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PARKS
29
Wickham Park B1.
This super-size park,
almost 400 acres, is filled with open spaces, lakes and
woodsy areas, a great place for a family bike ride. Wickham Park is a
popular
place because it has lots of sports fields for playing on. There are two
swimming
lakes with lifeguards in the summer, and one has a playground nearby. Over
one hundred camp sites are hidden in the pines in the back of the park.
Many outdoor festivals are held here throughout the year.
-2500 Parkway Dr. Melbourne (321) 255-4307
Flutie Athletic Complex B2.
This grassy community
park is so close to the beach, you are sure to catch an
ocean breeze or two. There are tennis courts, soccer and ball fields, a
multi-use
field for whatever you can think of, and a really creative playground. The
3
climbing structures here are a patriotic red, white and blue, with a total
of 10
slides. Also you will find sand diggers, a dolphin and pelican sea-saw, a
dinosaur
rocker, a pretend ‘mountain’ stairway, and plenty of monkey-bar type
things to
hang from. There are handicap-accessible swings, plus one that looks and
spins
sort of like a UFO. The little kid structure has a tunnel and spinners.
Wood chips
and a squishy ground covering make falling down no big problem. There is a
covered pavilion and bathrooms, too.
-2101 Oak St. west of A1A Melbourne Beach (321) 952-4650
Ryckman Park B2.
This neighborhood park has a terrific playground with swings, two
climbing
structures with slides, tunnels and a pulley, tennis and basketball
courts, shady
places under scraggly oaks, a gazebo and a large grassy area to run
around.
Benches overlooking the Indian River Lagoon make a good resting spot. A
very
long pier stretches out on the water and leads to a covered pavilion for
fishing or
just looking around. There are restrooms and a water fountain.
-507 Ocean Av. Melbourne Beach (north on A1A, west on Ocean Av.)
Long Point Park and Campground C2.
You’ll feel like you
are really getting away from it all at this park. Come by boat
or car for a day trip, or stay longer and spend the night in your tent.
There’s a
pond for people to swim in, and a wildlife pond just for the mud turtles,
birds and
other critters that live here. The park ranger can tell you all about what
you might
see here—bottle-nose
dolphins and manatee,
ibis,
river otters and unusual plants
like the whisk fern;
so old it is found in fossils from the days of
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