Panhandle Playground

We went there for the first time today. A father came up to me and showed me a switch blade. He said his son found it in the sand and handed it to him asking him what it was! SCARY!

Nice little gem of a playground. Lots of sand to play around in, along with a cool play structure with multiple slides. I’ve been taking our 19 month old there on a regular basis and she loves it (particularly the swings, which she doesn’t really like to share), but the play structure is definitely a little big for a child her age. You still see lots of toddlers on it, but the railing heights and whatnot are probably better for 4 and up.

Tire swing, swings, slides and sand pit. Great playground for smaller kids. There are also a few tables for eating or playing checkers. At lunchtime, after school and on weekends, it gets busy but it thins out around lunch, dinner and nap time. There are benches surrounding the playground so you can watch as they play. There is a water fountain inside and bathrooms right next door. It’s not a large playground but it will keep the kids busy for an hour. Since it is in the middle of the panhandle, there has been some graffiti and breaking of equipment, but it is maintained. Good playground to incorporate with a walk and ice cream at Ben & Jerry’s on Haight.

On a nice weekend day this place is packed.
It thins out at lunch time.
Tons of benches and 3 picnic tables
4 swings
1 tire swing
1 large play structure
On the weekdays you have a bunch of working families in the evenings. During the daytime its a nanny and grand parent crowd.
Lately this place has been trashed. Things are broken and beat up. But it’s still a great little play area.

This is a very good playground for toddlers. The equipment is in good condition and the climbing structure is built low enough to the ground that you don’t have to spend every minute worrying that your child will fall and break something. There are enough swings to go around and there is plenty of seating for all the weary parents. Also, the play area is entirely enclosed with a chain fence so your child can’t wander off.
The only real disadvantage is that the nearest bathroom is absolutely filthy. (It’s a port-​a-​potty with used syringes scattered all over the floor.) So, if your child is out of diapers, make sure they use the toilet at home ahead of time. Alternatively, in a pinch, you can walk over to Coffee to the People at the corner of Haight and Masonic and use the nice clean bathroom there free of charge.