Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, May 9, 1993 TAG: 9305100332
SECTION: DISCOVER PAGE: 28 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
New features on the recreational landscape this year include Blacksburg's Aquatic Center and Floyd County's park off Virginia 8.
The valley offers recreational activities and facilities to suit all ages and abilities. Here's a sampling of what's out there.
Blacksburg
\ The Aquatic Center on Patrick Henry Drive, which opened last year, has been a big hit. It's right next door to the town's Recreation Center and Municipal Park.
The Aquatic Center provides year-round swimming to complement the town's outdoor pool, which is next to the Municipal Golf Course off Graves Avenue.
The center is open every day and offers a variety of activities from swimminglessons to water aerobics. There's even a program for people who are afraid of the water.
\ The outdoor pool is open during the summer season Tuesday through Sunday from noon until 5 p.m. Check with the recreation department for pool fees and activity schedules.
If it's the great outdoors you like, look into one of the outdoor adventures, which include fly-tying, stargazing, hikes, canoeing and rock climbing.
To find out more about the outdoor adventure programs, call 961-1133.
Throughout the summer, there's a variety of camps for youngsters of all ages. These include sports camps of all kinds, plus high adventure, computer and gymnastics camps. For details, call 961-1135.
You'll also find a choice of aerobics classes, both high-intensity and low-impact; tennis lessons for beginners through advanced beginners at the Municipal Park courts; and golf at the Municipal Golf Course.
Blacksburg recreation also sponsors fall church league softball programs and sandlot football.
The Blacksburg Parks and Recreation Department also provides a series of parks, hiking, and bicycle trails.
\ The Municipal Park next to the Recreation Center features the new "Hand-in-Hand" playground castle built last fall by members of the community.
The Municipal Park also has eight tennis courts, horseshoe pits, picnic shelters, playing fields and a fitness court. There are restroom facilities.
A favorite with the kids is Caboose Park, which features an old railroad caboose and lots of playground equipment. Caboose Park adjoins the main park next to the Recreation Center. Both parks are accessible from Turner Street.
Other parks include Nellies Cave Park on Grissom Lane near Nellies Cave Road. It offers a shelter, playground, athletic fields and horseshoe pits.
\ Toms Creek Park has a playground, lighted softball field and picnic shelter. Both Nellies Cave and Toms Creek parks have restrooms.
Among the town's neighborhood parks are "tot" parks for toddlers on DeHart\ Street, McBryde Drive, Owen Street, Sunrise Drive and Crestview/Country Club\ drives.
\ Other neighborhood parks are at Westover Hills, Progress Street, Primrose Drive, Seneca Drive and Shenandoah Circle. These feature benches and playground equipment. Seneca Drive also has playing fields. The Price House and Garden Park, at Lee and Wharton streets, features a historic house and gardens.
Blacksburg has fitness trails from the Virginia Tech Duck Pond to the Hethwood subdivision, and at the end of Country Club Drive. The Ellett Valley Nature Trail starts on Jennelle Road. It loops approximately one mile back to the start.
There's a full schedule of sports activities, including softball, volleyball, basketball and youth football, plus golf and tennis lessons.
To learn more, call 961-1135.
Christiansburg
The Department of Parks and Recreation's slogan in the Montgomery County seat is "Building a Place to Play." Not only are there plenty of places, there are plenty of programs for everyone, toddlers through seniors.
Most indoor recreation activities are at the Recreation Center on College Street and the National Guard Armory on College and Depot streets.
Some programs also make use of public school facilities.
There are six town parks, all perfect for family outings and equipped for picnics.
\ Recreation Center Park on College Street also has playground equipment, horseshoe pits and basketball courts.
\ Town and Country Park on Summit Ridge Road has playground equipment and benches for just watching the world go by.
\ Circle Park on Ellett Drive has playground equipment, horseshoe pits and a basketball court.
\ Kiwanis Park on Roanoke Street has two multipurpose athletic fields and horseshoe pits. The park and the Kiwanis Community Picnic Shelter are Kiwanis Club projects.
\ Depot Park on Depot Street has playground equipment, basketball courts and a jogging or walking path.
\ Wayside Park at the top of Christiansburg Mountain off U.S. 460 is being considered for future development. Right now, it's a pleasant place for a picnic.
Ongoing athletic programs include youth baseball and softball, tennis, track and field, and even bowling.
During the summer, Christiansburg offers camps in most major sports, including baseball, basketball, football, golf and wrestling.
\ Community recreation programs include programs for preschoolers and moms, crafts, and aerobics for kids. There are youth classes in art, gymnastics, martial arts, cheerleading, dancing and cooking, among other things.
Adult offerings include such things as country line dancing to classes in how to manage your money.
Boat owners can learn boating safety, while dog owners can take dog obedience.
\ Seniors will find social activities, health programs, aerobics, arts and crafts classes, dancing, bowling and Bible study, among other things. The Senior Craft Fair is in late October.
Seniors also can take advantage of trips to various locations throughout the valley and Virginia.
For additional information on Christiansburg recreation programs, call 382-2349.
Montgomery County
Strategically situated between Blacksburg and Christiansburg on County Road, just off U.S. 460, is the Montgomery County Swimming Pool and Recreation Park. To get there, turn onto County Drive from U.S. 460 right across from the Corning plant.
The park and the adjacent office open every day at 8:30 a.m. The office closes at 5:30 p.m., but the park stays open until dark.
The park's junior Olympic-sized pool offers recreational swimming, swim lessons, water aerobics, and other aquatic activities. The pool also is available for rental. You can get a family season pass, and the pool is accessible to people with disabilities.
\ Play camp for youngsters 6-12 years old runs from mid-June through late August. It offers nature activities, sports, arts and crafts, games and, of course, swimming. Advance registration is required.
Recreation activities include outdoor adventure activities, trips and special events. There also are organized sports and activities geared to youth.
To stay fit, the recreation department holds aerobics and exercise classes. You can also learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation and first aid.
The recreation park has playgrounds, plus three open-air picnic pavilions with cooking grills. The shelters seat 100 people and may be reserved for groups.
The park also offers nature trails and a fitness trail for hikers. There's an amphitheater, too.
The department sponsors youth leagues in most major sports.
In addition, there are basketball courts, softball fields and equipment for rent, including canoes and trailers, camping gear, volleyball equipment and caving and rock-climbing equipment.
The Recreation Department also offers various programs and trips for seniors. Call Kenvia Adams at 382-6979 to find out more.
For more information on park and recreation programs, call 382-6975.
Pulaski and Pulaski County
The town of Pulaski has one of the valley's hidden recreation jewels in Gatewood Park, eight miles west of town at Gatewood Reservoir. Follow the signs from town. It's worth the drive, and this year they've trimmed the trees back on the entrance road.
While there's no swimming, Gatewood offers a perfect, quiet spot for a picnic or hiking the nature trail. There's also camping, fishing, bath houses and rowboat and trolling-motor rentals.
The park also has an amphitheater for live musical performances during the summer. Call 980-2561 for information.
For more active endeavors, Loving Field Complex on Old Airport Road sports eight softball/youth baseball fields, a youth soccer field and two practice fields. Two of the fields are lighted. Call 980-1000, extension 47 or 49, to find out more.
\ Calfee Park, once the home of the minor-league Pulaski Braves, remains the home of Pulaski County High School's baseball and sandlot football teams and the Dixie Youth baseball teams. Calfee Park is at Pierce Avenue and Fifth Street.
The town offers several neighborhood recreation facilities, including McGill Village, which has equipped playgrounds, two tennis courts and a practice field. Sixth Street Park, at Sixth and Washington Avenue N.W., also has playground equipment and tennis courts.
\ Dora Highway Park and Valley Road Park each have playground equipment and picnic areas, and Cool Springs Park has practice fields. Pulaski will sponsor organized summer playgrounds for youngsters at Sixth Street Park, McGill Village and the T. G. Howard Recreation Center on Altoona Street.
The Pulaski National Guard Armory offers basketball for men, boys and girls. Pulaski Middle School gym has men's and youth basketball for boys and girls. To find out more about Recreation Department offerings, call 980-1000, extension 49.
For adults, the town is sponsoring an outdoor volleyball league at Jackson Park on First Street across from the Municipal Building. Matches will be held weekday evenings at the west end of the park.
The town hopes to offer a youth tennis program during the day, with several levels of instruction, at both Sixth Street and McGill parks.
Other adult recreation activities include basketball, softball and aerobics. Special events include trips. Call 980-1000, extension 47.
\ The Senior Citizens Center, 106 N. Washington Ave., provides a place for seniors to gather and participate in recreational activities. The center also sponsors trips to surrounding areas for sightseeing, shopping and entertainment. Call 980-1000, extension 60, for more information on programs for seniors.
Pulaski, Pulaski County and Dublin also sponsor countywide recreation leagues. Youth sports include soccer, baseball, softball, football, wrestling and cheerleading. Towns and communities throughout the county also offer individual programs through volunteer recreation departments. These include Dublin, Draper, Riverlawn, Hiwassee-Snowville and Belspring-Parrott.
The countywide program will sponsor a spring soccer league for boys and girls aged 5-13. It also offers Dixie League baseball, softball, and T-ball for boys and girls aged 5-18 in various categories. An all-sports camp will be held during July, and a soccer camp is planned for late August.
Events take place at various school and community facilities. To find out more, call 674-0107.
\ The Hensel-Eckman YMCA, Oakhurst Avenue, Pulaski, offers a variety of recreation programs for young and old. The YMCA has a swimming pool, racquetball courts, gymnasium and workout rooms. Call 980-3671.
Floyd County
The Floyd-Floyd County Public Recreation Authority has opened a new park on Virginia 8 one-half mile west of town. Floyd's recreation programs also use school facilities throughout the county.
The new 40-acre park features two softball fields, picnic shelters and playground equipment. Work was continuing this spring on new hiking and bike trails.
The authority sponsors sports programs in volleyball, softball, basketball and aerobics for adults, and basketball, football, and baseball, softball and T-ball for youngsters.
The authority also sponsors occasional activities for senior citizens as well as hunter-related events at various times of the year, including a big-buck contest and a muzzleloader shoot set for this fall.
\ Floyd County High School sports a baseball field, tennis courts and a football field with a running track. Floyd Elementary offers tennis courts, playground equipment, a basketball court and the only lighted softball field in the county.
The schools in Willis and Indian Valley have tennis courts; football, softball and baseball fields; and some playground equipment. Check Elementary School has football-baseball fields, tennis courts and playground equipment.
For more information, call 745-9363.
Giles County
Castle Rock Recreation Center, just outside Pembroke, is the county's primary recreation facility. It not only offers a golf course but a pool, lighted tennis courts, basketball courts, shuffleboard, picnic areas and nature trails.
Each community has its own parks and recreation programs, too. Pearisburg Park features a swimming pool, lighted tennis courts, softball fields, basketball courts and a picnic area.
Pearisburg also sponsors several programs in the school gymnasium, including basketball and volleyball, plus softball leagues. Call 921-3527 for details.
\ Wolf Creek Park in Narrows is open during the summer for public swimming in the creek, tennis, basketball shooting, volleyball or horseshoes. The park also has a playground and a concession stand.
The park will offer a summer art series this year.
Narrows also has sand volleyball, youth baseball and high school summer basketball leagues. Call 726-2423.
\ The town park in Pembroke, next to the American Legion picnic area, has playground equipment and playing fields. The town also sponsors baseball and softball leagues. Call 626-7191.
\ Woodland Park in Rich Creek has tennis courts and a picnic shelter. The local Lion's Club sponsors recreational sports leagues, too. Call 726-3260.
\ Glen Lyn's town park has ball fields and camping facilities. The town operates softball leagues. Call 726-7075 for more information.
Radford
The city's Bisset Park Swimming Pool, open to all from Memorial Day through Labor Day, is the focus of many warm-weather recreational activities in Radford. This year, you'll find swimming lessons, team competition and water aerobics. In addition, you can reserve the pool for private parties Friday nights from 6:30 until 11. The reservation fee is $20, plus lifeguards.
Bisset Park on First Street is the focal point of a lot of other recreation activities throughout the year. The park has a paved jogging track, lighted tennis courts, picnic shelters, a fitness court, lighted soccer/football fields and three playgrounds. There's also a gazebo where musical groups perform from time to time.
\ Riverview Park on River Street has picnic facilities, playground equipment, a basketball court and playing fields.
\ Sunset Park at Eighth and Preston streets offers a basketball half-court, playground equipment, and playing fields.
\ Haven Heights in the city's East End has playground equipment and a basketball goal.
\ James Oakley Fields Park on 17th Street has lighted softball fields, basketball courts and a picnic shelter.
If you like to walk, Wildwood Park off First Street has seven miles of nature trails.
Hodge Field has youth baseball fields.
\ Sisson Park has a basketball/volleyball court, open fields and playground equipment.
Plans are under way to add another park on the New River, just downstream from Bisset Park. It should open in 1994.
This year, the Recreation Department will offer tennis lessons for ages 6 through adult. Baseball leagues also are open to city residents 5 through 17.
If you need to get into shape, try step aerobics Monday through Thursday at the Radford Recreation Department building on First Street.
\ Half-day summer camp sessions will be offered for ages 3-9, featuring arts and crafts, special events and games.
\ Crafts for young and old also are available throughout the summer.
Many programs have fees. Call the Recreation Department for details at 731-3633.
by CNB