Colonel Francis J. Beatty Park — Attraction in Charlotte

At first glance, the park looks nice and well manicured from the parking lot at the Lake Pointe Hall. Once you try to walk down to the lake, it is apparent that the places where you can actually walk down to the water's edge around the lake are minimal, and are usually taken up by people fishing. Please don't misunderstand; I love fishing, and they have every right to be where they are. I just believe that the actual water line should be more accessible for more people. Being in nature soothes my soul. I love walking the trails and taking pictures along the way. Today, I was sorely disappointed in how much garbage was by the trails, by the lake, and IN the lake. There was actually a dirty diaper in the water's edge, along with bags, bottles, cans, and various other garbage, both in the water and on the shore. It is quite obvious, by the amount of weathering, that a great deal of this garbage has been there for a long time. I'm aware that everyone doesn't treat this area like that, but I've run across more than a few people here who just aren't mindful of the property, or the other visitors. The last two times I've visited, people had literally put their hammocks up ACROSS the trail. It was impossible to go around them, as the brush was thick. It was rather awkward to have to duck down and waddle under their hammocks, with them lying there, in order to stay on the trail. Also, I'm unsure as to whether there are separate trails for hiking and biking, as I didn't see any signs designating them as such. Be prepared to share narrow trails with bikers riding at a pretty quick pace. Today, we had someone ring their bike bell and expect us to jump to the side, as he didn't slow down at all. I was able to get some nice photos, but in the future, I'll choose to go elsewhere. I'm not an overly dramatic person, and it isn't my intention to trash talk (no pun intended) this park. The area around Lake Pointe Hall is well manicured and well maintained, as it is a rentable venue for events. The rest of the park just seems to accumulate more and more garbage each time...

I absolutely love this place. I spend way too much time here typically on the trails. Beatty Park is a 265 acre park that has a ton of recreational facilities from trail systems to 2 basketball courts (lighted), 6 tennis courts, 5 lighted soccer fields, 4 horseshoe pits, indoor shelters, 2 outdoor picnic shelters, 10 picnic areas, 2 playgrounds, conference center, restrooms, 2 softball fields and fantastic lake with kayaking, fishing and canoeing.

They have an awesome singletrack 5+ miles green/blue and black-diamond trail system. It's used by both walkers and mountain bikers, using in opposing directions. The trail system has something for everyone, plenty of awesome jumps and obstacles, some decent technical areas and a few hills, some flowy and flat runs.

The kayaking is pretty cool. You literally pull from your car and directly into the nice sized lake. It's not huge, but plenty big enough to enjoy some fishing or hang out on.

The soccer fields aren't the best in the area, though they have grass and nice goals --what else is needed, right? The tennis courts and basketball areas are great, well lit and well maintained, as is the remainder of the park for that matter.

There are many picnic tables as mentioned and some secluded picnic areas around the parking with several parking lots. They're equipped with great tables, grills, and trash cans, again, always nice and well maintained.

Overall a fantastic location kudos to CharMeck for such a...

I live very close to this park and over the past 16 years, only visited a few times until recently.

I love to hike but sometimes find it a pain to travel to go hiking. Although I knew the park had mountain bike trails, I discovered it is also used for hiking, walking or trail running. The pedestrians move in a clockwise manner while the mountain bikers move counter-clockwise. I like this system. Helps me see oncoming bikers and allows me to get out of the way.

Over the past month, I have been hiking twice a week and enjoying the workout. I initially thought I wouldn't get much out of it but I was wrong. Doing the parameter is about 4 miles but can be shorter if you take the bypass trails. If you take the 3 side routes along the parameter, it ends up being approximately 6.35 miles and about 40 flights of floors.

Tip: follow the advice above if you are not mountain biking. I do see people walking / hiking in the wrong direction. Mountain bikes move fast and they sneak up on you. If you see them approach, move off to the side of the trail to let them pass.

It's a good workout. Besides that, the trails are well maintained.

There's a lake / pond for fishing, canoeing, kayaking, etc basketball courts, tennis courts, baseball fields, soccer fields, picnic...