Harriett M. Wieder Regional Park, Huntington Beach

I've been wanting to visit the Harriett M. Wieder Regional Park for a while now. It's four acres of pathways with a view over Bolsa Chica and it will, ultimately, connect to the Bolsa Chica State Beach. How awesome is that?

What with one thing and another, I didn't make it until this weekend. Not, perhaps, the best time to visit since it was raining steadily for a good part of the day and had rained all night, making the paths unsuitable for walking (sliding down, maybe; that might have worked).


Clearly, I need to make another visit because, quibbles about the weather aside, the park looks very promising. I enjoy parks that allow for bird and bug watching, and there looks to be plenty of habitat. Even in the rain, there were a lot of sparrows out by the side of the road. With only half a mile of trail (as yet), it's not going to turn into a favorite exercise spot, but as a place to visit and watch the wildlife, it may well be worth paying attention to. Also, I think I'd like to see the view under more propitious circumstances. I mean, it was nice, in a gloomy, rain-soaked sort of way, but it takes sun to really bring out the sparkle.


I have to say, the playground does look good, too. It's unique among the OC playgrounds (at least, the ones I've seen so far), and both the older and younger kids side have a lot of areas for climbing, sliding, and swinging. Actually, kids could play on this particular playground even in the rain (if their mothers didn't mind them getting wet, that is) because it is paved with that lovely, bouncy stuff  ("rubberizing surface" according to the OC Parks website) that I wish would show up more on adult exercise surfaces, like sidewalks.


Oh, and there is plenty of parking. At least, it was nearly empty the day I was there, but given the park's slightly out of the way location, I doubt it's ever packed. It may eventually link up with the Bolsa Chica State Beach, but it hasn't done so now, and even then, it will be a bit far for the surfers to cart their boards all the way from the parking lot to the beach.

There are plenty of nice trees, too, including a few that, oddly, have plastic sprinklers running right up to their bases.