It’s taken little time for families to discover the coolest new outdoor destination in Sonoma County — the one-of-its kind local playground that opened this month at Taylor Mountain Regional Park in Santa Rosa.
Built at the edge of an oak-covered hillside off Petaluma Hill Road, the Red Tail Play Area was inspired by the world that surrounds it, using materials culled from nature and the landscape itself to foster creative, interactive play.
There’s a huge concrete slide and a basket swing roomy enough for several little ones to fit in together, as well as climbing logs, boulders and the human-sized framework of a red-tailed hawk nest with three giant eggs that 11-month-old Maximus Pederson couldn’t seem to get enough.
“He’s obsessed with that. I don’t know why,” his dad, Nic Pederson, of Santa Rosa, said as his son toddled between the vertical supports of the giant would-be nest.
Nearby, daughter Ella Pederson, 3, played with two new friends, climbing up the boulders at the side of the wide slide and lugeing down again on her back.
“This is the new go-to spot,” Nic Pederson said to another parent nearby.
Under construction for much of the past two years, the $642,000 playground has long been in the works for the 1,100-acre park and open space preserve, where it is the first of its kind in the regional park system, forgoing the bright colors, steel and plastic common to many play areas in favor of a materials that blend in with the surrounding landscape.
The terraced terrain, with stone steps alongside the slide, a zigzag trail and plenty of log and rope structures to climb, is also the perfect place for kids to burn off energy. Though expected to draw visitors from around the county, it also will ensure nearby recreation for growing south Santa Rosa neighborhoods.
“The new Red Tail Play Area is a place for families and kids to unleash creativity, build strong bodies and minds, breathe fresh air and create memories with loved ones,” Sonoma County Regional Parks Director Bert Whitaker said in a written statement. “With this opening, we celebrate another significant addition to Taylor Mountain Regional Park and strengthen our commitment to equal access for all people to outdoor recreation and natural spaces — and their proven benefits for mental and physical health.”
Jones said she heard about the playground opening from Davis, who had come for the first time a day earlier, as well. “Word is spreading around the moms’ groups,” she added.
Their two boys were completely at home, running between the picnic table where their mothers sat, the big, wide slide and large rocks that made for fun clambering about. They were soon playing alongside Ella Pederson as if they were old pals.
“The thing that’s so cool,” Mindy Davis said, “is that you can also hike from here — if I can get him to not want to play.”
Joel Wishnoff of Berkeley came to the park with his daughter-in-law and twin grandchildren, Elijah and Sophia Wishnoff, 3, who live locally and who explored the playground hesitantly, at first, before settling in.
“I’ve had to put in swings in their backyard to get them through the last year, but of course they couldn’t interact with other kids,” he said. “Luckily, they could interact with each other.”
Jennifer Green, who lives nearby, zipped over Thursday with the youngest of her two daughters, Liana, 6, during a break from distance learning. They’ve already made a half dozen visits to the playground.
“I love it,” she said. “The girls love it, too.”
What she particularly appreciates, she added, is “I find myself playing more with them at this type of park, and the slide is big enough for a parent.”
The playground was made possible in part through a $250,000 donation from the nonprofit Sonoma County Regional Parks Foundation.
“We are particularly interested in supporting Regional Parks’ projects that introduce children to nature and that serve historically disadvantaged communities,” said Melissa Kelley, the foundation’s executive director.
The project also included funding from Measure M, the one-eighth-cent sales tax passed by county voters in 2018.
You can reach Staff Writer Mary Callahan at 707-521-5249 or mary.callahan@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @MaryCallahanB.