To a five year old, all parks are cool as long as they have something to climb on. That's the one thing I've figured out by traveling to all the different city parks in Boise. That and there's a lot of goose poop in Boise.

That being said, when my rented five year old and I pulled into Redwood Park, a 7-acre neighborhood park just off of Ustick Road between North Five Mile and Cloverdale Road, there was a special squeal of delight from the child. That's because this park is cool.

First thing, you'll see that Redwood has plenty of open space for the kiddies to run rampant. That's important because I've discovered that children under the age of 12 never stop moving. It's like they've all feasted at the crack buffet at birth and forgot to invite old Uncle Jack. Little monsters. Anyway, there's lots of space for tag, Red Rover, and all that other stuff. Until they fall into the pond.

Yes, the fishing pond. A sheer drop of about 18 inches. As I had to constantly remind my rent-a-kid, Uncle Jack does not get wet, so don't fall in or you'd better bring water wings with you. The pond itself is stocked with grass carp, bluegill, bass, and occasionally trout. Be sure to check the Fish & Game Fishing Regulations for when you can drop a line into the pond. You also might want to take a stick with you. Large body of water + Boise = geese, ducks, and seagulls. Geese are well-known for being gentle creatures that love to beat the crap out of other creatures with their knobby wing elbows, but more importantly is the sheer amount of poop left behind by these critters. Walking barefoot through the grass is not recommended.

A walking path, a few picnic tables, and some park benches complete the picture and provide something for adults to do and a place for them to park their butts while watching the little ones scamper around.

Lots and lots of goose poop

Unlike other civic-minded companies or folks in these parts, Cloverdale Nursery sold, yes, sold, the land the park now squats on to the City in 1994. Of course, the sod and tree people did specify that the land would be used for a neighborhood park. That's really nice but is like your dad giving you a remote control car for your birthday and then letting you watch him play with it all day.

As with everything else, the City was a bit slow with completing the playground; it only took 13 years. In 2007, with funds from the Mayor's Neighborhood Reinvestment Grant program, the kids in West Boise got a new playground. Yay.

But let's get back to why this park is so awesome: the play sets. Everything still looks new and shiny, there are swings, multiple slides, and all kinds of things to climb on like a monkey on speed. Not to mention the play sets are big, as in able to accommodate multiple hordes of ankle-biting, brow-beating children and the not-so-occasional teenager or adult.

The only thing about the play sets that makes me wonder is the funky Flintstone-esque climbing thingy that sticks out below the three-in-one slide. It looks like what I'd imagine a rib from a really big, really unfriendly plastic dinosaur looks like. To say it's odd is like saying Boise's in the desert. But the kids climb up and down it just the same. Why? Because that's what kids and chimpanzees do.