I feel like a broken record in moms' groups because whenever someone asks where they should go with their 1-6yo locally to kill some time, I find myself constantly recommending Briant Park in Summit. I've hiked a bunch of local trails and been to a ton of our local parks and, to me, Briant Park is just one of the most fun and kid-friendly parks you can to go locally. Click HERE for a huge list of a bunch of others worth checking out! Here are a few reasons why I love Briant Park in Summit!
It's easy to find and park.
Some of our local hiking trails can be a little tricky to find or park at (hellooooo, Hemlock Falls!), but for Briant Park, just put "Briant Pkwy, Summit NJ" into your GPS and you can't miss it. You can park all down Briant Parkway and there is even more street parking on Springfield Ave.
There's plenty of wide open space to run and/or picnic.
I always thought the open spaces were nice but in social distancing times, it's even more important. The kids have been cooped up for so long and it's so refreshing to be able to present them with a space where they can just RUN. Briant Park has a few very open, rarely crowded fields where they can do just that. You can bring a ball and play catch or soccer, tag, fly a kite, or set up at one of the picnic tables and have lunch.
 FYI - this path is ONE WAY right now and you have to walk in the opposite direction than they're pictured going here! This photo was taken years ago. |  One of the rocky paths that leads into more "woodsy" territory! Both rocky paths are little loops that make nice additions to the walk and lead you right back to the main path. |
The paths are perfectly wide and paved for biking, scootering, strollers, and walking.
The paved path around Briant Park is just a little over a full mile, making it ideal for my little scooterers. It's wide and well-paved with some nice hills that anyone on wheels will appreciate! There are also a few rocky offshoots of the main path which are just as fun for little explorers.
 Please don't feed the geese! |  Baby barn swallows in the gazebo! |
 Can you spot the frog? |  A very common bird sighting - the red winged blackbird! |  The barn swallow eggs in their nest. |
Wildlife sightings galore!
Everybody knows my family loves birds and Briant Park does not disappoint in this department. There is a great blue heron who regularly visits the pond and you can watch wading and fishing, great egrets (the big white ones), ducks and geese who have their babies in the spring, red-tailed hawks who we've seen hunting, red winged blackbirds, catbirds, swallows diving through the fields, orioles, goldfinches, a few different types of woodpeckers, and even more. If you walk quietly up to the water's edge and look very carefully you can see tons of frogs (you can also hear them from afar!), turtles, tadpoles, and fish jumping out of the water. Around the path in the brush on hot days you can see snakes - mostly garters! Some of the special things we've been lucky to witness in Briant Park: a family of swallows making their nest and the babies growing in the gazebo; a muskrat; a turtle laying her eggs out in the field; an absolutely beautiful oriole nest that we found on the path - it looked just like this one!
 The main pond - look closely to see the great blue heron wading out there! |  One of the entrances to the stream that leads to the pond - sometimes the ducks are here with their ducklings and also deer with their fawns! |
 Another part of the stream - this part is great for frog sightings, rock skipping, boulder hopping, and you can keep going up away from the pond for about a hundred yards to explore! Just make sure you wear your waders because it gets waist-deep right past those big boulders (right after that, it shallows out again!) |
Water features.
Wear your boots and/or waders! In the summer it's super important to me that anywhere we go outdoors has somewhere to cool off and Briant Park is perfect for that. There is a big pond on one end of the park and right down the center, the little stream that runs into the pond is accessible at a few different points of the path. The big pond is fun for fishing (you're not catching anything for dinner here - it's very shallow so fishing is just for fun), looking for frogs and turtles, and looking at the ducks and geese and their babies (please don't feed them though!)! The stream portion has three separate entry points (send me an email at juliel@macaronikid.com if you need help finding them!) and you can follow the stream all the way up away from the pond if you're feeling adventurous! The kids love to jump from boulder to boulder, wade in the water (mostly knee-high or shallower), skip rocks, bring little boats to sail, play with beach toys, catch water bugs, and so much more.
It's just enough - not too much!
For the younger set, Briant Park offers just enough without being too much. We've been going to Briant Park VERY regularly for my 6yo's entire life and he still never tires of it. It's not a huge hassle to get there and you don't ever have to worry that you're going to be a full mile from your car with 3 hot, cranky kids who still need to walk back. There are plenty of benches or open space if anyone needs to just get off the path and sit down on the grass for a break, the people are friendly (but not too friendly!), and you're never far from civilization. In some spots you can feel like you're in the middle of the woods but in others, it's like walking through a neighborhood block.
We go to Briant Park nearly every day so if you're interested in going make sure you follow my Instagram!
Have you been to Briant Park in Summit? Which local spot should I feature for my next "Exploring Local" installment? Email me at juliel@macaronikid.com to let me know!
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