Park Adventure Challenge
EXPLORE, BOND, AND GIVE BACK: A FAMILY ADVENTURE FOR ALL
Gather your loved ones, pull on your shoes, and prepare for adventure and memory-making in your city’s beautiful parks. Explore together, bond together, and support other families while you do it.
Our Park Challenge is a playful invitation for you to see the natural landscapes around you through the eyes of a child, and slow down to their pace to see the world together (or speed up, depending on how they feel that day!). Take an opportunity to see more of where you live than you might otherwise, and share moments in new environments together.
All proceeds go to our Whole Child. Whole City. fund, our initiative to offer free counseling sessions to families in Austin, Texas who would not otherwise have the financial means to receive what they need. Keep reading to learn more!
Park Challenge
The Park Challenge is available as a pay-what-you-can downloadable PDF, with an option between Austin-specific parks or a fill-in-blank challenge to do in any other town or city you find yourself in.
The Park Challenge PDF includes:
17 different parks around Austin to choose from and explore, with history, attractions, and ideas for what to do — or fill-in-the-blank pages to choose your own adventure in parks on vacations or wherever you live outside of Austin
Lots of fun activities, including a scavenger hunt, park bingo, A to Z nature, paint with nature, and more
Apps to get wild and get learning: identify bird sounds, animals, plants, bug, stars, planets, and more
Journal space to write or draw and capture the experiences at each park, plus a sensory activity and rate-this-park meter
Tips for play and letting your child take the lead outdoors
A list of no-supply-needed activities for park going
Suggested payment is $20
100% of proceeds support free counseling for families in need. Learn more below.
Please note that while we’re so excited for you to share these activities with the ones you love, by accessing this content, you agree that they are for your personal use only.
Ready to get outdoors?
Why play in parks?
♡
Why play in parks? ♡
Maybe the better question is, why wouldn’t you?
Being in nature and engaging in unstructured play offers unparalleled benefits, not just for your child, but for the whole family. Exploring the outdoors and connecting with nature can significantly boost mental health for you and your child, reducing stress, enhancing mood, and fostering creativity. Regular outdoor play also promotes physical activity, which is crucial for overall well-being and helps children develop a deeper appreciation for the natural world.
From fields to trails, gardens to ponds, beaches to waterfalls, Austin parks have something for everyone!
Whether you live here or find yourself anywhere else on the map, there’s plenty of inspiration:
Feeling playful?🤸
Swing off the monkey bars at the playground, toss a frisbee, fly a kite, or challenge each other to a friendly competition of disc golf.
want to
cool down?🏊♂️
Dip in a swimming hole, play on a splash pad, dive in a swimming pool, go fishing, or get out on the water in a boat, kayak or canoe.
want to learn?🦆
Pick up some binoculars for birdwatching, spot some wildlife, or take a guided educational nature walk.
Want to explore?🧗♀️
Stretch your legs on a walk, hike, bike ride or rollerblades, or equip yourself for rock climbing or camping.
Feeling sporty?⚽
Get on a court or field with soccer, basketball, baseball, volleyball, golf, tennis, or sit to watch a game.
feeling hungry?🍉
Lay a blanket out for a picnic, bring some special snacks along, or fire up a barbecue to get grilling.
Not to mention, the great expanse of parks allows for so much unstructured play and exploration that you don’t even need to plan an activity if you don’t want to. And if you need any ideas, we have them.
Austinites, who knew we had all of that in our backyard? No matter the mood, there’s always a way to play in our parks. There’s even a troll, peacocks, and a miniature train!
Choose your own adventures, and join us in our Park Challenge to find out where to do them.
Not in Austin? Take our fill-in-the blank Park Challenge along on adventures wherever you live to find treasures like these in your town or city parks!
Lace up your sneakers for
Whole Child. Whole City.
Every dollar through our Park Challenge is a contribution that expands the reach of our Whole Child. Whole City initiative to more families this year.
We recognize that families on the margins of society often experience significant barriers to quality mental health. In efforts to offer equal access to mental health to more children and families, Whole Child. Whole City. offers free counseling sessions to families in Austin who otherwise would not have the financial resources to do so.
Our initiative’s primary focus is to bring meaningful therapeutic support to families on the east side of Austin, where over 50% of families have a household income that is 200% below the federal poverty level, and over 50% identify as families of color. Research shows that childhood trauma is highly correlated with low socioeconomic status, and that trauma is significantly amplified by the systemic oppression experienced by families of color.
Help us in our mission to dismantle the barriers to therapeutic care these families face. All you have to do is decide to play outside!
