This review is for Ted - a literal human angel Ted, the park attendant in the RV in the corner of the lot, rescued a dog that I had lost while dogsitting for the first time for some new friends. When I arrived at his RV after the owner told me Kemba had been found there, Kemba was sitting in his lap, recieving some calming pats on her head after a very stressful last 90 minutes of wandering away and being found shivering in a bathroom stall. On top of the stress and frustration at myself for allowing that to happen, I comforted by Ted's warmth towards her upon her discovery, and by his warm, sincerely helpful demeanor that he demonstrated while explaining the story to me - the embarrassed and stressed dog sitter who had made a mistake. I so appreciate Ted's presence at Cottonwood Park. He said he helps with a lot of conflict resolutions in the parking lot, which I really respect, because I used to do conflict resolution for over 4 years in courts and interpersonally. I didn't tell him that, but I felt his grounded, service-oriented presence and quiet contributions that he likely makes to everyone who passes through. Thanks so much for your help - and for helping Kemba, who is now snuggled up next to my leg under a blanket read more

Your park hours listed here are until 10pm. If that is not accurate you all need to update it. My son and I used to love this park, but tonight at 8:20, about 15 minutes after the sun went down I was sitting in the parking lot finishing writing a segment for work. The grounds keeper (I assume that's who he was) came up to my car with a flash light and started screaming at me to "get outta here" you're the only car left! I asked him what the hours were because I had seen 10pm on this site (yelp) and I was just sitting there not bothering anyone. He said it closed at dusk, I asked if there was a sign he could show me or if it showed an actual sign, to which he yelled at me again to "get the f outta here" while flashing his light at me through my window with my 5 year old son in the back I don't think he realized was with me who I am now calming down because it was a scary interaction as a woman to be screamed at and a flashlight in my face by a random man, who did not identify himself and just yelled out at me to get out. I have never experience anything that scary at a friendly and happy park that we were frequent visitors at, but safe to say we won't be back and hopefully I can find other places to report him as thats not a safe environment with someone like that, nor have I ever been ran out of a family park parking lot by a strange unidentified man. I've also attached a photo that shows the park on maps and yelp says open til 10pm, as well as Facebook. Either way, the behavior was completely unacceptable for a random man it seems like the park allows to live and park there in a trailer and harass anyone, especially a woman since he saw I was alone and defenseless and with a young child. read more

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Absolutely rad park for pickleball in Encinitas! Conveniently located centrally between the freeway and the beach. Have always found parking in the lot. Gorgeous green scenery combined with the ocean breeze. Well maintained courts with friendly players. read more

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Beautiful park that definitely has some money put into it. Great for pickleball or the kids. The jungle gym has some rock climbing areas and looked fun. My wife even hung on some monkey bars for a bit. Not a huge park so walking your dog will be a short trek. There is limited parking, but you won't regret visiting. read more

Ted Wilson, the park host, was kind enough to reach out to me the same evening about a wallet I'd lost on the premises. He was kind and understanding. Thanks for keeping the park safe and clean, Tim! read more

Large varied terrain park with a busy human filled area w gazebo area and a nice big hill for rolling...and a quieter grass and path area for dog walking. Has some big boulders to relax on and amazing sycamore trees to walk beneath. Near a busy street at one end but nicely buffered near human play zone. read more

Cottonwood Creek Park - Doggie area for sniffin' - Playgrounds Near Me - Encinitas, California

I was excited to head to this park to play tennis. Unfortunately, pickle ball has taken over all the tennis courts. I wish I would have read that in the yelp reviews. So, if you are going to Cottonwood creek to play pickleball - have fun! If you are going to try to play tennis, don't bother. read more

This park is so cool! The playground has options for older kids and tiny tots. Plenty of shade trees and bathrooms that aren't terror worthy! You really can't go wrong. The one draw back is the parking is a bit of a walk, so if you're juggling kids and gear it could be a bit of a pain. And there are stairs to get down to the park and the grass area. I'm assuming there's a ramp, but accessibility could be a bit of a struggle. I have tried the walking paths yet but hope to check that out soon. My son loves the playground and there's plenty for the kiddos to go wild on. It's a quick hop to the beach. Definitely give this place a visit. read more

Cottonwood Creek is a beautiful park. It runs right along Encinitas Blvd. but the trees and landscape make it feel a lot more secluded than you'd think. There are grassy hills, multiple picnic areas, bathrooms, and a fun playground. The trees are large and mature and the whole area appears to be well kept. Unfortunately, beautiful as it is, the negatives are quite significant. The parking lot is too small and nearly always full. There is no shade over the playground. And worst of all, nearly the entire playground flooring is SAND. If I wanted to track this much sand into my house (or spend the time washing and wiping 10 little feet) I'd go to the beach! Sandy bottomed playgrounds are the absolute nemesis to a clean car and clean floor. Hopefully someday they'll swap it out for the more common rubber playground flooring. All that said, PRAISE THE LORD this playground is open! I mean, technically it's still closed (there is one tiny sign stating this at the entrance) but no one is enforcing the closure and there are tons of kids each time we've gone. I'll take a playground with sand over no playground at all. read more

This is a beautiful park and is probably ok in the middle of the day with lots of people around. However, in the early morning there are homeless stumbling around the park, sleeping on the tables, talking to themselves, screaming into the air, and doing drug deals in the bushes. I do not feel safe going here. It is a shame that Encinitas lets its parks be frequented by these people so the tax paying public does not feel safe going here. Come on Encinitas, you can do better! read more

This is a great family oriented park with some very good facilities. It offers well maintained restrooms, picnic facilities, and a children's playground. I have been here a few times now, once for a birthday party and once for a walk and to read a book, and both times my visits were very pleasant. The park has a circular basketball court and a fences off tennis court. I liked the shaded gazebo and the variety of shaded trees about the park. The park is continuously well maintained, with great looking grassy areas, well maintained and clean paths with decomposed granite, and Cottonwood Creek is kept free of liter and debris and runs pretty aggressive after a recent rain. Both times I visited the restrooms, it was clean enough. The parking lot is of good size and I was surprise when I read that they park allows beer and wine. It's a great park for a young one's birthday party, to play some hoops, or just to relax. read more

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I've misjudged this little park. I always thought that it was adjacent to the road, a possible danger to kids who are a little too enthusiastic when kicking a soccer ball. But, now that I'm here, there's a lot of nice and rolling greenery separated from Encinitas Boulevard by fencing and they filled with foliage trench. With a lot of green park area, a good-sized playground, plenty of tables for picnic seating, a gazebo, a good good-sized basketball court, fully functioning restrooms, trails to get a good hike in on, and even a tennis court, there's plenty to do for a lot of children and quite a bit left over for adults to socialize, rest, and have playtime of their own. With the Encinitas community park being chock full of people even on cloudy weekdays, this place seems like a great alternative for my son to have a good time. And there are still many other children for him to have a good time alongside without having to worry about butting heads and needing more elbow room. read more

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Climb the rock and if you get to the top fly a kite, you will know what i am talking about when you get there and go to the playground!! Even big kids and adults love it!! read more

Tried to play pickle ball but there is no organized approach and no way to know who is waiting to play, for how long people on courts have been playing or how to get onto a court. Pickle ball is extremely popular, there needs to be some organization to their courts. read more

Adore adore adore this little Park! It's clean, safe and peaceful! It's rolling hills, mini hike like paths and small stream make it so quant and sweet. Major perks of Parks I look at... Potties: CLEAN and well maintained Playground condition: Clean and well maintained Surroundings: NO litter, no shady characters and people actually follow the leashing of their pups for the most part. We came this day to throw a 2yr olds birthday party and it was GREAT! It does one have 1 covered table area so we lucked out with nabbing it for our birthday. I've come sometimes just to lay out a blanket and stare at the sky...I adore it every time! read more

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awesome park. well kept and a bunch if other families around. you can feel the breeze of the ocean which is great

Covid-19 Review: We went out for a drive with the entire family so that we could get some fresh air, and we ended up in San Diego. Got some taco takeout and needed a place to sit and eat. Cottonwood Creek Park was close, so we drove by and saw that the parking lot was open. The playground and restrooms were also open, which was a little surprising to me, as they are still closed in Irvine/Tustin. We sat on the grass and ate our food and it was a nice reprieve during this time. There were a few families there, and all were social distancing. There are a couple of tennis courts towards the back next to the basketball court, a big playground with sand, and grass for kids to run around. Towards the street side, there is a small little stream or runoff, with tiny fish swimming in there. Good to keep kids entertained for a minute. But it was nice just to be able to get out and stretch our legs. Parking is limited here, so people usually drive around until someone leaves if the small lot is full. read more

We just hosted our daughter's 1st birthday party here, with 30 or so people & lots of kiddos - it was such a great choice!! Tons of space for everyone to lay out their blankets & chairs, in addition to the 3 picnic tables under the gazebo. I would've given this 5 stars, however I had to get to the park at 4:50 (just before it opened at 5am) so that I could be the 1st one there to reserve it. On the city's website, there are no reservations...only first come first serve. There was actually someones stuff there from the night before, from people trying to reserve it - but I was there first, (they got there later) and I didn't budge - so that's the risk you take if you plan an event here (FYI). All in all - I would DEFINITELY recommend this park to friends & family. I love Encinitas, have been an on/off resident for my entire life... I remember when this park was a complete waste of land... it was an empty dirt lot with a little shack in the middle. Good job to the city for bringing this wonderful park to the residents...if only there was at least ONE more gazebo area!! read more

Cottonwood Creek Park - View of our party at the gazebo - Playgrounds Near Me - Encinitas, California

This is a gorgeous place to have a picnic, host a gathering or birthday party for kids, play tennis or just enjoy the day. Very scenic and only a few years old, this beautiful spot is also only steps away from Moonlight Beach and Old-Town Encinitas. It has a gazebo with built in tables but there are plenty of other areas to gather. Beer and wine are also allowed but no glass containers. They have a great playground area that has a small water section and a climbing rock. The tennis courts are also in great shape. Come and visit this wonderful park and get lost in the joy of living. read more

Cottonwood Creek Park - Playgrounds Near Me - Encinitas, California

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Went to this park to play tennis, and was quite literally bullied off the court. There were two tennis courts and when we arrive there were 8 pickle ball courts set up in the two courts. For Court 1, there is priority for tennis and for court 2 there is priority for pickle ball. There is a clearly displayed sign in court 1 that says if someone would like to play tennis, then pickle ball players need to move off the court and wait for a pickle ball court. When we asked the pickle ball players to move, they refused! A group of male pickle ball players would not move for me and my friend (both females), until another male backed us up. Additionally, there was a group of older folks who we had to ask to move. A man in this group took a picture of us unwarranted, without our consent. They also watched us play tennis, and made comment like "Did you see how she hit that?" and "It would make sense if they asked us to move if they were good...". I would not recommend playing tennis, nor would I ever return. The general vibes are unwelcoming, prejudice, sexist, and entitled. Especially the older crowd! read more

Clean, Kid-Friendly, Lots of benches, plenty of places to sit, a large amount of the playground area is sand, and there's a nice field just up the stairs and a little bridge that you can go on that overlooks the creek (nothing amazing, it's not that clean or pretty) and it has minnows in it. -Climbing wall -2 sets of swings -Teeter totter for toddlers -Small Plastic Clubhouse with sand pit -Big play structure with slides, monkey bars -Close by parking lot with ample space -Bathrooms -Water fountain (but it was broken) read more

Nice facilities for the kids playground. It was a little hot in the afternoon since no tall trees were near the jungle gym. Slides becomes a bit hot from the sun. I hope some shades will be installed eventually. There is a parking lot next to it but spots are a little limited. read more

I'm a new mom, so I'm new to this whole going to parks with the kids thing but this park is the BEST I have been to. We went for a baby group meetup a few times and all the moms say they like this one the best. It's fairly new and you can really tell. The plants and grass are very well maintained, restrooms are safe and clean. It's close to the beach, so there's a nice breeze going on the times I've been. There's a few picnic tables (about 5 or so?) under a shaded area. Nice spot for a birthday party or get together. The only pitfall is the parking lot is quite small and you're bummed if the lot's full. This happened to me one time and I parked across the street in this weird dirt area which was fine. Besides that, you would have to park wayyyy over by the train station....with a baby I would be over it! So go early so you can get a spot. PS. It's right by Leucadia Pizza which has great pizza. There's also a Subway on the way... read more

Cottonwood Creek Park - Easter outing - Playgrounds Near Me - Encinitas, California

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There's a little-known park about three blocks east of Moonlight Beach off Encinitas Blvd before the railroad trestle if you turn right onto Vulcan. It's got a fantastic design and there is virtually NO activity you can think of you CANNOT do there. It's got a seesaw. It's got a WATER play area. It's got swings. It's got a really modern play structure with all the bells and whistles. It's got a half mile trail behind it. It's got tennis AND basketball courts for adults or older kids. It's a short walk to Wendy's. It's got PARKING. It's got not one, but two play areas and... It's got a small rock wall - real rock - which my younger son absolutely LOVES. read more

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Nice big clean park, i did see just a few homeless ppl but they were just laying in the grass not bugging anyone.

Thought this was a neat park. Large gazebo area for parties/shade, bathroom was pretty clean (wish it had soap,) cool rock climbing rock for kids and adults, awesome playground great for younger and older kids, basketball courts, tennis court, nice calming creek with a little trail that has a bridge and benches. Nice park for the kids to explore. Went during the week in the Summer and there weren't a ton of people, so it was pretty quiet. The only "con" that I would say about this park is that there is sand at the playground. I know a TON of parks have sand, but I prefer the soft turf. They do have the soft turf in addition to the sand though, so that's makes up for it and deserves 5 stars. Nice that it is tucked away from the busy street, so it's still peaceful. read more

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We are very much fans of this park. As previous posters stated, you can do almost everything here. There are trails, basketball courts, tennis courts, kids rock climbing, water play, wonderful play ground, and tons of field space. The parking lot is a bit limited, but we've yet to have an issue finding a spot at the times we've gone. read more

Cool little park in Encinitas just off the 5 freeway heading toward the ocean. I came here for a service event-- on Tuesday evenings a non-profit volunteer organization does a feed the homeless night, and I got to participate and help out. I think it's awesome the neighborhood is open to hosting this event here, and the turnout was great- lots of smiling kids getting a warm meal to eat. We came here in the evening, so it was mostly dark already, but the park looked nice, clean, had a nice pavilion area to sit and enjoy being outside, and the parking lot was well maintained, though a bit small. It would be nice to come back during the daytime to see the rest of the park. read more

Beautiful park with a small parking lot. Very nice bathrooms. There's a nice trail if you bring your bike/scooter/roller blades, and also basketball courts and tennis courts. It's fun to watch the Coaster (train) pass by while you're there. The park is kept up very well. You're only a few blocks from the beach, too. Also, I recommend stopping by Pannikin coffee house on your way there. That's the perfect morning plan for any family! read more

This is my kids favorite park and I'm in agreement. They love the playscape and especially the rock climbing wall. The parking lot is fairly small and the park a little isolated so it's never been overly crowded although it always seems active. For me, it feels like a little oasis. read more

Cottonwood Creek Park - Rock climbing wall is big and fun. - Playgrounds Near Me - Encinitas, California

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This park is perfectly designed to fit the landscape. They have basketball courts and tennis courts!!. They also have a cute little bridge you can walk across that overlooks the creek. We loved it. Here is a fun video we made to show you guys this amazing park. https://youtu.be/JmU_VzQpHIQ read more

Nice park with swings and climbing structures. They also have a green space where you can have a picnic or kick around a ball. There were a lot of nice covered areas to eat and a bathroom. If you are in the area, you should check it out. read more

Great park with lots to do. Safe and off the main street. There is a nice creek that runs through it. It is close to a shopping center, so you can get supplies for lunch. Lots of benches for seating. read more

This is an excellent park and one of those places where I feel the playground designers really thought of everything.

I know that there is an AmAzing Yoga in Your Park (yogainyourpark.com) class here with Ashley Wynn!

This is a nice little neighborhood park in Encinitas. It's small-ish and manageable. The equipment is in good shape. The kids have plenty to do. It would be a good location for a kid's birthday or class party. There are nice benches for parents and a covered gazebo if you need some shade. read more