Chattanooga's parks, ranked.
A city with a river through the middle, a ridge on either side and tons of green space. This is where to spend an afternoon.
Updated
Ten public places worth the trip, from a thirteen-mile paved greenway to a brownfield that became the largest sculpture park in the Southeast. Almost all of them are free.
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1
Tennessee Riverpark & the Riverwalk
4301 Amnicola Hwy · 13 miles, paved, open 24/7
Thirteen miles of paved riverfront from downtown to the dam. The spine of outdoor Chattanooga, and free at every hour of the day.
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2
Coolidge Park
150 River St, Northshore · 11.2 acres
The city's living room - an 1894 carousel, a fountain full of stone animals, and the lawn everyone ends up on.
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3
Stringer's Ridge
1312 Spears Ave · 92 acres, 7 miles of trail
Ninety-two acres of woodland inside the city limits, with seven miles of trail and a rule about which way round you go.
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4
Enterprise South Nature Park
190 Still Hollow Loop · 2,800 acres
Two thousand eight hundred acres on a former munitions plant, with sixteen named trails and a splash pad for dogs.
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5
Reflection Riding Arboretum & Nature Center
400 Garden Rd · 300+ acres, ten minutes from downtown
Three hundred acres at the foot of Lookout Mountain, with red wolves, ten miles of trail and no admission price at all.
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6
Point Park
110 Point Park Rd, Lookout Mountain · $10, 7 days
The view that the whole city is arranged around, and the only place in the national military park that charges.
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7
Sculpture Fields at Montague Park
1800 Polk St, Southside · 33 acres, free
A landfill turned brownfield turned the largest sculpture park in the Southeast, with fifty large works in a field.
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8
Walnut Street Bridge
1 Walnut St · 2,376 feet, built 1890
One of the world's longest pedestrian bridges, saved from demolition by people who raised ten million dollars to do it.
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9
Harrison Bay State Park
8411 Harrison Bay Rd · 1,200 acres, camping
Tennessee's first state park - forty miles of lake shoreline, a marina, a Nicklaus golf course and the camping this list otherwise lacks.
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10
Chester Frost Park
2277 Gold Point Circle N, Hixson · camping, 6am-10pm daily
The county's camping park on Chickamauga Lake - over two hundred sites, a sand beach, and a paddle park for dogs.
The ten, side by side
| # | Name | Where | What is there | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tennessee Riverpark & the Riverwalk | 4301 Amnicola Highway, Chattanooga | Free, Paved, ADA, Open 24/7, Boat ramps and Playgrounds | Open 24/7 and Except behind Chattanooga State: first light to dark |
| 2 | Coolidge Park | 150 River St, Chattanooga | Free, Carousel, Fountain, River access and Northshore | The city publishes no hours |
| 3 | Stringer's Ridge | 1312 Spears Ave, Chattanooga | Free, 7 miles, Mountain biking, Overlook, Dogs and Sunrise to sunset | Daily, sunrise to sunset |
| 4 | Enterprise South Nature Park | 190 Still Hollow Loop, Chattanooga | Free, 2800 acres, Mountain biking, Dog park, Visitor centre and ADA | Park 7am-7:30pm, Visitor centre Mon-Fri 8am-4pm and Gate closes 30 min before the park |
| 5 | Reflection Riding Arboretum & Nature Center | 400 Garden Road, Chattanooga | Donation, 10 miles, Red wolves, Playscape, Dogs and Lookout Mountain | Welcome centre Tue-Sat 9am-4pm, Main gate closes 4pm and Grounds daylight hours |
| 6 | Point Park | 110 Point Park Road, Lookout Mountain | $10 adult, NPS, Overlook, Museum and Under 16 free | Gate opens daily 8:30am and Visitor centre 8:30am-5pm |
| 7 | Sculpture Fields at Montague Park | 1800 Polk St, Chattanooga | Free, 33 acres, 50+ sculptures, Dogs and 1.5 miles of trail | Open daily, daylight hours, Winter approx 8am-6pm and Summer approx 8am-8pm |
| 8 | Walnut Street Bridge | 1 Walnut St, Chattanooga | Free, 2376 feet, Built 1890, Linear park and Downtown | The city publishes no hours |
| 9 | Harrison Bay State Park | 8411 Harrison Bay Road, Harrison | Free entry, Camping, Marina, Golf, 1200 acres and ADA | Park 7am-10pm and Office and marina 8am-4:30pm |
| 10 | Chester Frost Park | 2277 Gold Point Circle N, Hixson | Camping year-round, Beach, ADA, Dog paddle park, Disc golf and Fishing piers | Daily 6am-10pm and Ranger station 10am-5pm daily |
Also worth your time
Audubon Acres has five miles of trail on 130 acres in East Brainerd, a swinging bridge over South Chickamauga Creek, and a museum holding one of the largest publicly visible collections of Native American artifacts in the area. It is one of the few places here that charges - $6 adult, $3 for children - and no dogs are allowed at all.
Booker T. Washington State Park, on Champion Road, was established in 1950 as one of the first parks in Tennessee to offer facilities for African Americans, and shares a segregated history with Harrison Bay. It is day use only, closes at sunset, and has an all-terrain wheelchair trail.
Greenway Farm in Hixson has six miles of trail on 180 acres along North Chickamauga Creek, three canoe access points and an off-leash dog park. Warner Park, forty acres on Holtzclaw, holds the zoo, a pool and five champion-level softball fields.
Signal Point, on Signal Mountain, is a free National Park Service overlook and the gateway to the Cumberland Trail. Its restrooms close from 1 December to 15 March every year.
Quick answers
Which Chattanooga parks are free?
Almost all of them. The Riverwalk, Coolidge Park, Stringer's Ridge, Enterprise South, Sculpture Fields, the Walnut Street Bridge, Chester Frost, Signal Point and both state parks charge nothing to enter. Point Park is $10 a head for seven days, Audubon Acres is $6, and Reflection Riding asks for a donation but publishes no price.
Where can you walk or run on pavement in Chattanooga?
The Riverwalk - thirteen paved miles from downtown to Chickamauga Dam, open 24 hours, listed ADA accessible. Harrison Bay's Starwalk Trail is paved but only 0.55 miles. Most other trails here are natural surface or gravel, including all five at Booker T. Washington.
Which park is best for mountain biking?
Enterprise South, for range: six bike trails from a 0.2-mile beginner loop to the 6.6-mile advanced Magnolia Loop. Stringer's Ridge has seven miles closer to town, run directional by day of the week so bikes and walkers pass the same way round.
Which Chattanooga park has the best playground?
No single answer, because the city publishes very little about its playgrounds. Enterprise South, Chester Frost, Harrison Bay and the Riverwalk all list one, Harrison Bay is building a new playscape, and Reflection Riding's five-acre Nature Playscape is the most interesting of them - deliberately not metal and plastic, and free.
Where can you camp near Chattanooga?
Chester Frost Park is the biggest - the county says over two hundred sites, year-round, with registration at the ranger station on Causeway Road. Harrison Bay State Park has 128 RV sites and primitive tent sites. Neither publishes a nightly rate. Booker T. Washington is day use only.
Can you take a dog?
Yes at Enterprise South, which has a 1.2-acre dog park with a splash pad and dog wash, and at Sculpture Fields, Greenway Farm, Reflection Riding and Chester Frost, which has a dog paddle park with lake access. No at Audubon Acres, which allows no pets at all.