Best place to swim.
What a great local hidden gem!!!
As an alternative, I would recommend Lake Lurleen about 15 miles from the university. For a small fee (I think it was around $12 for a family of four), you get warm water, clean beach, bathrooms, and more favorable clientele. The water varies in depth but is probably no more that 4.5 deep in the swimming area. The park looks like something out of a summer camp themed movie. There is plenty of parking, sites to picnic and eat, and some playgrounds. And the walk from your car to the beach is probably only 75 yards.
Kind of a hidden gem. Small trail network with a scenic river. Some Alabama "artifacts" are spread throughout the forest, which is interesting.
This place is beautiful. Crystal clear water, nice cool temperature, easy access for children with a slow moving water. For the most part the water is approximately 2.5 - 3.0 feet deep. There is ample parking and the walk from the parking lot is probably only 150 yards.
The water is rock bedded and crystal clear! There is a medium size "main" beach area, other wise it's pretty much up to you to explore and find a cool spot to have some fun in the water and sun. And on their trails (pay attention to your surroundings, they've marked paths with a few swipes of blue paint on trees to keep you in the right direction). No alcohol, glass (obvious reasons) or fires/BBQs allowed. Open from dusk until dawn; I belive the little sign says 7pm. Park rangers make a presence to ensure everyone is safe and having fun. PLEASE PICK UP YOUR TRASH! THERE ARE SEVERAL GARBAGE CANS, IN SEVERAL LOCATIONS, PLEASE USE THEM! I'm from out of town and couldn't stand seeing the locals just toss their beer cans, food wrappers, cigarettes, etc right on the ground ( some right next to garbage cans!) Seriously?! Have some common decency people! Especially the locals. We were talking to some locals and they threw their unfinished food and wrappers over their shoulders into the grass/woods... I Couldn't belive what I was seeing! I picked it up and handed it right back to them; I tried to be as "PC" and polite as possible...they ended up cleaning up more garbage after we finished our conversation. Anyways, there are really cool hiking trails that lead you to some spectacular rock structures. The terrain under the water and above the water is really interesting; big slabs of rock are submerged and some above water. According to the locals, in the last few decades the water level has significantly decreased, but there are still some good spots that are pretty deep. You can definitely sit in the water, go tubing, walk down the river (may have to swim through a few parts unless you jump up on a trail to avoid that),swim, and kayak. What we explored, being long time kayakers, we wouldn't drop our boats in, too many shallow places. Maybe farther down river but we only went about half a mile down the river from the main beach. As of now, June of 2016, it's free to enjoy this piece of mother nature's playground but I do think in the future they will start to change money. They have put in a nice parking lot, porta johns, gazebo, etc and as previously stated, park rangers come through; all the above cost money...just my opinion though. Thanks to a local mechanic, we enjoyed a wonderful day, enjoyed it so much we decided to grab a hotel for the night so we can spend a full day there tomorrow :) we would have never found this glorious place if he didn't tell us. Just a really spectacular place to enjoy the water, sun, family, friends and mother nature. We plan on making a road trip from home (MI), back here in August with some friends. THIS IS THE BEST PLACE TO COOL OFF ON A HOT SUMMERS DAY! I do recommend some kind of water shoes if you want to walk down the river- the rocks are very slippery and sometimes can't be avoided. Remember, drink lots of water and pick up after yourselves!!! It won't kill you or cost you anything to pick up other people's trash, I promise it won't! Every little gesture counts! :)
This place is called a park, but they keep it pretty close to nature. There is a pavilion when you first enter, but after that there are only dirt trails with a few benches. I love this place for a quick hike and swim with my pups when I'm feeling the call of the wild. It's very beautiful (especially on a slightly foggy day) and serene most of the time.
I would give it five stars if it wasn't for the main stream visitors who leave much to be desired. Being that it's completely free, the area has been proliferated with Alabama's finest residents. Your typical redneck/NASCAR fan is polluting the place with beer bottles and cans, dirty diapers, cigarette butts, food wrappers, plastic cups, etc. as of August 2017.
Hurricane Creek Park is a US Park based in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Hurricane Creek Park is located at Old Birmingham Hwy, Tuscaloosa, AL 35404, USA.
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