Enjoy Wildwood Parks This Summer

is a city of green space, and as such, it has parks of all sizes and shapes to cater to different tastes.

As June—observed as national Great Outdoors Month—concludes, it prompts the question of which one of the great area-parks are the favorite.

Here is a rundown of parks located in Wildwood:  

Anniversary Park, located at 16511 Clayton Rd., was built in honor of Wildwood's 10th anniversary. Some of the amenities children can enjoy include a the playground, swing, roll on grass, and romp. The park also has multiple park benches on the perimeter of the play area, so adults can keep an eye on them.

The park also offers a basketball court, barbecue pits and an on-site pavilion, which can be reserved for $30 to residents and $50 to non-residents.

This park is located right behind



Greensfelder Park, located on 1,646 acres of land, has it all. Located at 4515 Hencken Rd., Greensfelder offers walking and biking trails, campsites, shelters, picnic sites, grills, a nature learning center and a playground. In addition, Greensfelder is a horse-friendly park, which offers equestrian-specific camp sites and paths.

Greensfelder Park, a county park founded in 1963, also offers tremendous views of the Missouri Ozark mountain range. Pets are allowed on leash only, and fire is permitted in designated areas.

The park opens daily from 8 a.m. to 30 minutes past sunset.

Old Pond School Park/Playground

The Old Pond School Park, really more of a playground, located at 17123 Manchester Rd., sits on the site of a school house dating back to 1914. The school is closed except for scheduled city-related meetings, but the site was renovated to become a park for children to enjoy.

Among its amenities, the Old Pond School Park has two swings, a slide, merry-go-round and wooden see-saws. The park also offers a picnic shelter.

A downside to the park, it only offers porta-potties for restrooms.

Glencoe Park

Glencoe Park is Wildwood’s newest addition to its family of parks. Opened in June 2011, this 10-acre park offers swings and jungle-gym setups for children.

The park is located by the Wabash Frisco and Pacific Railroad, a 12-inch gauge steam locomotive railroad that is operated by volunteers during May through October, rain or shine. The railroad ride is a two-mile round trip that lasts about 30 minutes and travels along the scenic Meramec River.



Babler State Park, the big, green patch of land on the Wildwood map, is located at 800 Guy Park Dr.

The park, which sits in the hills surrounding the Missouri River, has 77 campsites, an Olympic-size swimming pool, a visitor center with exhibits about native wildlife, a horseback-riding concession for those who do not bring their own horses, and 13 miles of hiking and equestrian trails.

Babler Park, founded in 1937, is accessible to all, providing outdoor experiences for those with special needs at the Jacob L. Babler Outdoor Education Center, a barrier-free resident camp with swimming pool (exclusive to outdoor education center users), cabins and recreation and dining halls.

This week, Babler Park hosted the annual Muscular Dystrophy Association summer camp for children.

The park’s hours are: April through October, daily, 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.; November through March, daily, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.

One of the oldest Missouri Department of Conservation areas for forest and wildlife preservation, Rockwoods Reservation lives up to its reputation as a zenith for outdoor enthusiasts and naturalists. Its history tracks back to the 1700s when fur trappers passed through to sell their items to a "new settlement" called St. Louis.

Visitors will see remnants of former lime kilns, mining, and quarrying, admist butterfly gardens, prairie fields and feeding birds.

The Conservation Education Center on the property houses exhibits about the state's fish, forests and wildlife. It makes an excellent field trip for scout troops, school groups and other organizations.  Advanced registration is preferred.

Special hours apply for the 1,880-acre area.