All News & StoriesAs the weather warms up, we are all itching to get outside. We asked the staff at CCA to share their favorite parks and places to get out and be active.
Sarah, Community Engagement Specialist
This is a tough one – they all have a different appeal! Favorites in Indy include: Eagle Creek to look at birds (they have the coolest observation deck and bird “garden”), Fort Harrison State Park for trails (hiking, running, and walking), and Holliday Park for the sheer solace and beauty. But, I think my favorite of all time in Indiana is Starve Hollow in Brownstown. It is worth the drive and the vistas are absolutely breathtaking!
Jamie, Family Engagement Specialist
My toddler and I love to visit Holliday Park. Every time we visit we park by the ruins – she loves the water feature and flowers there. We then walk to the playground, and along the way she loves to climb the large rocks and have a snack picnic. I am looking forward to exploring the trails with her this spring and summer!
Kristin, Communications and Community Manager
Now that my kids are older (teenagers?!?), we often find ourselves at Riverside Park. My oldest plays tennis and enjoys teaching my younger son what he has learned, and their courts are great. My husband and I recently discovered the new Riverside Promenade, and we also enjoyed the detour along the river and past the amphitheater. We are definitely looking forward to watching a play by IndyShakes this summer! It’s fun to pretend for a minute that we are in Ancient Greece or Rome instead of our little slice of Indianapolis.
Mollie, Executive Director
When my kids were younger, the definition of a park was anything that had a tree and mulch under some play equipment. We enjoyed exploring Funky Bones at The Virginia B. Fairbanks Art & Nature Park at Newfields, the ruins at Holliday Park, and the gorgeous flowers at Garfield Park. As our family has changed, the chance to enjoy the fresh air and release some energy has now changed to hiking and enjoying the surroundings. The best part is that we now plan vacations around national parks such as Redwood, Acadia, and Mt. Rainier.
Eunice, Multicultural Community Engagement Specialist
We don’t have a favorite park yet, but the kids really like any open space where they can run and make noise without Mom and Dad telling them to be quiet. And the great thing is, their first time at any park is “the best day of their life!”
Lauren, Family Engagement Specialist
This past summer our family began exploring parks we had never been to before using our park bingo cards. This brought us to Flowing Well Park in Carmel. I used to go to the well and get water as a child but never knew they had more than that. Low and behold we found the absolute best place for creek stomping! We are looking forward to going back this summer, catching crawdads, skipping rocks, and trying out our metal detector to find hidden treasure.
Rosy, Multicultural Family Engagement Specialist
The Hyre kids love going to any park where they can be loud, go creek stomping, fly off swings, and roll around in mulch – but their top three parks for sure are Lions Park, Riley Park and splash pad in Greenfield, and their all-time favorite Roy G. Holland Memorial Park in Fishers. They can never get enough of the water park and pool areas during the summer!
Patti, Data and Assessment Specialist
We are fortunate to have Little Eagle Creek right behind our house so we didn’t need to visit a park to creek stomp when our kids were young. We also live close to Eagle Creek Park which we visit frequently. We enjoy hiking there with our dog, attending free jazz concerts in the summer, and seeing what types of wildlife we can spot on the water or in the woods. We recently were hiking on one of the trails right before dusk and spotted two white-tailed deer through the trees. They were watching us as we were watching them. It was awesome to be so close!
Allie, Resource and Referral Specialist
I live right by Eagle Creek, so I love to go there for the gorgeous walk or out on the water with our kayaks. We enjoy going to different spots where the White River curves inward so we can park and get our kayaks out on the water. I like to keep those hidden gems a secret so there’s less traffic!
Julie, Program Resource Manager
Boy, is it hard to choose a favorite! We love 100 Acres at The Virginia B. Fairbanks Art & Nature Park, Southeastway Park, and Fort Harrison State Park. They’re beautiful year round! We enjoy walking the trails with our pup and enjoying picnics with friends.
Lane, Human Resources Manager
We love being outside. With the grandkids, we’ll spend time at Holliday Park because it’s so close. We explored around Versailles State Park a while back and really enjoyed the hiking. We went in the fall, so it was very colorful!
