Stephens Lake Park — Attraction in Columbia Township

One of the most popular parks in Columbia … and for good reason!

The park has 3 pretty good playgrounds, a sprayground open May- Sept, several three large reservable shelters, a few covered individual picnic tables, and a reservable community center. One of the playgrounds has full shade! The lakeside has a big Sandy beach, which is fun for kids.

There are large, beautiful trees, neat landscaping and wonderful topographical features like flat open fields for sports, giant hills for sledding, sit-on-the-ground amphitheater, and a (man made) lake.

When I’ve taken kids fishing, there are lots of hybrid bluegill that bite, though aren’t of any size to take. Fishing off the docks and walkways are fun. Tossing acorns or pebbles onto the frozen lake is a tradition we look forward to each winter. The island in the middle of the lake is pretty, and people have used the pavilion/shelter for weddings. There is a body ramp/entrance, but since the lake is pretty small, it doesn’t seem that fun. For instance, I’ve only seen a kayak and canoe once.

The bathroom facilities are pretty good and usually tidy.

The litter and graffiti is minimal to none, and overall, the atmosphere is clean.

Most of the areas have wheelchair accessibility, except for the large meadow area.

There are a few options for walking paths, some with slight inclines. It’s a good paced path for walking in all weather.

There’s not enough parking for major events hosted at the park, such as art shows or concerts, but there is enough parking for a typical day.

There is an interesting sign giving basic information about the indigenous people’s use of the land. They refer to the River valley as Happy Hollow and mention it was a camping area for Cherokee when traveling...

I'm rating it as low as I am for a few small reasons, overall we absolutely love this park, our 2yo loves this park and we will continue visiting because it is a lot of fun.

The pros: the sprayground is large enough for several kids to play alone or together, they somehow never lose amusement with it. We know without a doubt our very active 2yo will be ready for bedtime on days we go and the sandlot is almost always empty which means endless building for her.

There's nowhere shaded to sit other than the trees and they're usually occupied already except at really slow times and, well, if we could all go at slow times there wouldn't be any lol.. The ground at the sprayground is eroding and exposing jagged stones that hurt sooo bad to walk on and that's before considering how hot the ground is. You definitely need swimming shoes for this place. There's nowhere to sit at the sprayground other than super uneven and awkward boulders with lots of crumblies on the ground surrounding. Back to the shade, the sand is super hot, like super super hot so nobody wants to play in it anyway, it's a race to get across the sand to the lake without burning feet. The lake is sorta nice, it's mostly overgrown and smells absolutely horrendous, wash all your clothes immediately or you'll never lose the stench. If you do dilydaly, I use lysol sterilizer, vinegar and baking powder alongside my usual laundry detergent, you're welcome. The lake has areas that are really cool temp wise and some that are really warm but you'll have a tough time navigating the overgrown plants. It does get really deep towards the buoys with a drop off near the lap lanes.

All in all, it's a great park considering it's completely...

Beautiful place to go on a walk. I recommend the following scavenger hunt:

1 )“Roses are red, this object is blue, a single press and you’ll be soaked through!” 2 )The Blue star is a tribute to whom? 3 )What color is Christy Welliver’s Hat? 4 )The dragon fly needs clean water to reproduce. It then eats which pest for us? 5 )What is the daily limit for channel catfish? 6 )What are the real names of Lalo and Lala? The answer is on the island- 7 )According to one of the benches, who teamed up with the “Coalition to Save Stephens Lake Park” to preserve Stephens Lake? 8 )“Our friends from up north, who reside in our lakes, but too many too much will make the lake ache.” How might our feathered friends deteriorate water quality? 9 )“A challenge to scale, it’s height you must prevail, photograph your friend before they descend.” 10 )The Land and Water Conservation Fund has a white plaque located “off stage”. Who partially funded the Outdoor Recreation Facilities? 11 )Overlooking the previous location, a sole chinkapin oak was dedicated to whom in 2016? 12 )Located in the garden next to a decaying tree and a shaded bridge a single cactus resides, find it! 13 )“Twin walkways over the creek, one is strong, the other falters. Seek the old and seek the new, both are required to be out of the blue”. 14 )A father, a mother, and a daughter overlook the lake, find their...