Charming Park on Graham Street with old eucalyptus trees. There were a few men there mowing and trimming while I visited. I was surprised to see how poorly considered the planting area is in the center of the park. The dirt is soaking wet with an automatic watering system full of water tolerant plants. read more

Gibbs Park - Playgrounds Near Me - Huntington Beach, California

See all

I wish there was a paved walkway from the neighborhood side to connect to Graham. You have to walk in sometimes wet grass. Also a lot of grass is dead. The homeless element makes me feel unsafe to frequent the park because the homeless talk to you. Otherwise it would be a nice park. read more

Oh boy what a park! I went on a hot summer midday. Thanks to the shade in the park it was half as hot as everywhere else. Yes butterflies! Yes Trees Galore! Yes to everything! Not sure if i saw bathrooms?!? Hot tip - BYO chair or blanket to use under the shade of a tree! read more

I love the butterfly sanctuary! It actually has a lot of milkweed! We saw some caterpillars and a really pretty monarch butterfly that took pictures with my daughter. Next time I go I'm definitely leaving a donation in the box! read more

Gibbs Park - Playgrounds Near Me - Huntington Beach, California

I had to come back to update... My last review was after my first visit to this park, now after going a few times, I feel different because the bad out weighs the good. THE OLD PEOPLE WHO BRING THEIR DOGS OFF-LEASH TO THIS PARK RUIN IT FOR EVERYONE! If you want this to be a dog park, go to the City and have the rules changed. It is posted that dogs are NOT ALLOWED TO BE OFF-LEASH however, everyone does it! So not cool for those who want a picnic and/or have dogs on leashes that don't want to be bothered by your dog! It has ruined my trips to this park a few times now and I have bit my tongue and held back wanting to get in an all out confrontation with these irresponsible dog owners. Animal control also confirmed, they are called to this park on a regular basis. Shame on you bad dog owners. read more

Once upon a Eucalyptus Grove and Meadowlark Airport (god I miss the greasy spoon, Meadowlark Cafe--closed in '89), Gibbs Park is a perfect picnic place for those DiSimone sandwiches from down the street. The eucalyptus grove (once Sims Grove) has been thinned out in the last few years (read: no more coyotes and homeless gents) but still seems like a plot of Tulgey Wood from Alice in Wonderland--shelf fungi and singing flowers included. It has now been christened the Norma Brandel Gibbs Butterfly Park. Despite the giant Monarch Butterfly mosaic encountered upon entry, I have never seen a Monarch there (although an occasional tiger swallowtail or cabbage butterfly is not uncommon). Still, I cannot think of a better place to sit, stroll, and relax in the shade alone with your thoughts or an adventurous date. It is quite possibly one of the last beautiful places extant in the coastal cities. As for the rest of Gibbs Park--the area that used to be the airport--it is a giant grassy field with some playground equipment and spongy turf for kids. Not really my thing; but I am an uncle and take the kids there when I want an excuse to take a quiet walk through the grove (I tell my niece and nephew that they have to be quiet in the butterfly park so as not to scare the magic away). All in all, this is a fantastic place to reflect and rewind. And you can always stroll one street south down Old Pirate Lane, just because of the name. read more

Came out to check the local party. Wifey went to catch Pokemon. Lol If is small but a quaint park. Friendly people and they have yoga on the weekends. read more

Lots of sketchy stuff has been known to go down at this park and the tree section kind of gives me the creeps and there is always homeless people. The side opposite the Graham side is much nicer, open field with a playground. Decent enough park, aimed towards little kids for sure. read more

One of the nicest parks I've ever visited, and I'm not a huge fan of the outdoors. It is neat and clean and full of butterflies, like a fantasyland. There are educational kiosks that quickly and simply inform you what types of plants and animals are around you. The public artwork is beautiful and informative. This is a nice family atmosphere, with young children marveling at swallowtails, photographers focusing on native blooms, and people meditating in the aromatherapeutic air. The only negative that I saw was the inconsiderate dog owners who allowed their pets off leash while they socialized. The dogs wandered around pooping, digging up the immaculate plantings, and sniffing visitors while their owners ignored them or seemed to think it was cute. They give a bad name to dog owners. I read the other reviews of this park, and I gather that the park was under reconstruction. As of my visit in March 2014, it is definitely fixed. The butterflies are back and it is fantastic. read more

Leslie Gilson in partnership with the Huntington Beach Tree Society non profit and the City of Huntington Beach took on the restoration of Gibbs Monarch Overwintering park in 2007. 179 dead and dying Euclyptus trees were removed and the first arbor day in 2008 brought out over 150 residents to plant the North bed and the first core of trees. Since then over 8 Eagle projects have been compleated in the park. The monarch butterfly came back in 2008. Each year the numbers have been increasing. We now have over 200 trees and hope to have them overwintering with us again soon. Leslie Gilson Gibbs Restoration Coordinator read more

If butterflies are homeless guys with bike carts filled with cans, this park definitely attracts butterflies. In fact, it attracts a lot of them, you can smell the sweet stench of urine and steel reserve malt liquor interspersed with eucalyptus grove and crazy cat lady. If I had to babysit my little cousin, I might leave him here for a fun filled day filled with games like "shank the guy who looked at you funny" and "pretend Jesus is ordering you to wear an Albertson's bag on your torso." Oh FYI, the lawn side of the park looks nice. read more

It's lovely. Well maintained by volunteers and full of interesting information about the plants and butterflies you'll see all around you. There is often a good number of dogs there, many off leash, so be prepared for that. I've never seen or heard of any incidents with them, the owners have always been very close by, but that doesn't mean it hasn't or couldn't be a problem. Love your dogs enough to keep them safe, whoever's at 'fault', a hurt child would be disastrous for everyone. read more

This park is the bomb. Nice grass to pass the soccer ball. Big open space for throwing the baseball. Two playgrounds for the kids. Perfect or dogs to chill. Picnic here. Watch butterflies here. Read a book here. This park will suit your every need and exceed your expectations. read more

This is a beautiful park for all ages. EVERYONE is considerate who goes there. Dog owners clean up and monitor their dogs. If you don't want to see dogs off leash don't go there or stay in the open area. If you want to see lots of butterflies you have to catch them in their migration north or south. read more

Gibbs/Butterfly is a lovely little park. It's a safe place to take your dog to play. There are always dogs and their owners hanging out here. There is a luscious canopy of trees and it is very clean. Throughout the park there are wooden tables and benches. Right in the middle there is a really cute garden. There is also a lot of artwork here! In the front of the park there is a series of butterfly themed murals on the ground. I took my dogs here today for about an hour and they enjoyed themselves. Even though the park is small there is plenty of room for the doggies to run around. Make sure to remember to bring your own water and poop baggies, they don't have either at the park. Also there is limited parking, it really depends on what time of day you come. If you come in the morning there will most likely be parking, but if you come in the afternoon your chances are much slimmer. I'd say the busiest time here is 4-7 pm. This place is definitely a gem in the middle of a bunch of houses. read more

See all

Pro(s): Quiet, butterfly-themed, large grass area, clean and well-maintained Con(s): Lacking in actual butterflies, flowers are scarce, street parking ----- Having found out about this relatively new park, I was really excited to go to a butterfly park for the first time with my boyfriend and newly christened prom date but went home pretty disappointed. Though this park is clearly well-maintained and in a quiet area, it lacks in actual butterflies. Maybe we went at during a bad time of day or maybe the wrong season for butterflies, but there were hardly any other than the huge statue in front and the mosaics on the ground. The flowers planted here were not very plentiful and can be found throughout the city of Huntington Beach so I didn't really see anything catered specifically to keep the butterflies here. The only special thing I really found at this park was that many of the trees here are planted in memory of people. I've seen this done at Central Park of Huntington Beach too though. I saw about a handful and the butterfly park/forested area is cut off by a wall and walk way and it becomes a very large grass area with some playground equipment on the side and some benches. Other than the idea of this being a butterfly park, it's really like any other park but with more trees. I can see myself coming back here for a picnic or just to sit and relax, but only if I just happen to be in the area. read more

Nice, quiet park with tons of butterflies!!! Located on the west side of Graham, close to the location of the old Meadowlark Airport, this park is quiet, somewhat secluded, and seemed to be a great location! read more

This park seemed a little dead, but in an alright area for LA. The park was created to attract butterflies, which were not around the time when I visited the park. Its a cool concept and very nice that they created this park for the neighboorhood, just wish it was more clean. read more

Large grassy area to play in residential area. Two climbers for kids. Some picnic benches. Popular for people with dogs. The butterfly park section is separate. read more

Seventy years ago. my parents and I along with my little brother lived in the one room log cabin that existed in the grove that used to be here. I remember that time in my life as a magical time. I loved the grove and the smell of the Eucalyptus trees that were there then. The last time that I visited the grove was in 1983, and the full grove was still there then. It was a wonderful trip down memory lane. The park looks very nice, but I will always remember the way it was back in 1947. read more

This is a beautiful park and I love it. I live in a mobile home and it is the only place I have to go with my dog; It is always so quiet there and beautiful. The only time anyone is there with dogs is afternoon for a while if you don't care for dogs try to avoid that time. The butterflies are coming back now and are so fun to watch. read more