North Clackamas Aquatic Park

Doesn't Recommend

Nicolle S

Joined 2 years ago

Not lifejacket friendly.. Took my 6-year old this past Saturday. He was really looking forward to it because he was finally 48 inches tall and would be able to go on the slides. I put his coast guard approved lifejacket on and we made our way up the stairs for the slides. I decided that I would go first so I could watch him at the bottom, and his dad would follow behind him. When I reached the bottom I moved to the side and waited for my son. He came out and immediately sank, clearly struggling to get his head above water. I rushed over and picked him up to find that he didn't have his lifejacket on. Apparently there is an unwritten rule that kids can't wear their lifejackets down the slides. I don't know the reason for this since my local community pools allow it and even The Great Wolf Lodge allows people to wear lifejackets down their slides. So the lifeguard here had forced my son to take his lifejacket off to go down the slide, but had no problem with letting my husband hold it as he went down the slide to meet us at the bottom.

Next we decided to try the diving board. My husband jumped first and waited in the water as my son(wearing his lifejacket again) to jumped in too. We were called over by the lifeguard there who said that my son could not wear his lifejacket when jumping off the diving board. Here's the reason given: "When a person jumps into the water their body wants to go down but the lifejacket pulls them back up." Um,... isn't that the point of a lifejacket?

We were getting pretty upset at this point and headed over to the small wading pool to contemplate our options. My son decided to content himself with the little Sammy the Seal slide but you have to be under 6 years old to use it.

So in summary my 6-year old couldn't use the little kid slides, the regular slides, or the diving board. This left him with the wave pool and spray area. Great. Not at all worth the admission price. There is nothing in the rules on the website about not wearing lifejackets down the slides or off the diving board. Apparently they have some sort of prejudice against lifejackets here. Disappointing to find out after we pay.

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Jiggity

Joined 3 years ago

So much fun!. 3 great slides, a giant wave pool, dive tank, kids' water play area and a lap pool. This place is so much fun and great for kids. Even if it's rainy and cold, it's indoor and heated! Price is pretty reasonable (I used to sneak in after swim practice in high school)

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Contributor

Joined 10 years ago

Rain or shine, 40,000 gallons of heated water await you for year-round fun.. In Short
Kids can enjoy the wave pool, three water slides and a dive well, while Mom and Dad can visit the lap pool and an adults-only hot tub. If you're afraid to get wet or just tired of the water, head outside to the sand volleyball court, or catch some rays on the sun deck. There's also a retail shop stocked full of Speedo products, plus an espresso cart and Pizza Schmizza.