After visiting Vanier Park for its Bike skills track, Junior wanted to try other bike track close by. We decided to check out the Bike Terrain Park inside Garden City Community Park.

Bike Terrain Park

We got so excited once our car pulled over to the park. This terrain park is a little bigger than the one in Vanier Park and much brighter since it is not covered among trees. Unlike in Vanier Park, where the different level loops are clearly separated, the tracks here are connected (the advanced step hill is separated from the rest though). With no clear separation, it may be fun for skilled riders, where they can ride from one loop to the next with no stop in between; but for new riders like Junior it may be difficult especially when the park is crowded.

Our weekend trip here quickly ended since there were just too many people, and junior didn’t have much space to practice going up and down the hills. Our second attempt here on a weekday morning was a total success! We got the whole park to ourselves! Junior absolutely love going through the beginner and mid level loops. The height of the hills are just right for his balance bike, and he zoomed through the loop like he’s flying.

The condition of the terrain park is very well maintained. Despite the small amount of rain we had last night, the rack still maintained pretty clean and dry when we came on the weekday. There is also one picnic table by the park for spectators.

Garden City Park Condition

After an hour of zooming around in the terrain park, we started our exploration of this urban park. The park is about 24 acres with many walking trails that are mostly paved with gravel and only a small section of flat dirt paths. The entire loop is stroller friendly.

There is a small lake in the middle of the park and you can cross it through a bridge.

Playground

There is a big playground inside the park with many wooden structures to climb around.

One of the main feature of the playground is the long slide which is very popular among the kids. There is also a small water feature in the middle of the playground creating a small stream running through.

Overall the playground looks very new and the structures are all clean and up to date. There are several picnic tables close by where you can relax and also a flush toilet washroom to the side.

Other Activities

This park offers many different activities options, including a fenced off tennis court with two courts available inside.

Just beside the playground is a full basketball court. Although the hoops look dated and old it is still quite functional as there are lights available to make the court available for nighttime play as well.

As mentioned previously, you can also picnic here as there are a few picnic tables around.

Pets

There is a fenced off dog off leash area just beside the parking lot of the park. Dogs can also use the trails in the park when leashed.

Arboretum

At the northwest corner of the park there is a small arboretum with tree species that are endemic to Asia/Oceania and those from the Americas. In fact, they planned this area as a test site to plant different species, and wanted it to become a “living museum of the trees”. Some interesting trees we’ve seen are Pere David’s Maple, the Japanese Stewartia, and the interesting looking Monkey Puzzle.

Breastfeeding

There are several benches available throughout the park.

Parking

There is a parking lot with several spots available when we went on the weekday. Free parking throughout.

Although the park feels quite small, as we completed the loop well under 30 minutes, I’m sure we will come back a few times mainly for the bike terrain park. I definitely would recommend anyone wanting to try out some mountain biking skills to come here for a ride.

• Pedestrian Traffic: moderate, can get busy on the weekend especially in the playground and the bike terrain park.
• Pet Traffic: moderate
• Facilities: excellent
• Overall Score: 8/10 (thanks in large part to the the well designed bike park)