To close out the summer, we wanted to do a playdate review with water. We went through kayaking, tubing, hiking to a waterfall; but our kids had already experienced most of these options. Curses for exposing our kids to fun stuff early…

After a local Google search, we found Poole’s Mill Bridge Park in Ball Ground, Georgia. Poole’s Mill is a cute little local park that is home to natural waterslides. At last! Here is a brand new activity that is just a combination of things they are already sort of familiar with. It also satisfied our playdate criteria by being something that required sensory/development component.

It took us about 40 minutes to get to the park, which also had a great playground. We had expected it to be a bit of a walk to the slides, but they were just across a short covered bridge. So much for the extra hiking gear….

Right off the bat, we’re dealing with nature: mud, trees, bugs, unknowns. While I had seen other popular natural waterslides (Sliding Rock, Sedona), these were much shorter. The kids went back and forth on whether or not to keep water shoes on or go barefoot. Neither really helped because these rocks were slippery. Even with the constant reminders of “Use your hands” or “Scoot on your butt”, there was a lot of slipping. I even ate it pretty hard when I was scoping out the faster water areas.

The kids played for about 15 minutes on the top ridge. There are wider rocks where you can just sit and enjoy the current and some shallower pools to dip your feet. These all had a bit of green algae and mud, so footing was never really certain. And then, when scooting across a rock, Aeris lost her footing and slide about five feet down the middle rock slide. She scrambled a bit until she landed in a deeper pool about 3 feet deep. The swimming lessons paid off and she was able to get back to the surface, but she couldn’t get a good grip on the rocks to pull herself out of the water and it was too deep for her to stand up. So I went in after her.

The slip really shook her and I was still in pain from my previous fall. She clung to me pretty hard until we were able to wobble to the side bank. All of us were about to call it quits, until the kids wanted to see where the rest of the creek went. A small side trail led to some smaller rock slides that looked not as scary and pretty kid-sized.

We let the kids find their way to the top of the slide, push off, and land in the shallower pool together. Imagine that. Now, we’re finally having fun. We stayed at the smaller slides for another 20 minutes. After we dried off and changed, they hit the playground for another 20 minutes before we packed it in for lunch.

From an OT Perspective

Nature provides a multisensory experience, and the rockslides are no exception. From the sound of water flowing down the rocks, the smell of foliage and fresh air, and the feel of different textures while crossing through streams and crags, your child is taking and processing these sensations all at once. This allows them to understand where they are in relation to their environment, take stock of their surroundings, and determine how to move about safely. Sounds like an appropriate setting for some risky play.

Risky play involves a potential possibility of physical injury, even with adult supervision. Because our kids had the physical, mental, and emotional capabilities to explore and maneuver the top part of the rockslides, we weren’t super concerned when they ventured out of arm’s length and became comfortable and courageous to explore the area.

We did exercise some situational awareness and checked in on them, asking questions like, “How are you doing over there? You okay? Do you trust yourself?”  And for the most part, they did. The kids assessed the water depth and current speed, as well as how steep or jagged some rocks were, generally steering clear of any hazards they deemed too challenging to manage. But we’re in nature and despite how cautious and careful we all were, all of us managed a slip and a fall on the hard rocky surface. Risky play also gives our kids the opportunity to figure out when they’ve hit their limit and how to regulate their emotions. In the case of Aeris slipping into the deep water, she found her threshold in our adventure and said, “I just want to be safe.”

When navigating the rockslides, there was no “safe” path to get across. Skills like motor planning, balance, coordination, visual attention/memory, and self-regulation are all needed to determine their foot/hand placement to cross the slippery rocks and steady water currents carefully. Some walked, some crawled, but they all figured it out.

Because of the risky nature of the rockslides, the kids all practiced a form of patience and empathy with one another. If one of them was struggling or falling behind, they would wait or ask, “Are you okay?” If all was well, they continued their fun. As they became more familiar and comfortable with their surroundings, they engaged in other forms of play, like imaginative (establishing an “ice cream shop”) and exploratory play (investigating a crawfish). They even continued their risky play as they became more confident with their new skill set (running to the top of the rockslide, standing up rather than crawling over a slippery surface, sliding down in different positions, etc).

Additional Observations

I am still planning on taking the twins to Sedona this November, when we are in Arizona for a wedding. While other rock waterslide spots are usually longer and fairly worn, the slides at Poole’s Mill were not. While the kids had a good time, there are spots that are hard to navigate. Some pools are shallower than others, and some spots have a swifter current depending on when it last rained. Past the slides, the rest of the creek is fenced off and there are lots of warning signs not to go further down river.

We definitely made use of the first aid kid. Even a group of teens who were hanging out at the spot had a few bumps, bruises, and scrapes.

Verdict: Recommended with caution.

For parents to know:

• Fun experience for nature-loving and adventure-seeking kids.
• Bring a first aid kid, high probability of cuts and scrapes.
• Review safety protocols with your kids before entering.
• Be aware of spotty deepwater areas. Those swim lessons can come in handy here.
• Adult supervision is necessary.

Rock waterslides are really fun and nice addition to the usual nature hike, however they do qualify as risky play. It will require a lot of supervision with younger kids and there are a number of unknown elements. Definitely walk around the area before your kids jump in. Our kids can swim, but be careful if yours can’t or if they are nervous swimmers. 

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