Sledding at Lion's Hill

Lion's hill, its technically in Crystal, but it was such a big part of my days of youth that I'm putting it in here. Its a sledding Paradise! Its got lights! Its got jumps! Its free! 

Location:

6822 32^nd Avenue North

 Crystal, MN

It's technical name is "Valley Place Park." But since it was sponsored by The Lions Club, I have always known it simply as Lion's Hill.

Its one of the best sledding hills I've ever seen. A giant mound in the middle of a big playfield. Perfect for sledding. Each side of the hill has something different to offer. the north side is the steepest and wildest, the south face is small and mellow. I've heard talk that there used to be a rope tow here, now a days you have to hike back up on your own strength.

Lion's has fun for everyone. As you can see here theres also 2 hockey rinks and a flooded field for skating on in winter time. They also have a warming house which is usually open, and a playground for summer time!

Night time dosn't mean its time to stop sledding! This well lit hill allows you to keep on trucking into the wee hours of the morning!

The North Face! aka the bumpy side

A common sight at Lion's: kids catching tons of air and having a good old time!!

Also my runner up sledding hill is Plymouth's french park: a great hill in it's own right!

Play some Hockey

Here in Plymouth winter is long as I'm sure you know.  Well as long as everything is frozen make the most of it! Hockey is everywhere here in the state of hockey.  Even if you never played its not too late. The best way to play in Plymouth, in my opinion, is on frozen lakes.  Its free and hockey in it's purest form.  Sure the ice is cracking and shifting the whole time but that's just part of the magic!

The Chiefs, city champions 2007-2008

While outdoor hockey may be the best, indoor hockey allows the puck to be played all year long! Many parks and rec leagues, drop in games and open skate times are available in town at both the Plymouth Ice center and New Hope Ice arena.  

Boot hockey on Lost Lake in Plymouth.

Another great option if you don't feel like going out on the lake is down at the park! zachary Playfield and plymouth creek both have awesome free outdoor rinks. As do many parks in town.

And if you don't feel like going to the park or the lake, just flood your yard and let it freeze!

Also I'll put in a plug for my favorite hockey shop near by: Way to Go Sports, which is in Golden Valley. (8028 Olson Memorial Hwy) Its all used stuff so its cheap but still works just fine. Either that or I knock on my neighbors door who has a garage full of gear and they are kindly enough to let me use it.

 But no matter where you play or who you play with, be sure to end your game with a victory slide for the fans!

Bomb "The Wall"

There is a special spot in plymouth known as "The Wall". At the intersection of 48th and Zachary the road drops off so steep that when your facing it up it literally looks like a wall.

When you’re standing at the top of the hill it’s the only spot in Plymouth (That I know of) where you can see the skyscrapers down town.  This is famous hill to bomb for the skateboard enthusiasts of Plymouth. Its an extremely sketchy ride, and depending on the repair of the road there are often pot holes which will grab you and throw you to the turf. Helmets are highly encouraged.

bombing the other, mellower side of zachary hill

I have also bombed this hill on a radio flyer red wagon. It was epic, and my crash at about 30mph left me with some serious road rash on my left thigh.

Geared up for longboarding, 2004

My craziest memory of bombing the wall is one night a good buddy of mine who was fairly new to skating decided that “tonight was the night” so we drove out there. And we watched him shove off and he just started flying down.  He rocked it, nailed the steep incline perfectly, but then at the bottom, one of those treacherous potholes caught his eye, he swerved toward the right curb hoping to bail into the grass, but it was too late! He jumped off took a few giant steps and then BOOM down he went luckily he only broke his arm and narrowly escaped death!

Well needless to say I encourage extreme caution on this hill


*Editors note: it appears the Wall has been resurfaced and is buttery smooth right now! (6/9/14)