Towering "Trailside Castle" with the tallest tunnel slides is the highlight of Trailside Park in Ashburn.

After entering the park and passing a sweet of three batting cages, several top-notch softball fields, multiple restrooms and a picnic pavilion, we saw a trail toward the end of the spacious parking lot, and thought it might be a hike or scenic walk worth checking out. To our surprise, it took us to a huge, updated castle-inspired playground. 

A gigantic, multi-level structure blue and red play structure designed for children ages 5-12 gets kids excited to play from the moment you glimpse it through the trees. Two insanely tall tunnel slides leave from the top story. They both twist but one is certainly faster than the other. There are also four smaller traditional slides of various levels if the tunnel slides are intimidating. There is a rock wall to climb and a very cool tunnel to go through at the highest level. The Trailside Castle inspires the imagination with a general store, some cage-like areas at the top to view the long way down for daring little ones, and a lot of creative sections all throughout. There are balance areas, climbing areas, a tall firefighter's pole and a smaller rope one. The play castle also has monkey bars and climbing obstacles at lower heights for little ones to practice. There is also a spinning structure.

Children ages 2-5 have their own magnificent play structure with several slides and tunnels. The toddler area is way larger than most playgrounds and has some additional climbing challenges for younger kids. There is a fun climbing apparatus as well.

The two large play structures are separated by a long row of swings. The park features four regular swings, three baby swings, one accessible swing and one tandem swing, where a young child sits in a baby swing type seat and a parent or older child can sit on the other side and swing together! 

There is also a large webbed climbing toy to bring an added element of challenge to the playground. This playground will be loved by all ages, even those that might claim they are past the playground as a form of entertainment. Mommy was happy to get in on the play.

The playground has a fence extending along one side of the playground and backs up to the Washington & Old Dominion Trail so begin or end playtime with a stroller run, walk, bike ride or some scooter time. The playground is on a mulch surface so keep an eye on babies and toddlers that like to taste everything. The space is well-maintained with picnic tables to work on, benches all around and multiple garbage cans, so bring a picnic and get comfortable for hours of play. There is also ample shade in the playground area throughout most of the day with lots of large lovely trees around. The rest of the park and this section of the W&OD (at about mile 28) have very limited shade and can get very windy. The trail at this point is flat and paved. 

Trailside Park is also home to an inline hockey arena. 

The restrooms are closed during the winter. 

There are picnic tables and plenty of benches next to the playground. The main picnic area is next to a small creek. There is truly something for EVERYONE at Trailside Park!!