This 900-acre park is a great place for a hike, for a picnic or to just to hang out on a pleasant day. The park is comprised of a rather nice, small lake, a pond, a boardwalk, several wooded stretches and some farm land. I did not get a chance to go to the Visitor Center, but it looked quite nice. Horseback riding facilities are also available and there are some picnic pavilions that are rather nicely kept. I visited for the first time on a nice crisp early spring evening to take an hour hike. There are four trails of varying lengths. There is a short trail that just traverses the lake for about 3/4 mile. The remaining trail lengths are 1.5, 1.8 and 3.4 miles, respectively. I chose the 1.8-mile trail since I had a short time before park closing. The terrain, scenery and air were invigorating and certainly beat using a treadmill. I'll look forward to the chance to take the longest trail at some point in the future and perhaps also to visit the Visitor Center. It's a great place to collect one's thoughts. read more

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Great place for a nice quiet walk by yourself or with someone. Very nice and peaceful here. read more

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Found a new park. It had a big lake and a farm area. Area to ride your horse. This makes is unique. Great especially for people who didn't grow up on a farm and this gives those people opportunity to see a farm and farm animals. Love the sheep and donkeys. read more

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One of the best (IMO) of the Dayton Metro Parks. Come here to hike, fish, ride a horse, visit a historic farm homestead, picnic, bird watch, or just "get away from it all" in a surprisingly scenic, suburban/rural setting. We used to live closer and come here more often, but were in the neighborhood and stopped in toward the end of the day on a recent weekend. It's a great "covid-escape," but was not too crowded. I'm not sure if the farm homestead/educational center is open at the moment or not, but we've gone in the past and they have some wonderful educational programs; something for everyone from very young to old. We did 5k runs here every fall for a number of years. Great running/hiking trails, catch and release fishing, an equestrian center, and much more... Check it out!!! read more

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When I went to Ohio in 2011 (yes, I'm just NOW getting around to reviewing this place!) the people I was staying with took me here and I enjoyed it! It reminded me a bit of Oak Glen, but had a real old timey farm homestead and as a farm girl, I was in love with that aspect! Unfortunately, I didn't get to do much of anything there due to the people I was with, but it is a beautiful place, so bring your camera and enjoy! The only thing I would have changed about Carriage Hill (and it has happened!!!) is that they had an apprentice black smith. The guy was a real creep. I don't know the actual black smith - but he seemed nice enough. But his apprentice was a creep. But I heard he moved away from Ohio, so he no longer does any sort of work at Carriage Hill. read more

Carriage Hill MetroPark - Parks Near Me - Dayton, Ohio

Wonderful park. Well maintained and very nice. Great trails to walk. They have a lot of horse trails and I never see horses. I wish they would get rid of the rarely used horse trails and make a nice big off leash dog park. read more

A beautiful place to take a walk, fish or watch turtles and frogs. The farm animals look well taken care of and it's always fun to see the babies. read more

Plenty of structure and hiding places for fish. Love it every time I go. If you're a real angler, you'll know this is a good place to fish! read more

Carriage Hill MetroPark - Lake near parking area. - Parks Near Me - Dayton, Ohio

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This is a beautiful park. Plenty of parking. Several picnic tables. I went there to fish. There was so much moss at the bottom of the lake that the fish if there were any in the lake couldn't find my bait. Each time I reeked in my line, I pulled out a ton or moss. I may return for hiking or a picnic but I don't see myself fishing here again. read more

I love this park! I've been here many times for picnics, cookouts, family photo shoots (you need a permit), touring the village, and just spending a quiet lunch break during by the lake. Yesterday I took a group of assisted living residents for a picnic by the lake. Folks using both walkers and wheelchairs had no trouble with the path to the shelter house, where we ate lunch while watching ducks, geese, turtles, and people fishing. There was a restroom in easy walking distance, and the parking lot was shady enough that our bus wasn't roasting when we were through. It was a perfect outing, one that we plan to repeat many times! read more

Stopped to fish. Ponds have gone to hell. Too much muck in the water. For a metro park in comparison to other Dayton metro parks it's the worst to fish read more

I LOVE Carriage Hill Metropark. It's in my top three out of all the Five Rivers Metro Parks. Carriage Hill Metropark is a historic family farm with tons of land to explore. I love running around the farm on nice sunny days and seeing all the animals and equipment used for farming. Pigs, Horses, Chickens, Turkeys, Sheep, Cows. You can see them all and get up close and personal with them if you choose too. You can also walk through the family house and it's really neat to check out. I always feel like I'm just walking through a different time when I'm here and that's cool to me. There are lakes with trails you can walk around off to the side of the main farm area. They also have out on the other side of the farm, up passed the little creek and where they grow crops. There is a "Family Cemetery" and an "Equipment Graveyard". Both are super neat and I would take the little walk out there to check out. I feel like most people don't go out there because they don't know it's there. Also, probably because they are there with their children and old rusty farming equipment and tombstones are the biggest fun time for kids or their parents. Carriage Hill is beautiful and a great place to hang out for the day. read more

Went fishing at Cedar Lake in Carriage Hill MetroPark on 7/9/20 early a.m. I was excited because I need handicap access to fishing and decent lakes providing these needs are hard to find. When we got there we walked to the pier and even though the algae/scum covered most of the lake, we were able to fish. My son was very happy because within about 15 minutes he caught a 2 lb. bass! We only had reasonably clear spots to cast into for about an hour. After that, the algae had completely blocked the lake on all of our side crossing to the opposite bank and continued all the way over almost to the far right bank. Maybe, and I am being generous here, 10% of the lake had open algae-free spots. Such a disappointment! Upon our return to our vehicle a park warden pulled in and we asked when the lake would be cleared of the algae. His response was they had no intention of clearing the lake . . ever! read more

The water is nice, and also the swings, if you can grab one. I would just like to see more flowers around the park. The horses are awesome and definitely add to the whole rustic feel of the park. read more

Just moved to the Dayton area and stumbled upon this gem. This park unique because it has a homestead with living history on it. It has animals, exhibits and even an active blacksmith shop. It is the perfect place to take kids, but also makes for a great Saturday morning stroll. The park has a stocked lake that is open for fishing. The best part? Admission to the park is free, so go ahead enjoy! read more

My family and I love coming here in the spring and fall. It's gorgeous to walk through the trees as their leaves change color and fall. The meadow in the spring is lovely and you will enjoy the different kinds of butterflies flying around. As long as your allergies don't get the best of you. Depending on the time of year you may catch a glimpse of deer beds in the meadow as well. We come to walk the trails a couple times a month. Our mastiff Harley loves meadow and running through the trees. Carriage Hill is one of my favorite metroparks here in Dayton. read more

This park is truly a hidden gem. From the historical structures, to the huge lake that's tucked away. Not only is it a great place for anyone into photography, but this is somewhere you can simply just enjoy the outdoors. Have a picnic, take your kids to see the farm animals, go fishing. Great park read more

Great place to fish! If you don't like fishing they're are so many trails to hike/walk. It's a great place for the kids. My daughter loves it. read more

We had to kill some time while I was at a conference in Dayton, and so we stopped by the historical farm. It was great! There is a living history area where the family had their homestead. It's well maintained and there are plenty of animals to see. My favorite was the donkey in the pasture that had a herd of sheep following it around. There are also exhibits and clean bathrooms in the Visitor's Center, as well as a little cafe (take cash!). It was dusk so we didn't stay more than an hour, but we'll definitely be back when we're in the area. read more

Carriage Hill MetroPark - Parks Near Me - Dayton, Ohio

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I'm shocked that this doesn't have more reviews... I admit, I had forgotten about this wonderful place. Back when I was a young girl scout, our girl scout leader would take us here and we'd all go to the penny candy store. She'd give us each a quarter, and it was like holding the world in your hands. That was 10 years ago. Present day? Well, I take a dollar or two now ;) But it's still all priced at an excellent value. There are several programs that take place here from time to time. I fondly remember some type of canned food and pie sampling. Upcoming events can be found online. Make sure you check them out! read more

This is one of the first Metroparks we checked out after moving here. My husband and I were sure we would have a good time, but were also sure our kids would get bored fairly quickly. Boy, were we wrong! Carriage Hill won them over with penny candy (a little more than a penny, but still diet cheap), and then held their attention with horses, chickens, sheep, cows, big grassy areas to run in, retaining walls to jump off of, and lots of other interesting things. The adults loved the history lesson, the hiking trails that tour the farm, the animals, and the chance to feel like we'd escaped civilization for a bit. I plan on doing family pictures there in the fall - beautiful! read more

We came to Ohio ( Tipp City) for a week. This is a new area to us. To my surprise there are all kinds of parks and fun stuff you can do with your kids. I have 18 month old boy so we are kinda limited on wild trails a hiking at this age. But he loves outdoors. So this farm was a perfect place for him to run around and see animals. He finally saw live chickens, turkeys and a cow who kept making " moo" sounds, my son was amused with that. Then we saw sheep and piglets and on the way out we saw donkeys right by the fence! So we got a close look at them. I personally love to visit and learn about historical places. In the farm house there was a theme dressed lady, who can tell you all about the house and how family lived there back in eighteen hundreds but unfortunately for me my 18 month had different plans, he just wanted to play outside. But we both enjoyed visiting there! I'd definitely recommend this place to others. read more

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I have gone to Carriage Hill since I was a child and love taking my niece there now. She begs to go back every weekend.

Having grown up in the area, this was one of the spots the family would always come to for picnics. It used to be much different than it is today. What is now pasture for animals and parking lot used to be picnic area. I saw what is now a gorgeous lake... before it was a lake... and while it was being built. We actually went and climbed on the rocks before water was in it (and got in trouble for doing so). The candy store wasn't always where it is now. In fact, it used to be in one of the houses to the left. The building that stands with the candy store now wasn't even there. So many memories at Carriage Hill. It truly is like a second home to many of us who feel as though we "grew up on the farm". Being that I was at least the second generation in the family, if not the third, who enjoyed the farm, we're now working on the 5th generation. We love the lake, and fish there often during the warm months since we don't have to have a license. Yes, there are very large bass in the lake! Catch and release for bass only. Tons of bluegill and crappie too, which we feast upon! The candy store is similar to what it used to be in that they still have penny candy. Lots of trails to walk (albeit not as many since the lake, parking lot, and other building were built). You can still wade in the creek by the bridge, but they've cleared out many of the trees that used to reside there. I know it needed to be done, but I miss the "old Carriage Hill". Lots of crawdads to be caught under rocks for the kids (and adult) enjoyment! Also there are wild berries you can pick as you walk, both raspberries and mulberries. Visit the grave yard... it's really interesting. Walk around the old farmhouse. Don't forget to pet the barn cats that reside on the farm. If you've never been to Carriage Hill, you honestly must go. read more