Northeast Raleigh has a new park! 🥳 River Bend Park was completed in December 2020 and is located right next to River Bend Middle school. The playground designers embraced the river theme by including an interactive water feature, as well as integrating a pretend river and rocks into the rubberized playground surface. Overall I would say this playground is designed for kids under the age of 5 due to the small playground structure, but my 4 and 6 year old really enjoyed the climbing boulders and water feature so I’m sure you’ll find something for all age groups!
The playground reminded me a bit of North Cary Park with the slide and structures built into the side of the hill. I was surprised my kids didn’t actually play on this as much as I thought they would. They were much more enamored with the climbing boulders!
My 4 and 6 year old pretty much spent all of their time climbing on these two boulders. The net allowed them to safely get up on top, but they both had issues getting down. Another boy at the park started jumping off the top of the boulder, but I thought it was a bit too tall for that. Luckily the ground is rubber so everyone should stay safe! I also appreciate that they put in some large shade sails for the parents, but it doesn’t cover the whole playground so I can envision it getting pretty hot on the summer!
River Water Feature
My kids favorite spot at this park, which is only open during the warmer months, is the interactive water feature. There’s a hand pump located at the top of the hill and the water flows down a trough to create a river to play in. My kids spent well over an hour working the pump and standing under it to get soaked. Some kids built a small dam out of mulch while others just splashed on the “river”. I suggest cups or even toy boats or rubber duckies to float down the river. Good thing is they’ll get lots of exercise running up and down to work the pump! You’ll definitely want to bring them a change of clothes here!
Greenway and River Access
River Bend Park also connects to the Neuse River Greenway and has boat ramp access to the Neuse River. When we drove up and saw the sign for river access I was really hoping for a little beach area to play along the river, but unfortunately it’s just a dirt path to let your boat in the water.
The water was actually up really high during our visit, so I’m not sure what the access point looks like normally. Either way, if you’re looking for a sandy beach for the kids to play, you won’t find it here. Just stick to nearby Milburnie Beach instead!
Restrooms not nearby
One downfall to this park is that the bathrooms are not adjacent to the playground. It’s not a far walk, but may be a pain if you have little ones in tow. There is no parking by the restrooms so you have to make the walk from the parking lot no matter what. I prefer to have the restrooms right next to the playground since I have multiple kids. At this park you can’t see the bathroom building from the playground so I have to pack up all of the kids for a bathroom trip.
According to the park master plan I believe future phases of the pack includes an amphitheater next to the playground, plus a second restroom facility, which will be much more convenient.
