The Sarah P. Duke Gardens

What it is: The Duke Gardens are something that set a visit to Duke University apart from a visit to another university. There are countless paths, and it would take days to explore everyone one. There are sections with roses, terraces upon terraces of seasonal flowers, a cafe where you can buy goodies to eat, a native plant garden, an Asian themed section, large open grassy fields, and a pond complete with ducks, geese, and a picaresque bridge. It is right on the edge of Duke's west campus and the medical center.

What we like: This is a great place to explore. Toddlers can just be set free and will find endless things to look at and explore. There's also lots of great places for them to just run around. One of my toddler's favorite parts is the duck pond. He loves to get up close to the water and watch the ducks and geese as well as run back and forth over the bridge. Food is available for duck feeding in the cafe and shop next to the terraces of flowers and gazebo. The gardens are also a great place for a nice weather picnic with your toddler.

What we would change: It's definitely a hard choice when deciding whether or not to bring a stroller to the gardens for your toddler. While the gardens are very large and the stroller is necessary for getting from one part of the gardens to the other there are also parts of the gardens that are only accessible by stairs which makes a stroller unwieldy and difficult to handle. It's especially difficult to find a stroller accessible way to get over to the chapel area of campus from the gardens, but it is possible. I found myself bringing a stroller, but parking it and leaving it while I went off to wander certain places with my child.

Website and Directions: The Duke Gardens are located off of Anderson St. on the edge of Duke's West Campus. You do have to pay for parking in their lot, but there are plenty of spaces on all but the busiest days.

Address:

Sarah P. Duke Gardens
426 Anderson Street
Box 90341
Duke University
Durham, NC 27708-0341

Phone number: 919-684-3698

Website: http://www.hr.duke.edu/dukegardens/

Photos: (Here are a few shots, but the pictures really don't do the gardens justice, especially when everything is in bloom.)



1. The entrance to the gardens when walking over from campus



2. A view of the pond and bridge



3. A lone heron poses next to the pond