California Country Park is set within a hundred acres of beautiful countryside, around a six-acre lake and is just 15 minutes by car from our very own Cavendish Park. Located not far from Finchampsted, just off Nine Mile Ride, the park boasts some excellent walks, wildlife and fishing. I had heard a brand new play area had recently opened and decided to check it out with the family in tow.

When we arrived we parked in the designated car park which costs £1.65 per hour, for up to four hours. After this, there is a flat rate of £6.60 (costs correct as at September 2021). The gates to the car park are open from 7am to 10pm.

The car park looked quite empty, so we thought it was going to be quiet. But actually, I realised if we had of carried on driving round the corner, there was more parking which gives direct access to the park, near the café. We accessed the park through the trees, which was signposted. Once through the trees we could see the park in full view, with the lake to the right of us and the play area and café to the left.

It was about 10am when we arrived and the play area was, unlike I previously thought, already busy (it was a Saturday though). We had a quick look at the lake but I couldn’t stop the excited 4 year old being drawn towards the park! So we made a deal that we would come back to the lake after we had a play. The adventure play area, I thought, looked pretty impressive and was a good size. It has been split into two sections, one side called The Sensory Garden, designed and aimed at younger children. The other side is called The Wild Wood, which is designed for the more adventurous.

My son was instantly drawn to the interactive water play equipment. The idea is to pump the water to fill up the top section, then lift the little damn (which helps contain the water) and watch it flow down, fill up the next section and so on. At home he constantly wants the hose on to fill up his water factory, which is of a similar design. Many of the little ones were fascinated by this and kept coming back to have a go. He played in this area for a bit, trying out the slide and pirate ship, boosting his confidence before deciding he was ready to go over to the other side…

The Wild Wood area had a large wooden climbing area, designed to look like tree houses and at the top a rather high tunnel slide. My little one has never liked the idea of tunnel slides, I think it’s the fear of not being able to see where he is going. For a while he kind of pottered around looking at this enormous treehouse, bouncing on the musical sound cushions, before plucking up the courage to climb up it. He’d get to the top, then realise there was no where else to go but down the slide and then come back the way he had climbed. I knew he wanted to go down it, so being the adventurous Mummy I am (not), I offered to go down it with him.

We climbed up together, all the while with a brave smile on my face. I mean, this slide wasn’t just high, it curved as well. It looked daunting even to me! On we got and with a big deep breath and a 1, 2, 3, down we whizzed with great big smiles on our faces. We were greeted by a clapping Daddy and there were high fives all round. That was it then, we couldn’t get him off it, another big accomplishment achieved! If you’re an enterprising Granny or Grandpa and you’re with the grandchildren, I reckon you could handle it.

The play area was a hit and all the children looked like they were enjoying themselves. A lot of thought and consideration has gone into the design of the area, with improved surfaces for access and a range of equipment, that is suitable for different ages and abilities. It was nice to see that some of the equipment, such as the trampoline, could be used by wheelchair users.

If you’re visiting on a warm summer’s day, you might decide to make use of the paddling pool. It was open when we were there but bookings must be made in advance and it wasn’t the warmest of days! It is closed from September onwards and reopens for the summer holidays the following year. Sessions are 1 hour 45 long and tickets cost just £2.50 for any age entering the water and £1 for adults, who need to enter the pool area to supervise. There were a couple of children braving the water and lifeguards were situated at the poolside for safety.

It was getting close to lunchtime, so we picked a picnic bench with a view of the lake, near the café. We had bought a packed lunch but the café does have ample of seating, inside and out, if you fancy lunch there. We did pop in to get a couple of coffees and there were some yummy looking cakes on offer. The menu boasts some tasty home-cooked dishes and I can imagine it can get quite busy on a popular day. However, if like us you fancy taking a picnic, there were lots of benches located around the area, separate to that of the café.

After lunch we decided to go and explore the lake. Longmoor Lake has a hard-surfaced footpath all the way around it, which is 0.9 miles long. We followed the path to the left of the park towards the dam, stopping every now and then, to greet the quacking ducks looking for food. The dam has apparently had recent improvements, to help control flooding. From here, we could see all the way across the lake to what we thought was an area for camping. We later found out that this is a privately run chalet and touring park with camping facilities. There were a few keen fishermen set up on the banks and we watched eagerly to see if any fish were going to take a bite.

We found the path pretty accessible but little legs were tired from all that play in the park, so we did not manage to complete the full circuit. If you are a keen walker though, apparently there is another walk which is 2.2 miles long, called The Woodland Walk that takes in the 8,000 year old Longmoor Bog. Longmoor Bog is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, due to it’s rare sedges and mosses. So if you love nature, I can imagine this walk is quite fascinating and I would have loved to have gone on to explore a bit. It is noted though, that the walk around the Bog is on a specially constructed board walk and may not be accessible for all.

Slight negatives –

• Be careful with the ticket machine if you don’t intend to pay for more than a couple of hours, it can be a little bit confusing when trying to select the amount of time needed. We kept ending up with the machine wanting to charge us the flat rate of £6.60.
• Even though access to the park was signposted it wasn’t very clear, so being our first time we did find it slightly confusing as to where to go.

Definite pros –

• The play area is fantastic for children of all ages and the facilities were spotless.
• The lake and it’s surrounding area is beautiful. The scale of the park is just the right size, allowing for visitors to engage in either a leisurely stroll or a more adventurous trek.

We really enjoyed our morning at the park and highly recommend it for a day out, whether you have the grandchildren with you or because you love the outdoors. California Country Park can easily be located from Cavendish Park, via Wokingham Road and joining Nine Mile Ride. If you’re not too sure, pop the postcode – RG40 4HU in the Sat Nav and it will take you straight to the gate.