Sandy Creek Nature Center — Attraction in Athens-Clarke County Unified Government

Sandy Creek Nature Center is a wonderful place to get out and experience nature close to the downtown Athens area and the University of Georgia Campus for all ages, abilities and knowledge levels. There is plenty of free parking and activities for the entire family. The Nature Center is located in the triangle formed by the North Oconee River and Sandy Creek at and including the northern terminus of the North Oconee River Greenway. The Greenway at this point is a fairly level paved track suitable for easy walking, hiking, biking, roller blading, and wheelchairs. Vehicular traffic is restricted. This section of the Greenway has been recently (2024-25) re-paved, repainted and refurbished. Several new features have been included for comfort and convenience: additional trash cans and recycling receptacles, pet clean up stations and trail side benches. The signage has also been replaced and significantly upgraded. In addition to the Greenway, the Nature Center has its own well maintained trail system within the park that covers the spectrum of activity levels from wheelchair accessible boardwalks(when wet, the boardwalk can get very slick and slippery in places, so extra caution should be taken) to moderate activity dirt paths. The center hosts numerous free programs and educational opportunities. There are playgrounds, picnic tables, a gift shop and other amenities. The park staff are all friendly, welcoming and...

Review is from late May/early June 2018; noticed weird typos and edited March 2019,

We booked there for my son Winston’s fourth birthday party. The overall service, the educational aspects, their presentation of the subject matter (inside-- snakes; outside-- short trail tour with education on healthy vs. unhealthy forests, invasive species, etc) that they provided to these children were all very well executed: these 4YOs were mesmerized, engaged, and comprehending what the guide was saying (subject matter in which I basically majored in undergrad and grad school and always have to stop myself, if my son hasn't already, going into too much detail explaining anything about the environment).

I could not recommend it more for a party. Or for a visit – I was blown away by the aquarium section! I wish we could have spent more time there to explore. For a party you get two big rooms to yourself: one for food, presents and cake, and the other for the program that you choose whether it’s turtles or snakes etc. Then we took a tortoise named Doris on a walk outside, and the kiddos just had a blast! Perfect and exactly what I wanted and way way more! Thank you so much Sandy Creek...

Located just 5 minutes away from Athens, Ga, Sandy Creek Nature Center is a great place to walk or ride your bike. It's closer to Athens than Sandy Creek Park (where Lake Chapman is located), which is a few miles further north on Hwy 441. It's mostly a forested area criss-crossed by miles of walking trails. The Greenway runs through it, so if you want to ride your bike (or you prefer to walk on a paved surface), Sandy Creek Nature Center is an ideal location. It's probably the prettiest section of the Greenway bike trail, and it is mostly forested so it stays cooler in hot weather.

The Center also has various educational facilities, but I haven't used them much. However, I did once call the Center about a big snake I caught in my yard (a non-venomous black rat snake). They told me I could bring it out there, where they released it into the wild.

The Nature Center is a great free resource for Athens residents. I ride my bike or walk my dogs there 3 or 4 times a week. It's a lovely place to go...