Mountain View Park

When I was just a young tot, we used to go on school field trips to this place. It was legendary! They had big slides, a huge tower fort, and all the swings you could shake a stick at. Were they completely safe? Hell no, but we had more fun than a dog in a bone factory at that park. Sure I came home with a few inch-​long splinters in my bum, but Uncle Chester always coaxed them out with a little baby oil, some rubber gloves, and a few feathers.
Hell, even my daughters grew up going to that park. They had softball games twice a week on their fields. As a father and spectator, I got ejected from my first game at their upper field. Argued balls and strikes till I was blue in the face. The sad thing was that it was still batting practice and the game hadn’t started. Oh well, that’s just the kind of fella I am. I had a lot of firsts at that park… my first field trip, my first kiss, my first kiss with a girl, first slap across the face… I could go on and on.
Well, I was up here at the end of the season this past September, and while there are still some things from my childhood that remain, quite a few things have changed. Gone are the big slide and wooden fort I used to get stuck in while climbing up; they have been replaced with big, plastic, Ronald McDonald looking Fisher-​Price crap. Nothing even remotely dangerous remains, it’s all replaced by safe, conservative stuff (and not the good kinda conservative). I understand the struggle to keep kids safe but pretty soon it’s gonna be a bunch of bean bag chairs and hula hoops, c’mon let the kids be kids. Schools still have nurses right?
Oh and let me be clear. This park is now obnoxious about their no dog policy. Every free piece of real estate is plastered with a NO DOGS ALLOWED sign. My wife even wore her favorite Big Dogs branded t-​shirt and was asked to leave several times.
The athletic fields themselves were in great shape and I must commend the park staff for the great mowjobs. They looked fantastic! Although I must say the tennis courts have seen better days, the amount of cracks, dead spots, and holes reminded me of a PennDOT job. Also, what’s with all the mounds of dirt and gravel towards the upper end? I thought I had stumbled into the back entrance of the Eureka Stone Quarry in Snydersville. On the other hand, If I was still a kid those would probably have been the funnest thing there to play on.
I give it 3 stars just for the fond memories.

I came to this park for a birthday party where one of the picnic areas were rented out/​reserved for the party. It’s a really nice park — playgrounds, tennis courts, picnic areas, hiking trails and many different playgrounds. The picnic areas all were covered by a roof and there were grills to use. Definitely a very good set-​up.
I was also impressed that the grounds were very well maintained. There was almost no litter anywhere and even the bathrooms were pretty clean, for a park. Sometimes they can be a little unkept but not here. Overall, it’s a solid park.