Day trips from Nashville · Park
Booker T. Washington State Park
141 miles from downtown Nashville · about 2 hours 20 minutes
Chickamauga Lake, Chattanooga, TN
Booker T. Washington State Park is 353 acres on a peninsula reaching into Chickamauga Lake, the closest state park to downtown Chattanooga. It was established in 1938 as one of Tennessee’s first state parks for African Americans, and it is named for the educator who led Tuskegee.
- Address
- 5801 Champion Road, Chattanooga, TN
- Size
- 353 acres on Chickamauga Lake
- Trails
- About 6 miles of singletrack, intermediate
- Fee
- Free, as at every Tennessee state park
Permits, fees and access
Free and open year round, from thirty minutes before sunrise to thirty minutes after sunset. Swimming pool, pavilions, playground, fishing piers and a boat ramp. Leashed pets allowed. Pool season dates and fees are worth confirming by phone at 423-894-4955.
One thing to know first
The mountain bike singletrack here is rated intermediate rather than beginner, so it is not the place to put a child on their first trail ride.
Access rules, fees and closures verified August 15, 2026 against the agency that manages this place. They change, sometimes without notice. Check before you drive.
I keep this list because it is genuinely how people spend weekends here, and because almost every guide to it is out of date. If you are weighing a move to Middle Tennessee and want to know which part of it puts you closest to the things you actually like, ask me. No pitch.