5 Fun Things to do at Alum Creek State Park

Alum Creek State Park is an Ohio State Park located in Delaware County with parts of the park in Delaware, Lewis Center and Galena, Ohio. It’s a large park with many activities that families can enjoy!

The park has a campground, hiking trails and a large lake for swimming and boating. In this blog post I will feature some of the best family-friendly things to do at Alum Creek State Park!

1. Learn and Play at the Alum Creek Lake Visitor Center

• Address: 5905 Lewis Center Rd, Lewis Center, OH 43035
• Website

The Alum Creek Lake Visitor Center is full of educational activities for kids including interactive displays like a watershed sandbox that interacts with the movement of your hands and a water management wall where kids can raise and lower water levels with moveable locks and gates.

There are also stuffed animals, art supplies, books and mounted animals on display. Another attraction is the theater where you can choose short, educational movies to watch!

On the wall leading to the restrooms, there is a display that features life in the area throughout time. Out back is an observation deck where you can stand to over look Alum Creek Lake from a distance.

My kids were completely entertained by the Water Management activity! They interacted with that display for over an hour and I had to tear them away because we were running out of time! I was impressed with how many activities they had for kids at this Nature Center!

2. Get Ice Cream at Alum Creek Marina

• Address: 4000 Hollenback Rd, Lewis Center, OH 43035
• Website

The Alum Creek Marina was remodeled in 2022 and it includes a Marina Shop with all kinds of outdoor gear for sale and Lakeside Grill & Chill, a restaurant that sells ice cream, pizza, sandwiches and salads.

We stopped in for an ice cream treat and could choose between Perry’s hand-dipped ice cream and soft serve. Other ice cream options include sundaes, parfaits and milkshakes!

The Marina has a gorgeous patio area that overlooks the lake. There is seating all around the building as well as a few tables and chairs inside. Definitely make time to walk around the outside of the building and enjoy the views of the lake and the boats docked at the marina!

You can also rent several kinds of boats at the Marina including ski boats and pontoons. Overnight rentals are available from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

3. Relax on the Beach at Alum Creek State Park Beach

• Address: 3400 Lewis Center Rd, Lewis Center, OH 43035
• Website

Alum Creek Beach is the largest inland beach in the state of Ohio! The beach is 3000 feet long and the area includes changing rooms, outdoor showers, two playgrounds and sand volleyball courts. There is a large parking lot at the beach area, so there are usually no worries about finding a place to park!

I like that there are a lot of options of things to do at this beach and the next two items on the list will cover them in more depth. It’s a fun place to bring the kids if you’re looking for a beach in Ohio where you can at least feel the sand between your toes! It might not be the ocean, but it will do in a pinch!

4. Play on the Beach Playgrounds

• Address: 3400 Lewis Center Rd, Lewis Center, OH 43035
• Website

There are two playgrounds at Alum Creek Beach and they are within walking distance from each other.

The northernmost playground has multiple slides, a rock climbing wall and two swing sets.

The southernmost playground has a swing set, rope climbing, a tunnel and a wooden balance beam.

There is a sidewalk along the beach that will take you to each playground and to the changing rooms. Both playgrounds utilize the same parking lot as the beach. It’s all in one convenient area, including the Storybook Trail featured below.

5. Take the Storybook Trail

• Address: 3400 Lewis Center Rd, Lewis Center, OH 43035
• Website

The Storybook Trail is on the northern end of the beach and is a dirt and gravel path that you can follow to read a story posted on wooden signs.

The trail is around 1/2 mile long. Also on site is a Little Free Library where kids can take a free book and leave one behind to share! The story is geared toward preschool-aged kids.

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This list certainly doesn’t cover everything to do at Alum Creek State Park, but as you can see, there are several fun things to do with your family in the park. Whether you’re camping overnight or just spending a day at the beach, there is much to enjoy and it makes a fun day trip from Columbus!

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