Backpack to Buggy

Congress Park, in downtown Saratoga Springs, NY, seamlessly combines sightseeing and wandering in a kid-friendly environment.  (If it didn’t would I be writing about it here?)  At the southern edge of the pedestrian friendly downtown, the park includes the Saratoga Springs History Museum housed in the historic Canfield Casino, duck filled ponds, a carousel, open lawns, scattered benches, shady trees, natural springs sprouting up in ponds and fountains and not a playground in sight.

A family of ducks along one of Congress Park's ponds.

There is limited auto traffic so it is safe for kids to run wild around with minimum supervision.  The ponds and the War Memorial, a gazebo set on one of the ponds, do not have railings or fences so I was watchful of Mirielle around them.  Otherwise, both my husband and I had time to stroll through the park reading historical markers with stories of the springs or history of the park.  At each spring with a fountain, all three of us tasted the waters.

Namesake, Congress Spring.

The historic wooden carousel, of course, is a magnet for kids’ attention but it is situated fairly discretely.  That means we could spend quite a lot of time wandering around the park before the “Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, can I ride the carousel, PLLLLLEEEEEAAASE?” began.  At only $0.50 per ride (2010 price) we spoiled Mirielle with a few rides.  Possibly better than the carousel were the children congregated on the adjacent lawn.  Par for the friendliness of the Saratoga Springs community, Mirielle was invited to join them playing tag and ball.  Somewhere along the way, I was roped into the games too and was playing ball with a stranger’s child while my daughter was running around with his brother.

She was much quieter after the carousel ride.

Congress Park is stroller friendly.  Free events such as concerts and art shows are often held in the park. There are no public bathrooms in the park, so we ran across the street to the Saratoga Springs Visitor Center.