Ravenna Park, U-District

Take a little walk through the forested area in back of Cowen Park, and you'll find Ravenna Park on the other side.

Location: Ravenna Ave NE & NE 55th St. near U-Village.
Number of swings: 2 regular, 2 baby seats, 2 baby buckets.
Ground material: Wood chips
Chain length: Medium-long.


These seats are high off the ground, so if you're a swing gymnast, your belly can ride the seat and your extremities have proper space to hang. And the seats feel really sturdy. I think this playground is newer than other Seattle playgrounds.

How to get there: Bus route #30 stops along 55th and Ravenna, #74 stops along 20th, and #68, 83, 243 and 372 stop along 25th.

University Playground, U-District

This is another park I spent a lot of time in as an undergrad. The chains are very long, there aren't very many small children present, and the nearest late-night falafel is within a 15-minute walk.

Location: 7th Ave NE & NE 50th St.
Number of swings: 4 regular, 2 baby
Ground material: Wood chips
Chain length: Long.



This is a great place for late-night swinging. You can also scope out the street scene once you get going really high. If you bring friends who hate swings (and are super lame because of it), the tables in front of the swings have chess boards printed on them.

How to get there: #66 bus (Southbound) stops on Roosevelt St., Northbound stops on 12th.

Cowen Park, U-District

Cowen Park is at the end of the Ave in the U-District, just after you cross Ravenna Blvd.
I used to come here often as an undergrad, especially after the discovery of the zipline.

Location: Ravenna Blvd. between 15th Ave NE and Brooklyn Ave NE.
Number of swings: 2 regular, 2 baby buckets, 1 zipline
Ground material: Wood chips.
Chain length: LONG


These are some of the longest chains I've come across in my Seattle swinging adventures. This makes it challenging to get momentum, but once you get going... wow. You can swing very high and at great speeds. This is about as close to flying as we can get.

The zipline is very popular. Especially during college party hours.


Cowen Park also contains some hiking trails that lead you to Ravenna Park.

How to get there: Take any of the buses that go up the Ave (University Way): #71, 72, 73, 83, Cowen Park is at the end, bordered by Brooklyn Ave NE, Ravenna Blvd., and 15th Ave NE.
You can also take northbound #66 and 67, which run on 11th Ave NE. Route #48 stops at 15th Ave NE and Cowen Pl NE.