Riley Park Wading Pool

Location map

Community: Hillhurst – 800 12 St. N.W (South of SAIT)
Parking: reasonably priced street parking as well as a pay parking lot on the north side of the park (You can only access it from 8th avenue from the west).
Surrounding Park Area: Senator Patrick Burns Memorial Gardens at the NE corner of the park; Stage with free concerts during the summer; home to the Calgary cricket league, accessible playground

(typically open mi-June through the September long weekend – 9am-9pm)

Gordie’s Review (2 years old): Fun!
Age Range: all ages.
Ground Cover: painted cement. The flooring is non-slippery as it is a bit rough. There are signs up recommending footwear in the pool for this reason, but it is really not necessary in my opinion. Perhaps it used to be a rougher surface as the signs are definitely not new.
Features: 1 large wading pool varying in depth with an island in the middle.
Accessibility: .
Ammenities: Concession and washroom/change rooms also open seasonally
Shade: There are a number of large mature trees that provide good shade.
Seating: there are a few benches but they are set back from the pool – most people camp out on the grass.

Overall assessment: I’ve been to the wading pool a number of times before and have always enjoyed it. There is a lot of shade compared to other local wading pools so it’s nice for even the littlest patrons. It is definitely a wading pool and not a spray park, but even the school aged kids have a good time.

The pool has varies in depth, the West half is the deepest and goes past my knees and a good way up Gordie’s chest – deep enough here for pool toys. The East and South ends are a lot shallower. There in between the East and South sections there is a narrow very shallow section that would be great for really little kids.

Gordie really enjoyed going deep into the water, but wanted to hold my hand most of the time. I think if we had spent more time in the shallower section he would have been more independent.

It’s also worth noting that the water in the sun will be warmer than in the shade and the shallower the water is the warmer it will be.