Southwest Washington is a simple hop over the Columbia from Portland, and includes Vancouver, Camas, Washougal, Battle Ground and Ridgefield in Clark County. An area known for family-friendly events, here are some favorite activities in the area.
Indoor Play Spaces
If the rain has got you down, the Vancouver area has the answer. There are many new indoor play spaces currently open for your littles. Columbia Play Project hosts frequent free indoor play pop-ups. Playstreet Museum’s indoor space features a giant Duplo train table while Chicky Play Museum has an amazing 3D interactive sandbox among other fun features. City Play for Kids provides Eastside entertainment with frequent special events, and Junebug Play & Learning Space in Ridgefield has separate spaces for littles who are on the shy side. There’s a space for everyone.
Outdoor Adventures
You won’t need to travel far across Clark County to see nature, as the town is built around many old and towering trees. The Salmon Creek Trail will take you on a miles-long paved walk where you’ll see ducks, turtles, herons and other wetland friends. The Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge has a rare subspecies of Canada goose and trails wandering past giant oaks. Columbia Springs offers education and nature days, helping kids understand the importance of salmon and environmental stewardship.
Trampoline Parks
For older kids, the city of Vancouver has not one, but two large indoor trampoline parks. Play a game of bouncy basketball or jump to your heart’s content on the many trampolines at Sky Zone. Add bumper cars or go karts to your jumping fun at the newly opened Urban Air Adventure.
Cardboard Sledding
A number of parks in the Vancouver area now feature artificial turf hills as part of the larger playground structure. When it’s warm and dry out, these hills are the ideal spots for grabbing an old cardboard box and sledding down the hills. Check out the baby hills at Esther Short Park or visit larger hillsides at Chelsea Anderson Memorial Play Station (both of which also have inclusive and accessible playgrounds) in west Vancouver or Columbia Tech Center Nature Playground on the eastside.
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