There was a nip in the air when I stepped out of the car on Tuesday. The setting: The City Of Fishers’ newest recreational property, Flat Fork Creek Park {try saying that 4x fast!}.
A smiling face introduced himself as Scott and we struck up conversation about our native cold-weather states {I of Michigan; he of North Dakota}. It turned to our kids and we laughed when he mentioned his 1-year-old’s recent obsession with Shrek.
Then a cameraman approached my conversation buddy and miked him up as our sneak preview kicked off. My friend turned out to be Scott Fadness, mayor of Fishers. And his excitement for Fishers’ newest park quickly became contagious to our crowd.
 RELATED ARTICLE: Treehouses at Flat Fork Creek Park
Flat Fork Creek Park – located at 16141 E. 101st Street – is, as Mayor Fadness says “the intersection of recreation, environment and fun.”Â
It has been months in the making and required the planning help of the City Of Fishers, Fishers Parks & Recreation, the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, the Hoosier Mountain Biking Association and probably even more partners than I’m privy to.
It boasts a 50-foot manmade sledding hill {created in partnership with local home builders who brought the excavated dirt from new build basements}, miles of mountain bike trails that make ME want to jump on an FTB, paved trails to admire the view of Flat Fork Creek, a fishing pond managed by my loves at the Indiana DNR Division of Fish and Wildlife {remember Clint?}, a modern picnic shelterhouse and was there something else? Hmmm…
Right: Treehouses at Flat Fork Creek Park.
Flat Fork Creek Park is home to THREE treehouses. One is ADA-accessible {in fact a huge portion of the park is!}, and two others require a little traversing off-trail. But they are the true-to-your-youth, climb-a-ladder treehouse in the middle of the woods. I wanted to break from the pack of media folks on Tuesday and scale Tulip Tower or Redbud Retreat myself.
Good thing Director of Fishers Parks & Recreation Tony Elliott followed up my secret plan with this statement: “There’s not a spot in this park that visitors can’t explore. We are encouraging everyone to go and get in the trees.”
And the playground? Don’t expect a mulched surface with a slide and swingset sitting atop it here. Flat Fork Creek Park is everything you remember about your youth – getting lost in the woods with your friends for hours or discovering your own adventures. You know – the original playground. So go PLAY.
MORE INFO: Flat Fork Creek Park celebrates its grand opening today, 12/3 from 3:30-5:30pm with food trucks, hot chocolate, demonstrations and more in open-house style fun. The park is located at 16141 E. 101st Street in Fishers {GPS will list ‘Fortville’ as the city}. Visit fishers.in.us/PARKS for more details.
{Select photos used courtesy of Fishers Parks and Recreation.}
