There's Nothing To Do In This Town....



  On a weekly or sometimes even daily basis, I hear a student or an adult make note of the belief that, "there isn't anything to do in Macon, Georgia.". While it is easy to jump on that bandwagon, it can also make one pretty miserable when it comes to liking where you live and that is just no way to get through life. So, I've decided to highlight some of the very neat and often either cheap or free things there are to do in Macon. A wise person once said that you are either part of the problem or part of the solution, so here is my small part of some sort of solution.

  For some reason, I love Macon, Georgia. I would say most if it has to do with memories, but the other portion is that Macon is actually a pretty neat town. Yes, I would rather live somewhere like Asheville, North Carolina, or Chattanooga, Tennessee, or Charlottesville, Virginia, or even Boulder, Colorado, but that is just not where God wants me. He placed me in Macon for college and He brought me back to Macon for a job. From the outside, Macon looks like the typical mid-sized Southern town. You've got the poor neighborhoods only blocks away from the "nice" neighborhoods, you've got your antebellum homes, you've got your dying downtown section, you've got your urban sprawl due to White Flight, you've got your big public schools, and you've got your private schools. However, just like most things, there is so much more to Macon than either the statistics or what meets the eye.

  And one of these things is Amerson Water Works Park. I cannot really say how much I love this park. It is located about 1.5 miles from my front door and it would not be an over-exaggeration to say that I go there sometimes three times a week. Amerson Water Works Park (AWWP) is operated as part of the Ocmulgee Heritage Trail. The dream or masterplan of this trail is to have a paved trail system that runs from Macon, Georgia to Jackson, Georgia, following the path of the Ocmulgee River, much like the paved trail systems: The Silver Comet Trail in Atlanta and the Chattahoochee Riverwalk in Columbus, Georgia. So far, they have only made it through some of downtown Macon and some a little north of downtown at AWWP.

      There is so much to do at AWWP and most of the time it will only cost you time. There are two very neat pavilions, grills, a handicap accessible playground (the only one in Middle Georgia), picnic tables, a canoe only boat ramp, large fields for walking or games, a small pond, and around 4 or so miles of shaded trails. In the winter months, the park is open to vehicle traffic on Saturdays and Sundays from 9-5. However, foot travel is open from sun up to sundown everyday of the week and no one really cares if you are there after dark as long as you know you are there at your "own risk" During the summer months, it is open every day of the week from 7-7 and on the weekends, there is an occasional fee of $2 per car in order to get into the park. Altogether, not too bad considering one movie ticket in Macon, Georgia cost around $8.50. 

     I go to the park with Jack and Lady often to let each of us stretch our legs and get what I love to call, some good ole' fresh air. Sometimes, we just walk. Sometimes, we run all the dirt paths and the road to the canoe launch until we all have our tongues hanging, wanting some water and a cool place to sit down. Other times, I drive the dirt paths and roads and let the dogs run their hearts out till I feel they've had enough. Mel and I put in our new canoe here and often in the summer when none of us can take the heat any longer, we jump in the car and head for the river to take a "dip" and cool off. And often times, you are the only one there and when you are running the dirt paths or canoeing down the river it is like you are somewhere else instead of a half mile or so from a sprawling town of 150,000. Take this week for example, I have gone there three times, I have only seen two other people there for a brief moment. I had several hundred acres of fields, woods, streams, and a river all to myself. On Monday night, Jack, Lady and myself ran three miles and watched the full winter moon rise over the Ocmulgee for free!

  Well, whether you are from Macon or not, I hope you will find your way to Amerson Water Works Park next time you are sitting around feeling bored (something I've never felt) and wishing you lived elsewhere. You don't! Get out. Search your town. Get some fresh air, some exercise, some natural beauty all for free or for a small fee at Amerson Water Works Park!


NewTown Macon - Amerson Water Works Park from NewTown Macon on Vimeo.

Hope to see you out there and then back here to see what else there is to do in this town,

David