Schifferdecker Pool – Joplin MO

The renovated Schifferdecker Pool, known as the Joplin Aquatic Center, is a wonderful addition to our community. My husband, who loves the water, takes the kids there several times a week and has become very familiar with all of its amenities. In the following post, he describes Schifferdecker Pool in his own words.

What’s not to love about the new Schifferdecker Pool? Nothing! Okay, some crowd issues at times, but that’s because Joplin Parks and Recreation has hit a home run on their new water park.

There’s a large pool with swim lanes 25m wide at the deep end.  The swim lanes are flanked by a climbing wall and two diving boards, one high and one low. Swimming north from the diving boards you also find two jet swim lanes (jets of water shoot from the side just under the surface which the swimmer can swim against to maintain forward motion while staying in one place).

Now take a deep breath, as we are not close to being finished!  Continue swimming north and you will come to stairs that exit to two slides.  One is windy with multiple 180 degree turns to a splashy finish. The second is a “family” slide where two individuals can slide together side by side.

Finally, you will come to the log roll which is as entertaining to watch as it is to try and walk across. If you ever watched Wipe Out on TV, you get the idea of what you might see watching the participants on the log roll. The rest of the large pool is made up of an open swim area, a zero entrance ramp, and a bench for sitting in the water. A lifeguard is always in close proximity.

Now, if you think that was a lot, we are only beginning to get wet!  A toddler pool with its own newly installed 5′ tunnel slide keeps my three-year-old well entertained.  A wet playground with shooting water and a slide will also keep the children occupied.

A lazy river with two different sized tubes (one large, one small) will keep adults and children afloat.  Be careful toward the end of your first trip around the lazy river because you will find yourself near the exit of one of the two larger slides.  You don’t have to be worried about be plowed under by an exiting rider, but large splashes are sure to soak some of those on the lazy river.

On one slide, you lie down on your back and shoot straight down, while on the the other you use your tube for a seat and take a longer, curvier route to the same finish line. There are times when the pool is extremely busy, but even then there is generally just a short wait for an available tube.  The tubes are always coming and going like crumbs in a well-organized ant colony.  When my three-year-old insists on carrying the tube which is three times her size, it only illustrates the ant colony metaphor further.

Just as you enter or exit the park, you will see (and enjoy!) a nicely-added water jet feature.  If you have seen the water show at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, it’s really nothing like that, but it does have jets of water shooting up in different patterns.  What makes it better than the Bellagio?  You can actually play and get wet in it!  There is a concession stand and eating area but I can’t comment on whether it deserves a 5 star rating as I haven’t viewed or tried anything from their menu.

Last summer, I took my family to the water park in Pittsburg, Kansas.  We had a great time, but now that Joplin has the newly rebuilt Schifferdecker pool, I can honestly say that the people in Pittsburg will be coming to Joplin to play.

The pool is located at Schifferdecker Avenue and Fourth Street. Click here for pool hours and information on discounted admission.

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Looking for more things to do outdoors in Joplin? Click here to find them.

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Living Life to The Fullest!

I love seeking out new experiences and finding places off the beaten path. I started Joplin MO Life in August 2013 as a way to share my discoveries with others in the Joplin community so that they can learn about the resources that exist right in their own backyards.

I have worked in education and event planning, and have always loved to write. I hold a master's degree in journalism from the University of Oklahoma and a bachelor's degree in marketing from Tulane University.