‘Exceeded our expectations.’ Visitors region-wide flock to newest Lake Norman park
Catawba County’s 606-acre Mountain Creek Park has seen strong attendance since opening on Lake Norman in Sherrills Ford in June, park Superintendent Lori Owenby told The Lake Norman Observer.
Visitors from as far away as Charlotte, Gastonia and Winston-Salem are mountain biking and hiking its trails, playing on its pickleball courts and tiring their kids out on its huge adventure playground, park officials said.
Attendance “has exceeded our expectations,” Owenby said in a Nov. 10 email.
The park attracted at least 153,000 visitors from its June 18 opening through Oct. 31, according to park estimates.
“Those are the kinds of numbers we usually see in close to a year at our other large-scale parks,” Owenby said.
“In addition to being enjoyed by Catawba County residents, Mountain Creek Park is consistently drawing in people from around the region,” she said.
She cited the “great location and unique amenities, especially the mountain bike trails.”
The park lies along Little Mountain Road off N.C. 150, about 34 miles northwest of Charlotte.
A local visitor told Owenby recently that he’d ridden on trails in 22 states, “and our park is absolutely one of the top five places he’s ever biked,” Owenby said. “He was thankful to have it so close to home.”
Paddle launch, fishing pier
The park features 19.52 total trail miles, including 18.7 miles of natural surface hiking and biking trails and a 0.82-mile paved, ADA-accessible trail that winds 90 to 100 feet down to the lake.
Other features include a paddle launch, fishing pier, a dog park, enormous adventure playground, four pickleball courts and three picnic shelters. Several other picnic tables are scattered around the playground and the paved ADA-accessible trail.
“The bike trails are definitely our biggest draw,” Owenby said. “We’ve had people come from several states away because they’ve heard about the flow.”
The pump track parking lot stays full each night and on weekends, she said.
“We get the pleasure of hearing what a wonderful park we have and how beautiful both the trail system and facilities are on a daily basis,” Owenby said.
Playground ‘a close second’
Moms including 36-year-old Maiden resident Kari Walters and 35-year-old Holly Bugg of west Hickory love letting their children loose on the adventure playground near the park entrance.
“I feel like it’s a safe park, a safe area,” Walters told the Observer as her children took to the the playground on a sunny afternoon last week.
“The playground has plenty of space for the kids,” Bugg said. “They’re not going to be on top of each other.”
Her 10-year-old son, Nolan, said he likes climbing the ropes and rock wall at the playground and “how the slides are a lot smoother. They’re not grippy like other slides.”
Nolan said he especially enjoys skateboarding down the sloped, curvy sidewalk near the playground. He looked like a pro last week as he sped down the long sidewalk with ease.
“The playground is a close second” in terms of popular park attractions, Owenby said.
“We see some families daily,” she said. “The playground picnic shelter has become quite the popular birthday party spot, too. Cake and a huge adventure playground — what kid wouldn’t love that?”
One of the biggest surprises about the public’s reaction to the park has been the community that’s formed around the adventure playground, she said.
Kid favorite: Jonesy the corn snake
“The kids who come to play there regularly have become our little friends,” Owenby said. “They come into the park office to see us and our corn snake, Jonesy, and our box turtle, Shoresy, every single time they visit.
“Having them ask us questions about nature, especially mammals, birds, and insects, has been a rewarding experience for all of our rangers.”
‘Constant stream of folks’
The pickleball courts have been the third top draw of the park, Owenby said.
“There is a constant stream of folks on the courts dinking and flicking the ball back and forth,” she said. “It’s great fun to watch, even if you don’t play.”
That’s where the Observer found Cornelius couple Dusty and Mel Fischer on last week.
“We love being outdoors,” Mel Fischer said. She and Dusty, both 41, also live part of the year in her native United Kingdom.
Mountain Creek Park popped up on AllTrails.com, and they decided to drive up and hike its trails four months ago, the couple said.
They most enjoy hiking Loblolly Loop, she said. The 2.52-mile rolling and forested multi-use loop affords creek and stream views.
Last Wednesday was the Cornelius couple’s second trip to the park, and most certainly not their last, they said.
Mountain Creek Park
Address: 6554 Little Mountain Road, Sherrills Ford, NC 28673.
Phone number: 828-465-9645.
Hours: Daily, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. November-February; 8 a.m.-7 p.m. March and October; 8 a.m.-8 p.m. April-September.
The park is closed on Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve.
A ranger is on duty during park hours.
This story was originally published November 16, 2022 at 11:21 AM.