Anderson Point Park - raleighparks.org

Celebrating a Preschool Graduate & Top 6 Parks for Picnics

May 25, 2018 by Kris Montgomery

And, just like that, I’m watching my youngest, Claire, have her final preschool days at The School of Grace. While I know we’ll have a full summer together, her preschool graduation means her kindergarten milestone is just around the corner in August, and it’ll be a big changing of the guard moment for me.

I’ve had the lucky opportunity to stay home with the girls over the past 7 years! Having both girls in elementary school next year means I’m losing more time with them. While I’m excited to have more time to myself, I’ll miss staying so connected. And, these final few days signify a lot of “lasts” with just her.

Last days walking her into preschool and watching her “sign in”
Last days getting a big squeeze as I pass her onto her teacher
Last days she hangs with me after school eating a snack, helping or running amok in the classroom
Last days her and I sing to the Trolls soundtrack or Avett Bros with the windows down after we drop big sis at school
Last impromptu mid-day park visits
Last days she runs up to me for hugs on the preschool playground
Last days I get to spend a solid four hours of uninterrupted together time being her Helping Parent

While I’m hopeful she’ll mature a little this summer, I wrestle with the desire to let her be her. As much as she brings the ~~potty words~~ energy to the party, she also gives the best hugs ever and loves to have picnics. Though we’ve been butting heads a lot lately (probably our way of processing the upcoming changes) I’m so proud of this spunky, comedic, crazy, intensely loving chic!

Top 6 Parks for Picnics with Preschoolers

Like I mentioned above Claire loves picnics. She loves to throw them for her lovies at home, bring them to friends’ houses or to a park. Here are our 6 favorite local parks to have a picnic:

Roanoke Park (Five Points, 1500 Cherokee Dr) – features a large open grassy area adjacent to a smaller age playground area with lots of benches; open field has several trees along the perimeter perfect for climbing and a shady picnic; I’m a huge fan of ordering take out from Nofo and picnicking here
North Wake Landfill Park (North Raleigh, 9300 Deponie Dr) – enjoy a picnic under the large pavilion next to the playground area; if you want to take in amazing 360-degree views of Wake County, hike the short but steep trail to the top of the hill
Lassiter Mill Historic Park (ITB, intersection of Lassiter Mill Rd & Lassiter Circle) – throw a blanket down on the sandy beach near Crabtree Creek, provided the water levels aren’t too high; then, skip some rocks in the water together or wade out into the water
Mordecai Mini Park (ITB, 1122 N Blount St) – features lots of shady spots on the mulch or at the picnic tables; great fenced-in playground for kids of all ages with slides, swings and climbing areas; walk to Escazu for amazing hot chocolate or ice cream push-pops afterwards
Dorothea Dix Park (ITB, multiple access points) – has a mix of picnic spots with views of downtown Raleigh, tree groves, and open grassy areas; our favorite picnic spot is near the Big Field (101 Blair Dr) under the trees along the perimeter; the girls love to ride their bikes, barrel roll down the hills, or kick the ball around
Anderson Point Park (east Raleigh, 20 Anderson Point Dr) – follow the paved trail around the park for several picnic options; enjoy a picnic while swinging on the bench swings overlooking the park; sit on the stone wall or grassy spots at the amphitheater; walk up the spiral path to another scenic overlook and sit on the wooden benches while enjoying the view; one of our favorite spots to enjoy a picnic is in the large grassy spots near the playground area

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Crabtree Creek Trail: MP 0 to 4.75

January 4, 2016 by Kris Montgomery

Back in November we took advantage of my aunt visiting and went on a greenway biking day date! We biked along Crabtree Creek Trail from milepost 0 to 4.75, completing the final segment of this greenway that we had left to explore. We parked at Anderson Point Park and biked past the traffic circle near the park’s main entrance to the Crabtree Creek Trail greenway entrance and headed west (note: there are also signs for Neuse River Trail).

This portion of the greenway was pretty flat, but offered a lot to look at along the way. We biked almost 5 miles and crossed several bridges and went under several overpasses on this trail segment. From Anderson Point Park, we headed west where we biked under Rogers Ln and US-64, S New Hope Rd, I-440, New Bern Ave and then followed the sidewalk along Milburnie Rd before connecting up with more of the greenway. After Milburnie Rd, the trail was covered in leaves and got rather hilly. We saw some pretty water views from the high banks of Marsh Creek but also saw less desirable views of the abandoned nightclub, Envy.

We biked until about mile marker 4.75 where we turned around at an abandoned commercial building with a gantry crane to ensure we returned to the park before sunset (note: just past this spot is Lockwood Park). The ride back was as refreshing and quiet as the ride in, covering more wooded areas than residential areas. We passed a few runners and bikers along the way, but this section of the trail definitely felt less travelled compared to others. After our bike ride, we quickly came home to change and then hopped back into the car for part 2 of our date at the new Cinebistro movie theater in Cary where we saw The Martian…a relaxing end to a fun date!

Thumbs up: road signage at highway overpasses, quiet/relaxing ride

Thumbs down: lack of signage about upcoming parks/playgrounds along bike route

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Neuse River Greenway: MP 15-17 & Milburnie Dam

February 17, 2014February 17, 2014 by Kris Montgomery

While I was training for the City of Oaks 10k last fall, it gave us a chance to try out several trails during my longer runs on the weekend. One Saturday we headed over to the Neuse River Greenway near Anderson Point Park for a 4 mile run. The Neuse River Greenway runs through Anderson Point Park and since I had explored part of the trail south of the park, we decided to park in the small lot prior to the entrance to Anderson Point Park and run north.

The parking lot at 22 Anderson Point Dr is rather large and serves for access to the greenway, overflow parking to the park, and canoe launch access to the river. After parking, we headed north on the greenway and shortly saw mile marker 17 and signs for Mingo Creek Trail, which is maintained by the Town of Knightdale.

Along our 4 mile run (2 miles out and back) we passed over several pedestrian bridges, ran under New Bern Ave, passed a good amount of bikers and runners and discovered the beautiful Milburnie Dam. The nearby greenway bridge provides great straight-on views of the dam, which has been out of commission since the 80s. Milburnie Dam was first built in the mid-1850s as a power source for a paper mill. From powering a paper mill, streetcars, and gristmill this dam has seen several changes since its inception according to the on-site information guide. While the dam hasn’t been in use since the 1980s, it has since created a vibrant habitat for several animals. In researching more about the dam it seems that removal of the dam has been debated for the last decade so its future use is unknown. In the meantime, be sure to visit this great spot for some amazing photo opportunities…yet another reason why running on the greenway can provide beautiful surprises.

There is a small parking lot for quicker access to Milburnie Dam near the intersection of Old Milburnie Rd and Loch Haven Rd.

Check out Raleigh Nature’s blog post for more information on the Milburnie Dam.

Thumbs up: beautiful views of Milburnie Dam, relatively flat and shady greenway, having a playground near the greenway

Thumbs down: nothing to report

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Neuse River Trail Opening

July 22, 2013July 22, 2013 by Kris Montgomery

A couple of months ago we attended the Neuse River Trail grand opening at Anderson Point Park located at 20 Anderson Point Dr. Most grand openings we attend are usually low-key and only involve a few important speakers, but this celebration was full of food trucks, live music, crafts for kids, local vendors and more. As typical, we sat through 5 minutes of the grand opening speeches and then played on the playground before hitting up the food, vendors and crafts.

The Neuse River Trail is located on the eastern side of Raleigh paralleling the Neuse River with 7 bridges over the river throughout the trail; it begins at Falls Dam Lake and continues south past the WRAL Soccer Park, Buffaloe Rd Park, Milburnie Park, Anderson Pointe Park and to the Johnston County line. The new section of trail added 20 additional miles, bringing the total distance of this paved trail to 27.5 miles. The Neuse River Trail allows for easy connections west to Crabtree Creek Trail or Walnut Creek Trail and is a great connection between the municipalities of Wake Forest, Raleigh, Knightdale, and Johnston County. Part of the trail is also a segment of the Mountains to Sea Trail that extends from the Great Smokey Mountains to the Outer Banks.

After devouring some delicious pizza from my favorite local food truck, Klausie’s, Ashley and I headed south on the trail for about a mile before her patience and the time got the best of us. The parts of the trail we walked were gorgeous – the trails are 10ft wide, the views of the river are amazing, and the bridges make for exciting photo ops.

To access the Neuse River Trail near Anderson Point Park, the parking spots are either inside the park or at the parking lot near the canoe put-in at 22 Anderson Point Dr. At this location, you’ll be near mile marker 17 of 27.5. I can’t wait to return and explore more of the trail on bike next time!

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