shlepping all that stuff is easier.
Be smart: place yourself strategically to face the shoreline AND the splash pad, so the children can be watched as they zigzag back and forth across the streaming jets of water while you daydream about sailing off into the distance. The splash pad is so colourful and playful, it reminds me of a sculpture garden you’d stumble upon at a museum.
Best feature: the umbrellas that little kids can crouch under, waiting for the water to surge; and for the bigger kids, the pendulous buckets that swing like upside down bells until they unleash their icy refreshment. Toddlers love the green frog’s gentle jets. My children would squeal in delight aiming the zebra-faced water cannon at me. (I really didn’t mind.)
There’s no pool at this park, but the play structures clustered around the splash pad are popular. I have fond memories of my son at the music station, beating the drums to his heart’s content. Consider ending the day on a sweet note: stop by Non Solo Pane bakery at 455 Lakeshore Rd. on the way home.
— Enza Micheletti