| 533 | Centennial Park | 2011-12-08 |
Yesterday, after a three day wet spell, the weather forecasters were finally predicting the fronts to move through our region. Clear skies were going to return. Jake, the dog and I were going for a hike.
With all the rain, we knew the trails in the area parks were probably very muddy. We don't mind getting our feet muddy, Jake is especially fond of muddy hiking, but our footprints cause a lot of trail erosion. We opted instead to take an urban hike.
Leaving the house, we walked one and a half miles to Centennial Park, one of the Nashville Metro Parks. The Park was the site of the Tennessee Centennial Exposition of 1897 and the home of a replica of the Parthenon. The Park has a one mile paved walking, running, exercise path that travels around the Parthenon and Lake Watagua in the center of the Park.
I had been to the Park many times before. Most of my visits had been runs as I hurried through the Park. On this hike, I took my GPS and camera and recorded my hike just like on the trails. We stopped and read or photographed each sign. Jake and I enjoyed the leisurely hike. It was a great way to spend a few afternoon hours.
A few Park notes …
I did not see any litter on the grounds. A crew was out working on the grounds.
The restrooms were closed (I am assuming for the winter.) but porti-potties were available near the bandshell.
It was still cold and drizzly when we left the house. I could not seem to get warm, but just as the forecasters predicted before we returned home, I was removing layers of clothing and Jake was panting.
There were several folks using the path for exercise.
Historical placards were spaced around the path.
Included among the signs was the Centennial Park Tree Tour. A map showed the location of each of the trees. There were not any brochures or handouts of the map. A good alternative would be to take a picture of the sign and use it for reference.
After completing the one mile loop we walked a shorter inner loop.
Other Park features included the Sunken Gardens, Locomotive, Jet Fighter, Arts Center, playground, Bandshell, and the wonderful bench swings.
Leaving the Park we walked to visit my barber, Patti at the Family Barbershop. No one was in the single chair shop so we stopped by for a short visit. Jake was so excited. He could sense that Patti liked dogs.
Our total distance was just under five miles and the walk took two hours.
Happy Centennial trails