Liberty Park

Play on sandy playground at picturesque park in Powell

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When there’s nothing particular to do on a warm afternoon in central Ohio, my family and I often seek out an awesome playground or a picturesque park.

We recently found both at Liberty Park at 2845 Home Road in Powell, Ohio. From the moment you enter the park’s winding driveway, between white picket fences surrounded by marigolds, you know you’ve found a secluded sanctuary to while away the hours. Across the street is a placid cornfield.

The park contains soccer fields, softball diamonds and basketball and tennis courts. It also has a fishing pond, sledding hill and nearly two-mile walking loop through the woods and over bridges. My kids, though, ran straight for the big playground.

Labeled “Every Kid’s Playground,” the equipment is the kind parents are coming to expect at playgrounds these days: interconnected contraptions that encourage children to climb, scale, swing and slide. This one also has a popular rolling slide, sand area and lots of flowers planted along the perimeter.

What I liked best was how noticeably quiet the park is, distanced from noisy highways and housing developments. It just seemed to exist, tucked under the wide-open sky. Most parents there seemed to know one another, and kept quietly to themselves, too, adding to the serenity.

The park, which is operated by the Liberty Township Parks Department, is open daily from 9 a.m. to dusk.