I spent part of a lazy Saturday here last month, when I was dog-sitting for my sister. No, I didn't…read morebring the dog, because driving in cars terrifies her. Instead, I picked up a delicious sandwich, some deli sides, and drink from nearby Boccato's Groceries ( https://www.yelp.com/biz/boccatos-groceries-hermosa-beach ), lucked out in quickly finding a parking spot, and ate my lunch at a picnic table before reading my book for almost two hours.
It was a beautiful day, and many other people were enjoying the near perfect weather and all the space the park has. There were at least three different kids' birthday parties going on, but they didn't interfere with one another, because Valley Park has multiple areas with picnic tables. It has a huge playground, a basketball court, and what seem like acres of grass to play on. There are also lots of trees for shade.
As I said, I found parking almost right away, on Morningside Drive, but that meant a long walk for me, as the path from the western side of the park takes a rather circuitous route past the playground and the basketball court to the group of tables I wanted to sit at (the only ones completely unoccupied when I arrived). I could have taken a direct route through the grass, but that would have meant walking through a kids' soccer game and some of groups of kids playing. Most of the parking is along the two streets that form the northern boundary of the park, but I could see the street from where I was sitting, and those spots didn't open up often, and when they did, they were quickly taken.
It got a bit windy as the afternoon passed, so I had to go chasing some napkins and the lid of one of my deli delectables at times, but it really is a nice, well maintained park.
I didn't use the bathroom, but I did see quite a few moms taking their kids into them, so I'm assuming they couldn't have been that disgusting. Speaking of the bathrooms, it would be great if this Yelp listing could have a different, less puke-inducing cover photo. Please click on some other photos, people!
