Lake Wheeler Park

I had never been out to Lake Wheeler Park until this summer and I can’t wait to return.  For the most part, Lake Wheeler is similar to Lake Johnson except that it doesn’t have a paved trail surrounding it, but does have much more extensive boating, picnicking and playground areas.

Lake Wheeler Park is located at 6404 Lake Wheeler Rd in southwest Raleigh.  Upon entering the park, you’ll notice the 650 acre lake to the south.  As you meander through the park on the main road, there are several spots along the way to stop and fish or shelters for picnicking.  Continuing on you’ll pass large open fields with larger shelter areas and finally arrive at the large parking lot near the boat house.

We parked in the main parking lot and headed down to explore the boats and docks at the lake.  This particular day was extremely windy so the water was pretty void of any boaters.  We still managed to walk on the docks and talk about the different boats we saw (presumably for rent) – paddle boats, sunfish sailboats, kayaks, jon boats, etc.  For a complete list of boats for rent or launch visit the Lake Wheeler rental website.  You can also learn more about the depths of the lake (which get to 25ft in some spots) by visiting the information boards near the boat house.  Follow these guidelines for fishing in and on the bank of the lake.  Across from the boat ramps is the park’s very impressive boat storage area.  In addition to renting various boats and fishing, you can also take several boating classes offered at Lake Wheeler, which start back up in the spring.

Next we explored the boat house area, which consists of a large veranda (covered and uncovered) overlooking the water complete with picnic tables and rocking chairs, indoor rooms for classes and rental, a concession area, restrooms, and beautiful landscaping leading up to the playground area.  The veranda, indoor room and deck are all available for rent for special events.  Ashley especially loved sitting in the rocking chairs while we talked about the different things we saw near the water (ducks, boats, people, etc).

After visiting the boat house, we explored the nearby t-shaped dock, which offered some great photo ops.  It has several fish cleaning spots and is completely fenced in, making it a fun place to explore for toddlers (provided no one else is around trying to fish).

Next we headed back to the playground, where we spent most of our morning.  This is a great place for playing and then having a picnic, as there are several picnic tables and even a small shelter and charcoal grill in the vicinity.  The playground offers a few areas for early walkers to play on, but is mostly geared towards the more steady walkers.  There aren’t too many openings in the playground, making it easier for nervous moms to let toddlers run free in the playground.  The playground has big-kid swings and low swings for toddlers who can hold onto the chains, but no bucket tot swings.  It has a wood chip base and has several slides, tunnels, and ladders at different levels making it a fun and interesting place to play.

Finally, we made our way over to the large open field to “throw” our frisbee.  Being that we visited the park on the hottest day of the summer we didn’t last too much longer, but enjoyed a fun morning with lots to look at, talk about and explore!  I can’t wait to visit again and do some boating.

For more info about this park including boating, fishing and rental opportunities visit the City of Raleigh website.

Thumbs up: variety of boating activities, playground area, vicinity of picnic tables near playground, views from the boat house

Thumbs down: signage throughout the park

Shelley Lake

Shelley Lake is a large park in the North Raleigh area. It is located at 1400 W Millbrook Rd and is a popular place to walk and run, especially in the evenings. The lake is surrounded by a portion of the Bent Creek greenway trail that is 2.08 miles. The Lake Park trail (unpaved .42 miles) also connects off the greenway.  A lot of the trail is shaded, but there are also long stretches of full sun.  When you pull into the parking lot follow the snaking trail to the left where you’ll connect to the greenway.

As we walked around the trail we came across several different things this park has to offer.

The parking lot off Millbrook Rd and signage about the park

 

Condition of the trail
Pier and boat house
Access to the fishing pier
Restrooms on one side and scenic views on the other
Water fountain outside the restrooms

Beautiful viewing area overlooking lake

 

Continuing on, you’ll notice that the signage throughout the park is pretty thorough. This park has a lot to offer and it could be easy to get lost along the way. Luckily we didn’t have to leave bread crumbs to help us get back to the parking lot.  The signs direct you to the Lake Park Drive (the unpaved section of the greenway), the Sertoma Arts Center, restrooms, and the Shelley Lake Trail around the lake.  We didn’t venture up to the Arts Center, but it has a plethora of adult and youth art classes available.

As you continue on the trail, you’ll come across a wooden bridge where you can stop to take pictures and visit with the ducks and geese.  Here are some pictures of Ashley with her own Duckie Wubbanub.

In addition to the amenities listed above this park also contains benches along the trail, workout stations, large open fields, and additional access to the other portions of the greenway trail.  Here are some more spectacular views of the lake and open fields.

Thumbs up:  spectacular views, great jogging trail, signage, access to other greenway trails, art center

Thumbs down: popular spot so it’ll be busy, litter in the lake