Downtown Chattanooga
Chattanooga offers an incredible combination of scenic beauty with its surrounding mountains and a river flowing the heart of downtown. Downtown serves as a great base camp for endless outdoor recreation and adventures. The revitalized riverfront with a 13-mile paved Riverwalk, paddling on the Tennessee River Blueway, a multitude of city parks and open spaces, a variety of accommodations, restaurants to please every palate, a rich history, thriving arts scene, and many annual events that provide year-round family fun.
Chattanooga’s downtown attractions are connected by a FREE electric shuttle and Chattanooga’s Bike Share system. Lookout Mountain, with all its attractions and outdoor amenities, is only six miles from downtown.
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Chatt Town Skate Park
The City of Chattanooga's 'Chattown' Skate Park located downtown on Reggie White Blvd is a 23,200 square foot lit park for skateboards, BMX bikes, and in-line skating that features refurbished modular ramps, rails, and boxes, and Skatelite surfacing. There's a roller hockey rink, scoreboard, bleachers, pavilion with restrooms, on-site equipment, and a state-of-the-art sound system. Special events and tournaments are scheduled throughout the year. There are adult and youth hockey leagues that provide the in-line hockey games during the fall and winter months.
Nearby the skate park is the downtown Chattanooga Chew Chew Canine Park and the First Horizon Pavilion, which is home to the Chattanooga Market every Sunday April - Oct.Directions
Difficulty
Skating
Guides
Hours and Cost
Open Daily: Sunrise to 11:00 PM
Cost: Free - pay to park
Pet Friendly
No, but there is a dog park located nearby where dogs are allowed off leash.
Contact
City of Chattanooga Parks
423-643-6311Open Spaces Chattanooga
423-643-6887Located at 1801 Reggie White Blvd,
Chattanooga, TN 37408 -
Great Eastern Trail
The Great Eastern Trail is a project of the Great Eastern Trail Association, working with the American Hiking Society and local trail partners, to create America’s newest long-distance hiking trail extending from Alabama to New York! Still under development, the Great Eastern Trail (GET) runs through Chattanooga using parts of the Cumberland Trail, North Chickamauga Creek Greenway, Tennessee Riverpark, and Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park’s Lookout Mountain trail system.
When complete, the GET will connect the Florida National Scenic Trail to the North Country National Scenic Trail in New York State, as well as making connections to the Benton MacKaye, Pinhoti and Appalachian Trails. Currently, long-distance hikers can access nearby backcountry sections of the GET from downtown Chattanooga using temporary routes on city rights of way and greenways.
Chattanooga was designated a GET Trail Town in 2013.
Directions
Difficulty
Backpacking
Hiking
Running
Hours and Cost
Open Daily: 24/7
Cost: Free
Pet Friendly
Yes, on leash
Contact
Great Eastern Trail Association 118 Park St. S.E. Vienna, VA 22180
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Ice on the Landing
Ice on the landing is Chattanooga's only open air, seasonal ice skating rink located in the gardens at the historic Chattanooga Choo Choo. The rink opens in mid-November and closes in late January. Check the website for exact dates and daily hours as they vary from year to year.
Ice skating is a fun winter activitiy for the whole family! They offer season passes and group discounts. They also host private events like Lodge Skillet Curling and birthday parties. If you're looking for a fun and active winter activity to do outside in Chattanooga in the winter, this is it!
Directions
Difficulty
Skating
Hours and Cost
Open November - January
Hours vary by day of the week & holidayCost: $10 Adult | $8 Child
Click here for hours/ratesPet Friendly
No
Contact
Chattanooga Choo Choo
1400 Market St.
Chattanooga, TN 37402
(423) 265-0771 -
Maclellan Island
The Maclellan Island Sanctuary is located in the middle of downtown Chattanooga on the Tennessee River.
Owned and managed by the Chattanooga Audubon Society, the sanctuary contains a very large Great Blue Heron rookery, numerous waterfowl nesting sites and also serves as a home to muskrat, river otters, and the occasional white-tailed deer.
The public can access the island via a power boat dock on the southwest side or a canoe and kayak launch on the northeast side. The island contains a system of hiking trails, a group campground and is a designated campsite for the Tennessee River Blueway paddling trail. Day and overnight usage fees apply.
The best launch for canoes, kayaks and SUP’s in downtown Chattanooga is located on the north shore of the Tennessee River in Coolidge Park, under the John Ross (Market St.) Bridge.Difficulty
Paddling
Pet Friendly
No.
Contact
900 North Sanctuary Rd.
Chattanooga, TN 37421
423-892-1499
423-892-3690
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Stringer's Ridge
Stringers Ridge is a 92-acre urban wilderness park located in the heart of North Chattanooga. The ridge overlooks the North Shore, the Tennessee River, and downtown Chattanooga's revitalized waterfront. There are 7 miles of multi-use trails for both bikers and pedestrians, with some spur trails designated as foot-traffic only. The trail terrain consists of well-groomed singletrack with rolling hills and some short steep sections. Some of the trails are beginner friendly and family oriented, allowing for a leisurely stroll, while other sections are designated for more experienced hikers and bikers.
The park has two trailheads; one on the south end on Old Bell Avenue, the other is on the north end located on Spears Avenue, which has ample parking, restroom facilities, a bike repair station and a pump track. An outlook structure was added near the top of the ridge to provide a spectacular view of the city. The park is a result of a citizen-based effort to preserve one of the last large natural areas within the City of Chattanooga limits. Over the course of almost three years The Tennessee River Gorge Trust, the City of Chattanooga and The Trust for Public Land lead this project from conception to completion. SORBA Chattanooga assisted by coordinating trail construction days and providing tools as well as training volunteers for continued trail maintenance.
Directions
Difficulty
Hiking
Running
Biking
Guides
Hours and Cost
Open Daily: Sunrise to Sunset
Cost: Free
Pet Friendly
Yes, on leash
Contact
City of Chattanooga Parks 423-425-6311
Outdoor Chattanooga 200 River St. Chattanooga, TN 37405 423-643-6888
Tennessee River Gorge Trust 1214 Dartmouth Street Chattanooga, TN 37405 423-266-0314
Trust for Public Land 202 Tremont St. Chattanooga, TN 37405 (423) 265-5229
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Tennessee River Gorge and Blueway
The Tennessee River Gorge, nicknamed the Grand Canyon of Tennessee, is one of the most unique natural treasures in the Southeast. Spanning 27,000-acres, the gorge was carved through the Cumberland Mountains by the Tennessee River. It is the only large river canyon bordering a mid-size city and is the 4th largest river canyon east of the Mississippi. Designated as a National Scenic River Trail in 2002, the Tennessee River Blueway flows through Chattanooga and the Tennessee River Gorge for 46 miles, from Chickamauga to Nickajack Dam.
The Blueway’s unique paddling experience offers kayakers, canoeists, and paddleboarders the opportunity to visit wildlife preserves and camp primitively on public lands or stay in downtown hotels and take advantage of urban amenities. The Tennessee River flows through the heart of downtown Chattanooga’s thriving entertainment district and then continues through the high, forested walls of the river gorge. There, towering bluffs and protected forests provide miles of spectacular paddling.
When the Tennessee River widens into Nickajack Lake, it reveals its enormous scope before dropping Blueway paddlers off at the headwaters of Nickajack Dam. The scenic terrain of the Tennessee River Gorge creates a unique diversity of landforms, thousands of varieties of plants, grasses and wildflowers and a rich wildlife population. There are many ways to access wildlife viewing in the gorge: mountain biking Raccoon Mountain, paddling the Tennessee River Blueway or even climbing at the Tennessee Wall. The most accessible way to get a good overview is to hike the Pot Point Nature Trail, a 3.5-mile loop that begins at the Tennessee River Gorge Trust’s Pot Point Cabin at the river’s edge and climbs the side of the Cumberland Plateau to nearly 1,000 feet.Difficulty
Paddling
Hours and Cost
Open Daily: Sunrise to Sunset
Cost: Free
Pet Friendly
Yes, on a leash
Contact
Outdoor Chattanooga
200 River St.
Chattanooga, TN 37405
423-643-6888
info@outdoorchattanooga.comTennessee River Gorge Trust
1214 Dartmouth St.
Chattanooga, TN 37405
423-266-0314 -
Tennessee Riverpark
The Tennessee Riverpark is a 13-mile paved, urban greenway, that connects downtown Chattanooga to Chickamauga Dam, 8 miles to the east and to the Historic St. Elmo neighborhood 4 miles to the south. Open to cyclists, runners, skaters and walkers, the popularly named “Riverwalk” connects neighborhoods and business districts within Chattanooga and Hamilton County.
The Riverpark can be accessed from various parking areas and trailheads from Chickamauga Dam to St. Elmo. The Riverwalk connects to the South Chickamauga Creek Greenway at Riverpoint off Lost Mound Drive to add an additional 3 miles out to Sterchi Farm Park. PETS ARE NOT ALLOWED ON THE TENNESSEE RIVERPARK FROM CHICKAMAUGA DAM TO THE BLUFF VIEW ARTS DISTRICT. The Bike Chattanooga Bicycle Transit System has stations located at the Riverpark’s Hubert Fry Center, Curtain Pole Road Trailhead, 100 Walnut Street, Coolidge Park, Renaissance Park, Spring Hill Suites, Blue Goose Hollow Trailhead, and Wheland Foundry Trailhead on Middle Street offering the ability to cycle along the greenway and access restaurants and shops in town. Paddling, Boating, Fishing The Tennessee Riverpark also offers paddlers and boaters several access points to the Tennessee River Blueway for options of short to multi-day/overnight paddling trips. Check out the Tennessee River Blueway Map for a list of access points. There are several fishing piers and overlooks to quietly observe the variety of wildlife that call the Tennessee River home. The best fishing piers are located at Chickamauga Dam and Hubert Fry Center.
Skating
Skating is now allowed on the Tennessee Riverwalk, but the path has multiple bridges, boardwalks, railroad crossings and consistent ridges/gaps that can be difficult or uncomfortable for new skaters and those with indoor skates. Outdoor wheels are recommended.
Difficulty
Hiking
Running
Biking
Paddling
Hours and Cost
Open Daily: Sunrise to Sunset
Cost: Free
Pet Friendly
No. Pets are not allowed in Coolidge Park or on the Riverwalk from the Bluff View Art District to the Chickamauga Dam.
Pets are allowed on leash on the Walnut Street Bridge and from downtown to the Wheland Foundry Trailhead.
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Walnut Wall
Located on the north shore of the river, the City of Chattanooga’s Walnut Wall overlooks the Tennessee River from a 50′ high limestone pier of the historic Walnut Street Bridge in Coolidge Park. The wall is equipped with fixed holds and offers beginner-friendly top roped climbing in a relaxed outdoor setting. The Walnut wall is used to host special climbing programs and activities through Outdoor Chattanooga and serves as a training ground for new student climbers with Chattanooga Area Interscholastic Climbing League. On occasion, the wall is open to the public for climbing. To see scheduled programs, visit our Events Calendar.
Directions
Difficulty
Climbing
Guides
Outdoor Chattanooga
Hours and Cost
Open by appointment only
Cost: varies depending on program
Pet Friendly
No
Contact
Outdoor Chattanooga 200 River St. Chattanooga, TN 37405 423-643-6888
