What a fun adventure we had at Alpha Ridge Park. Our visit consisted of 2 playgrounds and one solar system walk.
Initial Impressions
We started the morning parking near the playground located near Ballfields #1 and #2. The parking lot was empty! The first playground is small and aimed for older children (ages 5-12). Although it is small, it is bright and aesthetically pleasing. It is basically a circle with ropes and poles to climb up. It has a big yellow slide (which you have to climb up pretty high for a toddler to get to). My 4 year old loved it. My 2 year old couldn’t do as much but he liked running down the hills to the baseball fields next to the playground.
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Walk it Out
Next up was our solar system walk. My daughter loves learning about the planets. We followed a pathway with signs of each planet describing some fun facts about them. The whole solar system walk is .4 mile. There is an observatory but it was closed when we went.
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The Last Stop
Our last stop was at the younger child playground (ages 2-5). This was a woodland theme. Again, it was small but the perfect size for my 2 and 4 year old. It helped that nobody else was there so we had the whole space to ourselves!
There was 2 swings (a baby and an accessible swing). There was a log to climb under along with “mushrooms” and “tree stumps” to climb on!
We really enjoyed being able to do multiple things in one visit. Although there was nobody there on a weekday morning- watch out for weekends when there may be sports games. We can’t wait to go back to explore it again!
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Quick stats:
Alpha Ridge Park
11685 Old Frederick Road, Marriottsville, MD 21104
Bathrooms: Yes (by the observatory)
Parking: Yes-multiple parking lots.
Picnic Benches: 2 picnic pavilions (first come, first serve unless reserved)
Swings: 1 baby + 1 accessible swing on “younger” playground (near Ballfield #3)
People Traffic: nobody was there on a weekday morning but most likely crowded on weekends with sports games!
Nearby Food: GO Primo’s NY Pizza just 5 minutes down the road.
Let us know if you have any playground suggestions for us to check out in Maryland via our social media or email us.
Katrina is a Maryland mom of two toddlers and has become an avid playground
explorer since the playgrounds re-opened during the pandemic. You can follow
along with her visits at @marylandkiddos. She enjoys reading, music and walks
outdoors. Recently she has combined her experience as a parent with her
master’s degree in psychology to launch a new page @connectingwithkatrina,
which aims to connect parents and children to nature and their emotional health
through virtual and in-person guides and classes.