Family Fun at Alum Creek in Central Ohio

Kid-Friendly Day Trip to the Alum Creek Below Dam Recreation Area

Jul 7, 2009

The Alum Creek Below Dam Recreation Area offers all-day family activities like playgrounds, picnicking, grilling, kite flying, and peering over the edge of a 93-foot dam.

Alum Creek State Park features 8,000 acres of camping, hiking, boating, and swimming.

But the huge dam, playgrounds, kite flying, and picnic and grilling area in the easily accessible Below Dam Recreational Area at the southern end of the park is often overlooked. It's a great place for a family to spend a day.

Alum Creek Below Dam Recreational Area

The Alum Creek Below Dam Recreational Area is located at the southern tip of Alum Lake, about 25 minutes north of Columbus. The address is:

Dam at Alum Creek

As the car approaches the Below Dam Recreation Area, kids' eyes will pop out of their heads at the 93-foot high dam that looms over them. The dam, built by the Army Corp of Engineers, is 10,000 feet wide with water rushing out of a spillway on the side.

The best feature of the area is that people can take the stairs all the way to the top and actually walk over the top of the dam and look out over the edge. On the other side of the dam is Alum Lake, and kids with parental supervision can even go down to the water's edge and throw in stones. There's also a swimming beach visible from the dam, which is just a short drive away.

Walking Trails and Kite Flying

Paved walking trails continue in either direction from the top of the dam, but when the family is ready to go back down try rolling down the grassy hill instead of taking the steps.

Near the base of the dam is a very large open, grassy expanse that is perfect for flying kites or remote control airplanes. There are no trees to tangle up a kite or obstacles on the ground for kids to trip over as they look up.

Playgrounds at Alum Creek Park

The Below Dam Recreation Area at Alum Creek has two large playgrounds for kids of all ages. One is an older style playground that still features a merry-go-round, a piece of equipment that children today don't often see at modern parks.

The other park is bigger and more modern. It features separate big and little kid areas, and a twisting figure 8 rock climber for ages 5 to 12 that will challenge even the most coordinated child.

Picnicking, Grills, and Bathrooms at Alum Below Dam Area

Alum Creek has a permanent shelter house with separate men's and women's bathrooms equipped with flush toilets, so no worries about unsanitary port-a-potties.

Flanking the older playground are two huge shelters filled with picnic tables. Each has a large-capacity, built-in, stainless steel grill to use.

Across the parking lot, there are dozens of smaller grills and just as many picnic tables dotting the bank of the creek. This is one park where families will never find that they can't get a grill to themselves! One word of caution: watch small children carefully, because the creek is too large for a child to safely wade or play in.

Visiting the dam at Alum Creek is a perfect day trip for families in the central Ohio area. No matter what the ages of kids, both they and their parents will enjoy what the Below Dam Recreation Area has to offer.

The copyright of the article Family Fun at Alum Creek in Central Ohio in Kid-Friendly Travel Destinations is owned by Jenny Evans. Permission to republish Family Fun at Alum Creek in Central Ohio in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.