Butternut Creek Park: a sprayground and a shelter for the long visit

Butternut Creek Park is one to keep in mind when you want a visit that lasts longer than an hour.

The sprayground is the centre of it for younger children. Like most water play, it is weather-dependent and seasonal, so it rewards a quick check before you set out rather than a hopeful drive.

What distinguishes Butternut Creek is the picnic shelter. A covered table changes what a park visit can be: somewhere to eat, somewhere to retreat when the sun is too strong, and somewhere to put a bag down that is not the grass. If you are the parent who packs lunch, this is a park that rewards it.

There is also a basketball court, which gives an older sibling something to do that is genuinely theirs rather than a smaller child's activity they are tolerating.

What to think about before you go. Picnic shelters are often first-come at smaller parks and can be reserved at larger ones — if a shelter is the reason you are going, it is worth confirming rather than assuming. Bring towels for the sprayground, and expect the walk back to the car to be a wet one.

Best for: longer visits, packed lunches, and families who want somewhere to sit that is not on the ground.