Why this park
Radnor Lake lies in a hollow between wooded ridges of the Overton Hills, in south Nashville, about eight miles from downtown. The ridges rise past 1,200 feet, and on them grow mountain laurel and blueberry, plants more often found on the Highland Rim than in the Central Basin around them. The lake itself covers 85 acres.
There is no fishing, picnicking or camping here. The place is kept for walking and watching, and that is what makes it worth drawing: a great blue heron standing by the spillway bridge, ducks on the open water in winter, a barred owl perched over the trail in the daytime. More than 230 kinds of birds have been reported at Radnor, and river otters, beavers and white-tailed deer live in and around the lake.
The story
The lake was made for trains. The Louisville and Nashville Railroad owned the valley of Otter Creek, and its steam engines at Radnor Yards, a few miles away, needed water. In 1914 the railroad began damming the creek, and men and horses spent about three years building the dam. The water ran downhill to the yards through a pipe, and in the busiest years the railroad drew about a million gallons a day.
Birds found the lake too. Albert Ganier, a co-founder of the Tennessee Ornithological Society, persuaded the railroad to make it a wildlife sanctuary, and in 1923 it did. The Ganier Ridge Trail is named for him.
By 1957 diesel engines had replaced steam, and the railroad stopped using the lake. In 1962 it sold 773 acres around it, and plans for a housing development followed.
The city of Oak Hill turned down the first plans but approved a later developer's. That developer gave up his option on the land after a group of biologists made the case for keeping the lake as it was. A campaign to "Save Radnor Lake" brought together citizens and nearby landowners, college scientists, state officials and conservation groups. They raised money with cake sales, Scout events and door-to-door canvassing, and with two benefit concerts, one of them a folk concert at Vanderbilt University. When time ran short, the company then holding an option on the land extended its deadline to August 16, 1973.
That month the state bought 747 acres, paid for with state and federal money and the citizens' gifts. Radnor Lake became a state natural area under the Natural Areas Preservation Act, which Governor Winfield Dunn had signed in 1971; the Friends of Radnor Lake and the Tennessee Encyclopedia count it as the state's first. Smaller tracts have been added since.
When to go, and what to wear
Come early in any season: the park opens at 6 a.m. and suggests arriving before 9 to miss the crowds.
Spring is the season birders wait for. In April and May, wood warblers, tanagers and thrushes pass through on migration, and the open Ganier Ridge Trail is a good place to look for the first arrivals. April averages a high near 71°F and a low near 44°F, and May is the wettest month, so pack a rain shell and a light layer.
Summer is hot, with July highs near 90°F. Walk early in a light, breathable tee, and carry water.
Fall color comes late here. The Friends of Radnor Lake have reported the leaves at their peak in the first half of November, when visitors come in large numbers. October averages a high near 73°F and a low near 45°F.
Winter is duck season. From November through April, wintering ducks can be seen from Otter Creek Road: ring-necked ducks and canvasbacks toward the middle and west of the lake, gadwalls and wigeons in the shallow east end. A January day averages a high near 48°F and a low near 26°F, so dress in layers: a long-sleeve tee, a sweatshirt, a jacket, a hat and gloves.
The Lake Trail is an easy 1.35 miles of mulch and gravel along the north shore. Ganier Ridge and South Cove are rated difficult, with climbs of more than 200 feet, so wear shoes that grip.
Know before you go
- The trails are for walking only. Runners and bikes stay on Otter Creek Road, closed to cars between the parking lots, and leashed pets are allowed only on that road, Hall Drive and the dam. No food, picnics, fishing or swimming.
- Both parking lots are on Otter Creek Road: the west lot off Granny White Pike, by the visitor center, and the east lot off Franklin Road. Spaces fill quickly, and on busy days cars wait in line.
- The Walter Criley Visitor Center has exhibits and an 18-minute film about the campaign that saved the land. The Barbara J. Mapp Aviary Education Center keeps birds of prey that cannot be released, among them bald eagles and a great horned owl.
- The park is open from 6 a.m. until 20 minutes after sunset, and cars must be out by dark. Hours, aviary days and closures change, so check Radnor Lake State Park's page before you go.
Sources: Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, Division of Natural Areas, "Radnor Lake"; Tennessee Encyclopedia, "Radnor Lake State Natural Area" (Dorothy W. King); Friends of Radnor Lake, "Park History," "About the Park," "Trails," "Rules and Regulations," "Visitor's Center," "The Barbara J. Mapp Aviary Education Center," "Barred Owl," "Spring Bird Identification Class" (2023) and fall color reports (2014, 2017); Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, news release of May 13, 2011, on the Natural Areas Preservation Act; Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, "Barred Owl"; Bobby Harrison, "Birding Escapes: Radnor Lake State Natural Area," All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology (2009); NOAA, U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, Brentwood station; Radnor Lake State Park, tnstateparks.com.
