Creating Playful Pathways: Play Pockets for Trails

Creating engaging outdoor spaces is becoming increasingly important. Families are looking for outdoor opportunities that allow for both healthy exercise and genuine connection with each other and nature. Here in the U.S., we are surrounded by trail systems, but the numbers of children and families using them is decreasing. Trail systems, traditionally, are designed primarily for walking, running, and biking, but not necessarily for family engagement. That’s where play pockets or play trails can make a huge difference! Through incorporating small pockets for play and learning along a trail, you can create a one-of-a-kind outdoor experience. The intentional integration of discovery encourages more active use of trails, and there’s science to back this up. Keep reading to learn all about creating playful pathways.

What Is “Pathways for Play”?

At MRC Recreation, we’re proud to offer an evidence-based Pathways for Play design program to provide an opportunity to focus on kids’ enjoyment of trails. The program was developed by our partners at PlayCore in collaboration with American Trails and the College of Design at N.C. State University. Because of their dedicated research, creating your own playful pathway is relatively simple. Play activities are grouped by theme (i.e. ants, bees, trees, or leaves) and installed in ‘play pockets’ for families to explore as they walk along a path or trail. Equipment can be configured to work with new or existing paths, trails, or greenways.

New research supports how infusing play along trails can dramatically increase the frequency and duration of pathway use by children and families. We’ve turned this research into practice with our educational guide to help communities plan, design, and promote playful pathways. Click the link below to download your copy and see more information from our partners at PlayCore.

Get your copy of the design guide: Pathways for Play

Why Communities Are Investing in Playful Pathways

The benefits of playful pathways are unique and significant, as discovered through our partners’ research:

• Enabling health promotion: Children walking and biking has declined significantly in recent decades; and play pockets naturally encourage movement.
• Expanding inclusion: Through imaginative design, playful pathways expand possibilities for all ages, abilities, and backgrounds
• Engaging with nature: Interaction with nature is crucial to childhood development, and playing along trails allows for interaction with plants and animals.
• Reinforcing environmental literacy: Our design program provides a wealth of learning opportunities – providing information about streams and rivers, flora and fauna, history and former land uses, and more.

The Core Design Principles Behind Pathways for Play

To motivate children, families, and youth organizations to get outdoors and engage in healthy, stimulating activity in natural surroundings, the Pathways for Play strategy is driven by five best practice design principles:

1. Infuse play and learning value into pathways: Provide a diversity of play opportunities so children of any age, ability, or background can have an engaging experience. Be sure to provide developmental and educational material to satisfy a multitude of maturity levels.
2. Create shared-use, inclusive pathways: Using the principles of universal design, create pathways that are inclusive to walkers, bikers, scooters, and visitors using mobility or other assistive devices.
3. Connect pathways to meaningful destinations: Disperse play pockets to motivate children and families to traverse longer distances; you can even consider providing a featured playground site, as well as a comfortable place for parents to relax.
4. Locate pathways where children live: If you don’t already have a location in mind, consider possible residential neighborhood locations, connecting schoolgrounds and neighborhood community parks, or providing outdoor educational systems within local school grounds.
5. Apply appropriate themes for learning: The world is your oyster, but we have several suggestions! Possible topics include:
   1. Local social history
   2. Natural history
   3. Children’s literature
   4. Mathematics
   5. Science
   6. Health
   7. Sustainability
   8. Art

Read more: The Ultimate Guide to Themed Playgrounds and Creative Play

Design Elements That Add Play Value

There are a multitude of options when choosing equipment for your play pockets. Our partners’ research has informed a line of equipment specifically for Pathways for Play, called Play Trails. Play Trails comes with educational signage and activity programs, so you can make the most use out of your play pockets. Depending on how your pathway comes together, you may also be eligible for a National Demonstration Site. However, you’re not limited to Play Trails equipment when creating amazing play pockets. Some more examples of applicable equipment include:

• Nature-inspired play elements
• Educational signage
• Music and sensory stations
• Fitness components
• Climbing and balancing features
• Gathering nodes and seating
• Shade structures

Real-World Inspiration: Riverpoint Park, Chattanooga

Chattanooga has chosen to invest in outdoor recreation across their riverfront, successfully fostering pride from local residents and reconnecting members of the community with nature, all while fueling economic development. Across South Chickamauga Creek Trail at Riverpoint Park, the city created play pockets in sustainable locations with help from the local Parks and Recreation Departments. The park overlooks the Tennessee River, and is a prominent destination for cyclists and walkers, school groups, families, and individuals seeking an urban park experience for play, exercise, and relaxation. The installed play pockets focus on environmental education, providing facts about the natural world alongside playful activities. You can see more about this project on PlayCore’s website: Pathways for Play Case Study @ Riverpoint Park, Chattanooga, Tenn.

With playful pathways, the journey is a huge part of the play experience. The winding road does more than just connect locations; it encourages movement, strengthens communities, and makes outdoor experiences more engaging for families. Pathways for Play provides a unique strategy for parks, greenways, campuses, and neighborhoods, making activity and connection with nature easy and incredible. Connect with our team to explore how Pathways for Play and connected park systems can bring more activity, discovery, and community engagement to your next project.