A walk in the park

Friday, May 02, 2008

Richmond has great parks. Monroe Park is an island of green in the congested VCU neighborhood. On the South Side, Forest Hill Park has great walking trails. Byrd and Maymont Parks are known outside the metro area and draw out-of-town visitors.

And then there’s Gillies Creek Park. Less than a mile from Rocketts Landing, it’s the unsung hero of the park system. You might even say it’s the new kid on the block – and it’s never crowded, unlike, say, Belle Isle.

The 45-acre greenway has an 18-hole disk golf course, lighted horseshoe pits, ball fields and walking trails. The park even has a dirt bmx track.

On Sundays in the spring and fall, throngs of adults (many of whom wish they were still kids) don colorful T-shirts and cleats and gather at Gillies Creek to play touch football. But don’t be fooled. The participants take it very seriously. I’ve spotted players wearing eye-black and seen numerous altercations, including between women.

The River City Sports and Social Club organizes the leagues, and each season more teams join. Gillies Creek is still improving. According to the City’s website, future plans call for a volleyball court and horse stables that would be home to the police mounted patrol.