Old Well at UNC Recreation in and around Chapel Hill
Ah, it's the weekend, and time to relax. Recreation, what we do in our free time, can take many forms...walking in Duke Forest, renting a canoe on University Lake, camping out at Jordan Lake, running a road race, visiting a dog park, ice skating at the Triangle Sportsplex, swimming at a Recreation Center, honing one's skills on a climbing wall, visiting the Kidzu Children's museum or just reading a book in the sun at Coker Arboretum.
Here is a partial list of public recreation areas in Orange County.
Parks
- Anderson Community Park 302 Hwy. 54 West, Carrboro
- Baldwin Mini-Park 400 Broad Street Carrboro
- Battle Park Country Club Road, Chapel Hill
- Brewers Lane Park, 102 Hargraves Street Chapel Hill
- Burlington Park Ephesus Church Road Chapel Hill
- Cedar Falls Park 501 Weaver Dairy Road Chapel Hill
- Chapel Hill Community Center Park 120 South Estes Drive Chapel Hill
- Culbreth School Softball Fields 225 Culbreth Road Chapel Hill
- Efland-Cheeks Community Park 117 Richmond Road, Efland
- Ephesus Park 1501 Ephesus Church Road Chapel Hill
The Morehead Planetarium and Science Center is located on East Franklin Street, great multimedia star shows, etc. It is home to one of only Zesss Star projectors in the world for indoor astronomy. Call 962-1236: 549-6863 for recorded show information..
The Ackland Art Museum’s permanent collection of over 15,000 objects includes the art of Asia, Africa, Europe and America, with works ranging from ancient times to the 21st century. The Museum holds the most significant collection of Asian art in the state and one of the largest collections of works on paper in the Southeast. Long known for its strength in European painting and sculpture, the Ackland has more recently added additional emphasis to the building of its collection of twentieth-century and contemporary art. The adjacent Hanes Art Museum exhibits works by faculty and students. The Ackland is located on S. Columbia St. near the intersection with E. Franklin. Call 966-5736 for more information..
The Carrboro Farmers Market is one of the region's best farmers markets open mid-March to late December on Saturday mornings 7 to noon and Wednesdays 5-7. It is located next to the Carrboro Town Hall.
Orange County, Chapel Hill and Carrboro Parks and Recreation Departments manage a total of 25 park facilities covering nearly 500 acres and provide a multitude of youth and adult programs. Area recreation facilities include tennis and basketball courts, bicycle paths and nature trails.
North Carolina Botanical Garden is the largest natural botanical garden in the southeast, consisting of 600 acres of preserved land with nature trails, carnivorous plant collections, aquatics and herb gardens. The facility also features revolving exhibits of paintings, quilts and other media, plus sculpture in various sections of the botanical collection. Coker Arboretum is a five-acre garden created on the UNC campus in 1903 and now part of the North Carolina Botanical Garden. It contains more than 500 species of trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants. Two prominent features are the recently renovated 300-ft. native-vine arbor and an adjacent stone gathering circle.
Kenan Memorial Stadium has hosted Tar Heel football games since 1927, and the Dean E. Smith Center, the third largest on-campus arena in the country, has hosted many exciting basketball games.