I've mostly been stuck at home the past few weeks as I've been recovering from major surgery. On…read moreoccasion, I've been able to get friends to take me places or at least go for a drive to get me out. One such drive was to Whitewater State Park.
Whitewater State Park was the 16th state park in Indiana and was founded in 1949. It's actually the third largest. It has 200 acre Whitewater Lake along with shoreline hiking, flat-water boating, swimming, fishing, and camping opportunities. It has 9 miles of horseback riding trails.
The park area was originally purchased by Union, Fayette, Franklin, and Wayne counties to serve as a memorial for those lost during World War II.
Additional activities include picnic areas with shelters (reservations required), interpretive naturalist services, 1 boat launch ramp at Whitewater Lake, bridle trails, cabins, fishing/ice fishing, hiking trails, canoe/paddleboat/rowboat rentals, swimming, and two marinas.
Camping includes 236 electric sites, 45 non-electric, and 37 horsemen's primitive sites. There's a camp store, dumping station, and youth tent area.
There are five hiking trails - all are considered moderate in difficulty. They range from 1-2.7 miles in length, though at least one also has a short loop. There really isn't a single trail that I'd say is accessible, though there are parts of trails I was able to access. That said, Whitewater in general isn't particularly wheelchair friendly other than in the more truly "public" areas. As an experienced wheelchair user, I doubt I'd head out on these trails alone.
Whitewater hosts a variety of events throughout the year. While I wish it was more accessible here, I still consider this one of Indiana's more underappreciated natural gems.