Johnson Creek City Park is a small park in the Sellwood neighborhood consisting of a playground and a green space with access to Johnson Creek.

Johnson Creek Park is named after the creek that flows through the park and initially after William Johnson, who once settled upstream, around where the current Lents neighborhood in Portland is located.

This park consists of some nice, flat grassy spaces. We brought our picnic blanket to have a place to rest and snack, although there is a bench by the playground and a few scattered picnic tables throughout the park, including one that only has one bench.

The playground works for a mix of ages, as it has a short double slide, perfect for toddlers, but then climbs two steps higher to reach a steering wheel and a longer, curved slide.A unique take on monkey bars is attached to one of the platforms going up the structure, and there’s a short track ride, which is also fun. A stand-on barrel, a freestanding climbing wall, and a swing set (with two baby swings and two regular swings) round out this playground.

There’s a bathroom right by the playground that is closed during the winter season and a drinking fountain.

Take a stroll along the paved path and over the bridge (one split section of Johnson Creek), which opens to a grassy area and a small rocky beach (along with the other split of Johnson Creek). Some of the creek areas are fenced off, with one sign saying “restoration in progress,” but a small trail looks well-used, so it seems as long as you stay on the trail, it’s probably fine. There’s also another very short trail that leads to where the two splits of the creek meet. It’s pretty flat in that area but has a 6-12 inch drop into the creek, depending on water level, so best for kids who have no trouble with footing or balance. The rocky beach is especially nice in warmer weather, as the creek gets pretty low and is more accessible for younger kids to wade and play. Watch for pieces of broken glass both in the water and along the bank. There are sometimes ducks in the creek, too. We’ve even seen babies in spring.

If you go through the grass, another short trail leads you to the sidewalk. Be wary that occasionally there will be cars or RVs illegally camping along this part of the sidewalk. We tend to stay near the creek and the playground, just in case.

There are plenty of big trees for shade and sunny open areas, so this park is nice every season.