Thomas Street South Reserve Playground, Thomas Street, Hampton
The original fort style wooden adventure playground was a much loved playground and we visited the new playground with some trepidation. Would the new upgraded playground match up to the old favourite? It certainly does and provides a wonderful play experience for people of all abilities and ages.
The centre of the playground has a circular path which encloses the Eyrie - tall towers with lots of crawling opportunities, the Castle which has high walkways with a medium sized tunnel slide and a wave slide, in-ground trampolines and a swing zone - a big birds nest swing, a swing with plastic seat and three standard swings.
At the back of the Eyrie is a super music zone with a DJ table where Hampton's finest young DJs can mix music for their friends to enjoy. I understand that the top ranked DJ in Australia, Timmy Trumpet, has heard the music zone is so good that he may pay a visit in the future. You can also make music by dancing on panels set into the ground, play a metal drum or bang a clanger against a row of pipes.
Stay alert in the music area because it is next to a shaded water splash pad. Press the button to activate water sprays from the concrete pad.
On the other side of the music area is a huge set of plastic Sway seats which seem to be resting on wobbly jelly and dual flying foxes - one with a disk seat and the other with a harness seat.
Wander across the path and you'll enter the Ruins. Budding knights can try and extract the sword from the stone. I did have an attempt at pulling the sword out of the stone but quickly decided it might be better for someone else to get the glory of success and sit at the Round Table with King Arthur.
Beside the Ruins is a fun sandpit covered with a shade sail which has sand play tables and a water play area with a tap where the water runs down channels in some logs.
A boardwalk leads into the dark and broody Casuarina Grove where imaginations can run riot. This area has a metal frame for a cubby and wooden animal carvings.
There are plenty of other interesting and engaging play areas. A highlight for older kids is the big revolving hamster / mouse wheel for humans - I think Bayside council has connected it to the council offices to drastically cut their power bills. There is also a rock climbing wall with an eagle carved into it and a compact parkour area.
Off to the side is a small mound slide with a very gentle slope. Keep an eye out for a cow seat and some giant vegetables, a treasure chest with gold coins spilling out and some weird and wonderful animal carvings.
Take a short wander up the path to the lookout area which has totem poles with bird and animal carvings. There is a 500m circuit walking path around the reserve and a huge grassy area behind the playground.
There are three shelters with tables and BBQs, another shelter with tables, more tables amongst the shady trees, water taps and toilets (which have a 'Changing Places' facility to meet the needs of people with complex disabilities).
Away from the main playground area is a Senior's exercise area under shade sails. It has an extensive set of exercise equipment, a shelter with tables, water tap and unshaded seating.
The seniors exercise area features a range of outdoor equipment for gentle exercise, designed for older people to help improve balance, strength, functional movement, joint range of motion and mobility. The equipment includes a shoulder wheel, hand roll, shoulder arches, wave bar, serpentine path, balance beam, sit and up, step and calf, bench workout, finger stairs, balance spring, hip spring, balance rail, wrist workout and memory game. There are information boards explaining the correct use of the equipment but make sure you bring your reading glasses since the writing is quite small.
You don't need to display a Senior's card to enter this area and younger members of the community could also utilise this equipment.
Overall this is a fantastic playground with something for everyone. It shows you don't need a nose-bleedingly high slide to create a great playground.
Photos:
Location
164 Thomas Street, Hampton 3188 Map
Web Links
→ 100 Free Water Play Spaces in Melbourne and Regional Victoria
