Foster Falls

PICNIC? yes! 

SWIMSUIT? yes!

COST? none

PLAYGROUND? no

AUTHOR'S RATING? five out of five stars!

HOURS? sunrise to sunset

Last summer we took family to Foster Falls to hike and see the falls. 

Here's the map of the trails around the pool where the falls are. The big loop is a really long trail. We hiked from the parking lot to the right around the pool and made it to where the two trails get very near. (That was about a mile away from the parking lot.) There is a way to get from one side to the other there, but you have to do some pretty advanced climbing/scrambling. We hiked to the right of the circle first,

and found a great stream to start our wading in and to eat our picnic by.

The kids caught crawdads.

We hiked more around the rim and then backtracked around to the falls.

The hike down to the falls is a rocky staircase,

and a cool swinging bridge.

The falls are amazing! I wasn't planning to swim, but got in the water anyway. All of us swam under the falls, which is extremely exhilarating. The kids swam across and under the falls using swim rings. The water is COLD, but refreshing, and being out in the middle of the pool with the cliffs going up around you is am awe-inspiring experience. 

{map for Foster Falls}

Heritage Park

Heritage park is a gem in the middle of a shopping haven. It's a great place to hop by in between errands to let the kiddos (or dogs) run around, but if you have all morning, it's also a great place to wade, catch crawdads and feed the fish.

PICNIC? yes

SWIMSUIT? yes

COST? none

PLAYGROUND? yes

AUTHOR'S RATING? five out of five stars!

HOURS? dawn to dusk

Along with the play structure, there are swings and a bocce ball court. There's also a great track around the whole park for jogging or riding bikes.

The Dog Park located at Heritage is open to your dog after it has been screened and you have paid a small annual fee.

one side of the dog park

water available for the dogs at the entrance

other side of the dog park

restrooms

Our favorite part of Heritage is definitely the creek. Along with being picturesque, it's also infinitely wadeable and splashable!

The creek goes under the bridge that brings you into the park.

It didn't take long before my kiddos were tossing their shirts and going into the water in their suits. I would say this is mainly a wading hole, but with my kids, I knew that if they wore clothes, it would only be a matter of minutes before they were soaked. Hence the bathing suits.

The Heritage House is an arts and civic center located on the grounds of the park. This house and grounds were once the private estate of the Henshaw family. There are festivals at the house throughout the year, and it can be rented out for private events.

{MAP FOR HERITAGE PARK}

Chickamauga Lake

After seeing the lower side of the Chickamauga Dam, we were all curious to see the other side, so we took the short drive to the Chickamauga Lake Park. This is the place to be if you want to put in a boat (we got to see a house boat being pulled out of the water) or if you want to feed the ducks.

There's also a step-down, partitioned off swimming area.

PICNIC? yes

SWIMSUIT? yes

COST? none

PLAYGROUND? no

AUTHOR'S RATING? four and a half out of five stars

HOURS? dawn to dusk

We loved going out on the floating docks and seeing the geese and herons land in the water.

On a hill just beside the dock area, there is a large covered pavilion with picnic tables. On the other side of that hill is a swimming area.

As far as I could tell, the area partitioned off included water up to about 4 feet.

In a group of trees behind the swimming area are picnic tables in the shade.

{MAP FOR CHICKAMAUGA LAKE}

Warner Park Pool and Spray Pad

Warner Park Pool

1254 East Third Street

(next to the Chattanooga Zoo)

PICNIC? no food can technically be brought into the pool area

SWIMSUIT? yes!!

COST? 14+/$3; 3-13/$2; 0-2/free

AUTHOR'S RATING? four and a half out of five stars!

HOURS? Open May 24th-August 10th

Mon-Wed 12:30-5pm

Thurs-Fri 11-5pm

Sat-Sun 12:30-5pm

May 27-Aug 6 Spray Park ONLY open from

Mon-Wed 5:30-8pm

This is a really fun place for the family! We love the play feature in the deep end of the pool (for those who can swim), the spray pad is really fun for the little ones, and there are shaded tent areas for adults to relax and watch. I also love the fact that they allow families to come in for $5 after 5pm on Mondays!

The negatives for this pool are that it is often very crowded, it's a bit hard to keep up with five different aged kids (this really isn't the pool's fault!), and that we have to sneak our snacks in or pay exorbitantly when the children inevitably get hungry from swimming.

They do not allow float devices from home, but they do provide life vests for kids who want to play on  the deep end blown up device but don't pass the swim test.

All of that to say, it's not where I would want to hang out every day of the summer, but it is very fun for an occasional trip!

A note about parking: In order to reach the pool with the least amount of walking (I know how much stuff a family needs at the pool!) turn in the entrance from McCallie Ave. This will take you around and behind the old ball park to where the "front" entrance of the zoo used to be. This is behind the pool and you can easily walk around the pool to the front entrance. This may sound a little confusing, but it is a lot easier to herd the crew from cars to pool this way. 

{MAP FOR WARNER PARK}

Coolidge Park

There is more to say about Coolidge Park than one post can cover, but I'll take a stab at the first one here. This is the "central park" of Chattanooga.  This is where you'll find the mingling of everyone who loves Chattanooga--walkers, joggers, bikers, kids tossing the frisbee, people sitting quietly contemplating life, kids, adults, grillers, picnickers, sunscreen, swimsuits, family reunions, climbing walls, carousels...

It's where you can have festivals, concerts, fundraisers, fun runs...

You get the picture? This is a pulsing, living, center of the play life of Chattanooga.

PICNIC? yes

SWIMSUIT? yes

COST? none for the fountain; the carousel costs $1, kids 2 and under are free

PLAYGROUND? no

AUTHOR'S RATING? five out of five stars!

HOURS? Summer hours (Memorial Day through Labor Day): 9am-7pm

Winter hours: 12-6pm

The two main guided play areas of the park are a fountain and a carousel.

I absolutely love the fact that you can show up for the fountain at 9:25, a few minutes before it turns on, and there will be almost no one there. The fountain will come on, the kids will play, you might zone out for a second, and all of a sudden there are dozens of kids enjoying the fountain with your own. Like magic they come from the paths, from behind the bushes, from the lawn of the park, drawn to the cool fountains in the hot sunshine.

The beauty of this fountain is that you can choose your level of involvement. An adult can easily splash their feet in the shorter fountains and feel refreshed. A timid toddler can sit in their swim diaper and play with a cup in the smaller fountain and be well entertained. And then there are the older kids who can fold themselves in the center fountain and feel the thrill and the risk of moving water all around them.

When you're done with the fountain, hit the nearby restrooms (located on either side of the pavilion), don dry clothes and head to the antique carousel located right next to the fountain. This 1894 carousel was restored by local wood carver Bud Ellis and his team. There are 52 beautiful animals to choose from and a few carriage seats for the parents who don't want to ride. The inner circles of animals move up and down, so be sure to choose one of those if you want the full carousel ride feel.

{MAP FOR COOLIDGE PARK}