West Salem Playground

If you’re passing through Salem on I-81, this little playground is worth the exit ramp. The equipment is genuinely new — not “new for a public park” new, but actually new — and whoever maintains it clearly takes that job seriously. Kids aged 3 to 10 get plenty to work with, and the open grass field next door means nobody’s standing around waiting for a turn on the swings. It’s the kind of clean, no-drama stop that makes a long drive with kids a whole lot more bearable.