Students from Worldmind Education in Denver were on hand to celebrate the opening of Nature Play. Some students from Worldmind submitted ideas for the playground during the planning process.

Sophia Essig-Peppard of Aurora checks out a pronghorn on one of the locally carved benches featuring the wildlife of Colorado.

With the grand opening of Nature Play in City Park, families can explore the Colorado wilderness without leaving Denver. The Denver Museum of Nature & Science (DMNS), in partnership with Denver Parks and Recreation, has transformed four acres of City Park into a multi-sensory play experience inspired by the ecology of the state.

“I think the whole thing is awesome, and the rock climbing is the most awesome,” says sixth grader August Creaghe-Holstein. Adds Declan Walker, a third grader, “It makes everyone happy because it’s fun and it’s nature.” Creaghe-Holstein and Walker are students at Worldmind Education in Denver, a nature immersion school for preschool through 9th grade. The museum invited pupils from Worldmind, as well as thousands of community members, to submit ideas for the playground during the planning stage, and many were on hand to celebrate the project’s culmination.

DMNS president George Sparks, and Jolon Clark, executive director of Denver Parks and Recreation, joined Worldmind students to cut the seed-paper ribbon at the grand opening on Sept. 10. Immediately, kids and adults alike rushed to clamber up the bighorn sheep climbing structure, shimmy through the “beaver dam,” and stomp in the creek meandering through Nature Play. Slides, bridges, and flower-lined pathways beckoned children from one play installation to the next, and the accessible swings and sand pits were in non-stop use. Played-out families were happy to take a break on the sculptural benches carved by Loveland artist Faye Braaten.

“It’s been interesting for our students to see the unification between the human world and the natural world,” says Caroline Griesel, director of emotional and physical safety at Worldmind. “We’ve been coming over to see the construction, and we’re excited to see learning through play in nature available to everyone.”

The playground design starts a few steps from the City Park entrance to the museum and glides from a play area featuring the 20-foot bighorn sheep climbing structure, in homage of the alpine tundra, to a waterfall encircled by plants from Colorado’s subalpine forests, to spaces inspired by the state’s wetlands and grasslands.

Children clamber up a climbing structure at the new playground outside the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.

Adam Bienenstock of Bienestock Natural Playgrounds.

The museum tapped Adam Bienenstock, founder of Bienestock Natural Playgrounds, about a decade ago to bring the dream of a science-meets-play outdoor space to fruition. He recalls, “When we went up to the third floor of the museum and saw the dioramas of all the Colorado plants and animals, the concept immediately came. This became an outdoor exhibit of those ecosystems.”

For Jacqueline Altreuter, director of strategic planning at DMNS, “The museum isn’t new to recreating environments that reflect the rich diversity of ecosystems throughout Colorado.” What makes Nature Play special, she says, is the work of hundreds of people “to open the doors of the museum and pour that re-creation out into the park as living, immersive diorama landscapes that you can interact with.”

Children joined (from left) Jolon Clark, director of Denver Parks and Recreation, Happy Haynes, former director of Denver Parks and Recreation, and DMNS CEO George Sparks to cut the ribbon at the grand opening.

Nature Play was funded by DMNS donor support and Denver Parks and Recreation. The park system will maintain the playground as part of City Park. Clark says, “Every detail, from the structures to the interactive elements, has been crafted with the intention of fostering curiosity and that sense of wonder.”

Front Porch photos by Christie Gosch