Alberta Park

Bear's Report:

ther was a crazy slide and when you slide on it made a sceny part and by the time you were done you wuld be like creced and you go more times and it will be like you died and youl fell like you exploded and youl be in hororer and youl be like crazy.

Translation: There was a crazy slide and when you slide on it, [it] made a skinny part and by the time you were done you would be like crooked and you go more times and it will be like you died you'd feel like you exploded and you'd be in horror and you'd be like crazy.


Mom's Report:

Well, that's what comes of leaving this sort of project to the amateurs! We forgot the camera, so there are no photos of this park. Ah well.

Alberta Park is very much the picture of a neighborhood park. It is nestled in a pleasant neighborhood in NE Portland, on Killingsworth. It has amenities for everyone: a large covered basketball court, a grassy slope with plenty of shade for couples and other nappers, a playground area for older and younger children, public bathrooms, water fountains that accommodate doggies, an off-leash dog area, a large playing field, tennis courts, picnic tables, and benches. The Portland Parks site promised a wading pool, but we explored the entire 17 acres of the park (not so large, really) and couldn't find it. The biggest hit with the kids was a corkscrew slide (see Bear's Report). The park was fairly crowded on a beautiful Sunday, with a kickball tournament of some kind going on, as well as a bicycle polo game in one of the courts.

Some aspects of the park to know about: There are not many trash receptacles handy--a feature I heard several people lament when trying to find a place to dispose of their dog's bagged waste. The only one I saw was located between the two halves of the playground area. The bathrooms accommodate one person at a time, so if there are many people at the park you will have to wait in line (there was a 4-5 person deep line the entire time we were at the park). I did not bring Thisby the dog with us, and I'm glad I didn't. The off-leash area is poorly defined and butts up closely with the playground and playing field. If you have children who are afraid of dogs or are otherwise cautious of dogs running around off leash, this may not be the park for you. Thisby the dog is unpredictable around unsupervised dogs (she doesn't seem to speak "dog"), so she was best left at home. However, all the dogs and their owners were polite and friendly. I saw no evidence of dog waste (thanks for picking up!) and even though several dogs seemed to be unsupervised, they were friendly and well-behaved.

Another thing to consider: The park is dense with old evergreens (firs, perhaps?). There is more shade than sun in all areas excepting the playing field. While we were there, the trees were pollinating, and the air was simply thick with yellow dust. We were fine, but it would be an allergy sufferers nightmare! I also felt there were not enough benches/tables near the playground area for parents.

All around, a nice neighborhood park that seems to be well-used and well-loved. It seemed as though it could use an infusion of funds to update some of its features, but the residents of the area were clearly getting plenty of pleasure from it.


Bug's Report:

What I felt about the park was:

There were lots of trees.(loaded with pollen)

The playground had a crazy slide!(i was a chicken at first but when i was pushed down i couldn't stop,sooo fun!)


Very dog friendly.(not kidding.)

Lots of kids\people.(not reccomended if you dont like loads of kids.)

The whole park is 16.8 acres.

Not recomended if you have bad pollen\dog allergies.
Sorry we dont have pictures, we forgot the camera.

Albert Kelly Park

What is the Portland Parks Project? Find out here.
















The Bug report:

I will tell you about the park now!

It’s called Albert Kelly Park.

The whole park is 12 acres.

Its mostly field.

There are many trees (a few trees that are perfect to climb)

Many flowers.(common flowers like: daisies,dandylions)

And even a tiny playground: a big slide, not too big or small,

A merry-go-round, kiddy swings, normal swings, seesaw and a picnic table.

Every bit of the park is perfect for dogs and people of all ages.

I went there and it was awesome!!! It was like a treasure hunt,

I found a huge pine cone a foot long!

I really recommend it if you want lots of space to play with your dog, run with your kid or

Have time your self(not many people but still a great park)

The Bear report:

What I thout about the park was grate and I cout a ladey bug. And when I was luten it go but it woudinto so iwas shacin it and dopein it. But it stele woudint go so I put my fengr into it it was on ,my fengr so I put it on a tree but I put it on a lefe but then we had to go baek …

Translation- What I thought about the park: Was great and I caught a ladybug. And when I was letting it go but it wouldn't so I was shaking it and dumping it. But it still wouldn't go so I put my finger into it. It was on my finger so I put it on a tree. But I put it on a leaf. But then we had to go back...

The Mom report:

This park is nestled up in Southwest Portland on SW Dosch and Mitchell St, tucked away in a hilly residential area. The homes in the area were very nice, and LOTS of them were for sale. You can park on Mitchell, or do as we did and park along SW Boundary. The SW Boundary end of the park is open, with few trees, and slopes upwards to a playing field with some soccer goals on either end. There's a rather disgusting grate in the ground full of foul water at one end of the field--watch out for that if little ones are running around. The slope is rather steep, and we tried sliding down it on a bit of cardboard--unsuccessfully. The cardboard was simply too small, I think. If we revisit this park, we'll be sure to bring a nice large piece for hill sliding. Hmmm, I think we'll tuck some cardboard into the trunk for other hills we might encounter during this project....

Down the center of the park is a fenced off natural area. There's a creek here called Restoration Creek, but it's only visible within the fenced portion. It then moves underground, beneath the SW Boundary end of the park. There's really no way to get to it so no worries of kids/dogs getting into it. On the fence were those little plastic real estate boxes with pamphlets full of interesting historical information about Albert Kelly and the establishment of the park. I'm a terrific nerd about these things and have never before seen a little neighborhood park offering such a thing. Fantastic! Along one edge of the natural area is a little playground area and picnic table--perfecting for sitting and reading your Albert Kelly Park pamphlet while the kids play.

Farther toward the Mitchell Street end of the park is a rather stunning stand of fir trees. They are full of cheeky ravens chasing squirrels--amusing, but poor squirrels! The park's keepers have placed posts with milk jugs full of produce bags around this end for dog owners who may have forgotten their poop bags. To think of it now, I don't recall seeing any dog waste even though I did see several dogs and their owners. Good job cleaning up, everyone! We all love responsible pet owners.

There are just a few trees in this park suitable for climbing--we made good use of them. The kids also picked dandelions and English daisies, which are scattered attractively throughout the open spaces. (This is a handy site for identifying those park-dwelling plants.) Bug brought her sketchpad with her and pressed a few flowers.

Conclusion: This is a fine neighborhood park. We visited on a sunny, warm Sunday and saw only a few people, mostly dog owners running their dogs off leash. The play area is not impressive enough to keep a child's attention for too long, but then you can stroll a little way and the scenery changes. Some climbing trees and plenty of bugs and flowers. It's located in a nice neighborhood, but I admit I did find getting to it a little tricky. The streets in that area are quite windy and twisty. In fact, Bug became carsick on the return drive home. Parking was not a problem at all. Probably not one we'll visit again, due primarily to the distance from our home.

Welcome to the Portland Parks Project!

The Portland Parks Project is a summer project to explore as many of Portland's beautiful parks as possible. We found ourselves returning to the same parks over and over again, neglecting parks that were too far away or simply unknown to us. As a way to see more of our beloved city, get ourselves out of a rut, have some adventures, and improve the children's writing skills. I hope you will enjoy following us.

Our method is simple: We will be working through the list provided by the Portland Parks & Recreation website here. We will simply visit the parks in alphabetical order, skipping the community schools and the parks that are community gardens only. Afterwards, we will record our thoughts, observations, and photographs here. We have noticed that many of the parks on the list have few or no photos, so we hope others will find ours useful when choosing a park to visit. We plan to visit one park every weekend, sometimes two, rain or shine.

This project has four participants. Each will provide their own thoughts on the parks so that you get several different perspectives, except for one participant who cannot write for herself (see below). Our opinions are shaped by who we are, so you should know a little bit about each of us in order to understand how we might judge a park.

Mom: That's me. I'll be doing most of the writing and photography. Early thirties with a tendency towards sedentary activities (reading, knitting, napping). I like parks with plenty of places to sit and paths well suited to strolling. I'm a terrible driver and am easily confused, so I need a park to be easy to find, and preferably with easy parking nearby.

Bug: Bug is a 10-year-old girl with an artistic spirit. She wishes all trees were built for climbing. She gets car sick very easily, making travel to and from parks interesting. She finds fairies in everything, is obsessed with collecting rocks and pine cones, and likes to press flowers. She wants parks with trees that can be climbed and with gardens for dreaming in.

Bear: Bear is a 7-year-old girl who has been called "The Barbarian" by her teachers. She's fierce and stubborn and sweet. She runs faster than everyone and would travel by jumping from place to place if only people would stop telling her not to. She has a net and loves to catch bugs, observe them, name them, then let them go. She wants parks with open fields for running and playgrounds for climbing.

Thisby: Thisby is a 5-year-old dog. She's very small (13 lbs!) and a lap dog breed, so she's not big on fetching or swimming or running. She's a rescue and doesn't speak "dog" very well, so interactions with other dogs are sometimes unsuccessful. She likes to sniff and explore, but can't be trusted off-leash. HATES getting wet. She likes parks with lots of things to smell, and I like when there are not too many other dogs around. Thisby obviously can't record her opinions, but I can write about how well a park is suited for dogs.

The goal is to update weekly after a park visit, but no promises! I hope you will enjoy exploring Portland's many lovely parks with us.