Outdoor Knoxville: Get out and play
One of the biggest challenges of being on the road 24 weeks a year is how to maintain a healthy lifestyle on a tight schedule and a limited budget.
Sure, an increasing number of hotels now feature a fitness center. But workout equipment is often limited, sometimes not working and frequently stuffed into a room that feels like a big closet lit with the ugliest florescent bulbs on the market.
A few weeks ago, however, I visited Knoxville, Tenn., for the International Biscuit Festival – a sure fire motivator to schedule daily workout time. Fortunately, the downtown Hilton hotel – my home for that week – houses a recently remodeled fitness center equipped with enough machines to accommodate a hurried crowd. But the real excitement is an easy walk just a few blocks away on the banks of the Tennessee River.
Welcome to Outdoor Knox- ville Adventure Center!
Okay, I admit the first time I walked into the city- owned Gateway Pavilion Building, I was like, whatever. The staff was nice enough. The kayaks and bicycles were displayed all colorful and cute. But I just didn’t get it. I didn’t really un-
derstand what the excitement was all about.
Then folks started explaining that Outdoor Knoxville is an initiative to capitalize on the region’s exceptional outdoor recreational assets: forests, flower- covered fields, quarry lakes, creeks, rivers and bluffs. The Adventure Center is just one prong of their plan. Centrally located at Volunteer Landing – constructed for the 1982 World’s Fair in Knoxville – Adventure Center is easily accessible to downtown, the University of Tennessee and all the trails and greenways on both sides of the river.
“Outdoor Knoxville provides great opportunities for recreation in beautiful natural settings just minutes from downtown,” says Mayor Madeline Rogero, “and this effort helps to showcase our trails, parks, waterways and greenways in a way that encourages everyone to get out and enjoy them.”
In essence, Outdoor Knoxville is the city’s first step toward putting itself on the map as a premier outdoor recreation destination. Their next big push is Outdoor KnoxFest, a three- day festival to be held Aug. 24- 26.
“What started as a day- long adventure race known as the Urban Wilderness Challenge has now grown into a weekend packed full of activities for families and outdoor athletes alike,” says Carol Evans, executive director of the Legacy Parks Foundation. “Our goal is to promote outdoor activities in Knoxville and to encourage everyone – regardless of skill level – to participate.”
Highlights of the Urban Wilderness Challenge include the Urban Adventure Race, a six- to eight- hour course designed for teams of three to bike, run, paddle, swim and maneuver their way through a few surprises around downtown Knoxville and the surrounding urban wilderness. The race is limited to 250 participants, and those who add the fourmile Urban Trail Race and the TBRA Point Series Mountain Bike Time Trial to their event schedule can qualify for the commemorative Triple Crown award.
If you’re like me, that sort of competition is a little too stiff for me. I would be more likely to sign up for the Pickel Road Ride, named for Harry Pickel, famous for his friendly greetings to those that road past his store. This course is a scenic figure- eight loop that highlights back roads in the area along the French Broad River where pastoral farmland and tranquil woods frame the landscape.
Families will particularly enjoy the Get Out and Play activities on Saturday, Aug. 25. Kids can scale a climbing wall. And everybody can try out Stand- Up Paddleboards, the hot trend in water sports.
Also on Saturday, former Olympian Missy Kane will lead a History Hike on the trails and greenway at Fort Dickerson Park.
On Sunday, be sure to take the entire family on a leisure bike ride, partly on roads, partly along the greenway, from downtown to Knoxville’s Ur- ban Wilderness and back. The ride will be at a social pace – perfect for enjoying the scenery along the way.
And don’t worry if you don’t have bikes, paddle boards or canoes. They’re all available for rent or purchase from the Adventure Center.
Interestingly, Legacy Parks’ efforts are not just about recreation.
The 70 acres of preserved forest in south Knoxville overlooking downtown and Fort Loudoun Lake is the site of Armstrong’s Hill, where Union and Confederate soldiers fought in 1863 during the siege of Knoxville.
“It’s a beautiful piece of property, abundant in wildflowers,” Evans says. “We will continue to identify and reintroduce native plants. People can come to see the flowers. They can come for the Civil War heritage. They can walk the trails. They can ride bikes. They can canoe or kayak. The important thing is to get outside and play. We have so much to offer here.”
A $ 1 million donation from Pilot helped make purchase of the property possible. The National Civil War Trust donated another $ 10,000. The re- maining $ 75,000 is being raised through special events.
“Legacy Parks is literally making Knoxville a better place to live,” says Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam.
And I can vouch that Legacy Parks has definitely made Knoxville a better place to visit. Folks like me who didn’t grow up doing “outdoor stuff” sometimes need a little encouragement to try new things. Congratulations, Knoxville. You made me want to get out and play!