2701 Price St, Pismo Beach, CA 93449
Hours: Monday-Sunday (7 AM-8:30 PM)
Playground Surface: Mulch and rubber
Restrooms: Yes. Restrooms are located directly in front of the playground
Parking Lot? Yes, Reasonably sized dedicated parking lot right by the playground
Gated/Fenced? No
Overview
Pismo Beach is an incredibly beautiful city with tons of outdoor activities and attractions. For those families with kids, checking out Dinosaur Caves Park is a must. This dinosaur themed playground is sure to impress, with Dinosaur and Dinosaur egg play structures as well as Dolphin and Whale play structures. The play structure in and of itself is extremely nice as well. Oh, and if that wasn’t enough, when the kids are done playing a short 30 second walk will lead to a beautiful overlook of the Pacific Ocean, cliffs and surrounding sea caves. There really is no downfall to this park, however, it does get pretty packed.
Features
Dinosaur Themed Playground
- Dinosaur and Dinosaur egg play structures for kids to climb and play on
- USS Imagination boat play structure
- Net spinner and merry-go-round
- 2 standard slides and a spiral slide
- Climbing net and lots of climbing apparatuses
- Bench swing, accessible swing, baby (bucket) swing and tire swing
Scout’s Story
As I was about to start a new position at my job, I was excited to find out that I was getting a four day weekend. Not knowing when the next opportunity would arise to take a trip, I decided that my wife and our 14 month old daughter, Scout, would take a nice 4 day getaway up the California Coast, towards San Francisco, making a few stops along the way.
The plan was to leave when I got off of work on Friday afternoon and to make it somewhere towards Pismo Beach, where we would camp for the night. As we hit the typical, horrid, Southern California traffic, Scout became an erratic, crying mess in her car seat. This was not exactly normal for her, so we stopped to get her some food and my wife decided we would just post up at a motel in Oxnard for the night, before re-starting our drive in the morning.
Scout’s attitude perked up a little bit, but something still just seemed a little off. We had a good night, got some much needed rest and woke up early to make our way towards Pismo Beach. Our first stop of the day would be at the Dinosaur Caves Park. This seemed like a great spot along our drive, to get out and allow Scout to play and stretch her legs before continuing on up the coast.
July 30, 2022
Scout’s Journey and Day at Dinosaur Caves Park
We had a great time at the Dinosaur Caves Park and it was enjoyable to watch as Scout, who had only been walking for a few months, tested out her legs and wandered around the playground. She spent a lot of time checking out the Dinosaur and animal structures.
Finally, Scout asked to do her favorite thing and we put her in the baby swing and allowed her to swing for some time. Lastly, we made our way through the lawn and over to the cliff side. We enjoyed the stunning views of the coastline as we strolled a short way up the path.
Although Dinosaur Caves Park can get very busy, it’s truly a great park, that kids and families will absolutely love.
Scout’s Diagnosis and Journey
Our family thoroughly enjoyed our time at Dinosaur Caves Park and the following three days in San Francisco. While we had a great time, something seemed a little off with our daughter, Scout. Scout seemed to be lacking energy and at times just seemed to not be having a good time. This was incredibly abnormal for Scout, as she has always been so playful and had so much energy. My wife and I just weren’t exactly sure what to make of it but we figured it was just a phase or a little illness that she would get over.
Once we arrived back home, things still seemed to be off and my wife finally took Scout to the emergency room. After multiple trips to the emergency room, where my wife and Scout were repeatedly sent home, finally on August 16, 2022, we would receive some answers. Doctors had found two masses in Scout’s body. Two days later, on August 18, our lives would change forever as Scout would be diagnosed with stage 4 cancer.
It’s incredibly hard looking back on our trip to San Francisco, knowing that Scout’s was in so much pain, but that at 14 months old, she was unable to tell us. I felt horrible knowing that we were traveling and attempting to have a good time, not having any clue of what our little baby was dealing with inside of her body. Scout’s battle has begun and she is currently undergoing chemotherapy and her energy levels and constant smiles have returned. We are so thankful for what our entire Oncology team has done for Scout so far and we are eager for Scout to continue her fight.
July 30, 2022
