Carburn Park is a true nature escape and perfect for kids. With many nature features to explore, I’d consider it one of the best playgrounds in Calgary for unstructured play.

I used to ride my bike to work through Carburn Park, and the morning sights of deer always made my day. However, I never explored more or stopped at the park.

Now with two kids in tow, nature walks became our favourite way to spend a day. Our first nature walk in Griffith Woods got us hooked to explore as much nature in Calgary as possible.

In this blog post, I share with you:

What to expect in Carburn Park
What We Liked and Didn’t Like About Carburn Park
Quick Summary & Tips
4 Interesting Facts About Carburn Park

Let’s go over what to expect when you arrive before exploring the exciting parts of the park.

What to expect in Carburn Park

Carburn Park is a natural environment park and part of the self-guided walking tours highlighted by the City of Calgary. There are two man-made ponds with paved pathways around them, along with plenty of dirt trails you can explore.

It has a large parking lot, washrooms (open year-round), and is open and enjoyable to visit throughout the year. There’s a city-managed ice rink in winter, along with cross-country skiing options and even ice fishing.

From spring to autumn, you can go stand-up paddleboarding, kayaking, biking or fishing. Bird watching and picnicking are also widely popular.

There are many picnic areas, BBQs, and picnic shelters, some of which you can reserve in advance through the City of Calgary website. When we visited, one was being used by a large group celebrating a kid’s birthday. It truly is a beautiful spot for a celebration.

It’s been our go-to nature walk because it’s a short drive from Glenmore Trail and easily accessible.

What we liked at Carburn Park

Two ponds for water activities

The first smaller pond is usually used for fishing, and if you come in June or later, there’s also a nice floating deck you can fish from. Although it may seem too small for stand-up paddleboarding, I can imagine that stopping on the island in the middle would be a truly unique experience.

Most people used the second pond for stand-up paddleboarding and kayaking. It’s much larger with plenty of picnic areas and resting spots all around. Even though many people visited during our weekend stop, it never felt crowded.

Wildlife

During our first family visit to Carburn Park, we heard loud croaking as we walked along the lagoon. This turned into an adventure of its own when we tried to quietly leave the main path in search of a frog.

After some searching, the kids were so excited to see a frog! It’s one thing to constantly see it in a book, and a completely different thing to see it in their habitat, just casually hiding among the leaves.

On our second visit, we saw several deer munching on the grass. They weren’t afraid of people at all. Our 1.5-year-old son excitedly started marching toward a deer. I was watching him and expected the deer to run away. That’s what they usually do, right? That’s what they always did when I got close before.

But our son got so close to the deer that I went to pick him up, just in case. I had never been so close to a deer before. Luckily, the deer didn’t like my presence and moved on.

Bee hotel

One of the coolest natural features I’ve ever seen in a city park is the bee hotel. The kids spent a long time playing there and enjoyed learning about its purpose from the informational sign.

Right by the bee hotel, my son also found a plant that looks like a shaker toy. I wasn’t able to identify the plant, though, so if you happen to know, please email me or DM me on Instagram.

Nature features for kids

After visiting the bee hotel, we spent the longest time by the pond making boats. There’s plenty of old bark on the shores, and we used anything we saw for passengers – flowers, rocks, pinecones.

There are several fallen trees that kids enjoyed walking on. Our son loves discovering little narrow “secret paths” where you never know where they might lead. That’s how we found the frog, and also, a tree arch.

What we didn’t like at Carburn Park

You can’t swim in the ponds – which honestly is not a bad thing, since it’s home to lots of ducks and other water creatures

Everything You Need for the Perfect Nature Walk

Kids' adventure sandals for the happy feet
Jan & Jul Sun Hats with UV protection without chemicals (our full review)
Lifestraw bottle so you can safely drink directly from the creek or river
Snackle box for the little snackers and family picnics
Kid's Safe Sunscreen SPF 50+ with kid-safe ingredients or a sunscreen stick for easier application
Water repellent blanket so no moisture, sand, or dirt stays on
Buckets & shovels, a magnifying glass, or binoculars for the exploration

Quick summary & tips

Carburn Park is located in the Riverbend neighborhood of southeast Calgary.
The paved Bow River Pathway surrounding the lagoons is 1.7 km long, but there are more dirt trails in the area.
All paths are flat and easy to walk on
Almost all trails are bike and stroller-friendly, except for a few narrow trails leading toward the river. The nature walk described on the City of Calgary website is wide and accessible for bikes and strollers.
Washrooms are located at the beginning of the trail (by the parking lot)
Follow the map and directions from Google Maps to see it all

4 Cool facts about Carburn Park:

🐦 Bird Watching Sanctuary

Carburn Park is home to over 200 bird species, from pelicans and cormorants to swans, herons, and kingfishers—making it a birdwatcher’s paradise.

Once you reach the historic Balsam Poplar, you’ll see an abundance of different birds. That’s why I recommend bringing binoculars, so the whole family can enjoy the park’s wildlife for up close.

🪵 2. Historic & Indigenous Roots

Human history here stretches back 3,500 years with archaeological finds along the Bow River. A 1907 Balsam Poplar, one of Calgary’s Heritage Trees, still stands tall today.

It might not seem much on the photo below, but once you stand close, you realize how giant and mesmerizing the tree really is.

🦌 3. Wildlife Encounters

Deer, porcupines, beavers, and muskrats all live in the park. Dawn and dusk are the best times to spot beavers working on their lodges.

🌳 4. Varied Landscape & Ecology

The park spans 135 hectares of forest, meadows, ponds, and riverbanks. Native trees like Balsam Poplar and Trembling Aspen grow alongside wildflowers such as Saskatoon and Primrose.

There’s Bow River, two ponds, and even tiny ponds where we found the frog.

You can also visit the neighboring Sue Higgins Park via the Bow River Pathway and Eric Harvie Bridge, especially if you’re biking.

Every visit to Carburn Park brings new things, and I’m sure we’ll find more cool features on our next visit. I have no doubt that kids of all ages will enjoy their time there.