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Parks & Recreation

Ravine Park

Ravine Park is a large ninety-acre park that starts on the west end near the downtown and extends about one and one-half miles east. The western part of the park is a wooded area with a stream, called Brady’s Branch, running through it. It also contains a one-half mile nature trail with five pedestrian bridges.

This western section of the park has many springs that keep the stream flowing constantly. The middle section is approximately 30 acres that contains a very large shelter, two small shelters, picnic tables, park benches and the Jackson Street trail that runs behind the large pavilion.

 Playground equipment includes, swings, climbers, slides, basketball goal, a 9-hole frisbee golf course and horseshoe pitching. The eastern section of the park, Arms Woods, contains thirty-five acres of woods with trails. A new bridge was dedicated to former Mayor Butch Swift in Arms Woods in 2016. This bridge can be found in the northwest section of the Arms Woods trail system.

Reservations

The pavilions can be reserved for private use by calling the City Clerks’ Office, M-F, 8-4. There A $50.00 fee to reserve them but to guarantee that you get the pavilion to yourself, you must make a reservation at the Clerk’s Office. You may contact the Clerk’s Office at (765) 762 2467.

Public Bathrooms

The public bathrooms at Ravine Park are unlocked Memorial Day-until Attica Schools begin classes in August. They are unlocked for daytime hours on weekends from the beginning of April to Memorial Day weekend and from the beginning of the Attica school year to the third week in September. If you have a date you would like to have access other than these dates, you must contact the Clerk’s Office, but we cannot guarantee that we can open them for you.

In Ravine Park, you will find three distinct trail systems. See the City map on our website to locate Ravine Park if you have never visited before!

The Nature Trail is one half mile long in one direction from the western entrance behind Cottrell Village and the eastern entrance at the bottom of Kenneth Freed Blvd. You pass over five foot-bridges which cross over a winding stream in the park. The trail was resurfaced in November 2017 in part with funds from the Greenspace & Art Fund of the Attica Community Foundation. You will find benches and a picnic table along the nature trail path. Find the map of the trail here.

Behind and to the south of the large pavilion in Ravine Park you will find the Jackson Street Trail. It is a quarter mile long. See the map of the trail here.


We are extremely fortunate that the city council and Mayor Will B. Reed had the foresight to purchase the 35 acres from the Arms brothers in 1911 and make it part of Ravine Park. The Arms Woods Trail had been used very sparingly until recently, when a local family donated the money to resurface the 1.3 miles of trails that exist there. A parking lot at the north entrance of the trail, at the intersection of Avenue Eight and Forest Drive, was added in 2016. There are five foot-bridges located in Arms Woods. You will find benches placed along the rolling trails. See the map of the trail here.

Signs mark all three trail systems. You will find that they are close in proximity to each other. Please use trash cans placed throughout the park.


Bathrooms at the large pavilion are only open from late April to late September.
Please enjoy your walk or run in the woods on the trails in Ravine Park!

Attica Circle Park

Circle Park

Circle Park is a small neighborhood park encircled by houses bordering Ruby Road and David Drive. It contains a basketball goal, swings, merry-go-round and a bench.

Attica Mcdonald Park

McDonald Park

McDonald Park is a one square block area in the center of Attica containing four basketball goals, two tennis courts that have also been marked for pickleball use, a bandstand, various playground equipment, and picnic tables. There are two handicap accessible parking spots located on the east side of the park facing the alley. All other parking is street parking along the west and north sides of the park.

Happy Walter Field

Happy Walter Field is property owned by Harrison Steel Castings Company, located in the southern part of the City on South Perry Street. The area contains a concession stand with grandstands for seating. There are three baseball and softball diamonds as well as a basketball goal located on this facility.

Ben And Mary Bowles Park

Ben and Mary Bowles (West Street Park)

Ben and Mary Bowles Park is a park located at the corner of West Street and Derrick Street. It contains a small shelter, picnic table, park benches, a climbing wall, merry-go-round, 2 sets of swings and a slide. Across the street, bordered by West and Fifth Streets, a basketball court can be found.

Attica Ouabache Park

Ouabache Park

Ouabache Park contains eighteen acres located adjacent to the Wabash River and has a paved boat ramp. The park contains a small shelter. There are handicap accessible restrooms available as well as four tent campsites, one of which is handicap accessible.

The bathroom facility, handicap accessible sidewalks and camp sites were paid for in part by a grant from the DNR and the Wabash River Heritage Corridor Commission.

Camping is allowed from April 1-Oct 31,  The camp sites are available on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Campers must complete an application and pay a non-refundable fee of $20.00. Applications are available at the City Clerk’s office from 8 am to 4 pm Monday through Friday, except holidays or by calling 765-762-2467. Once the application is complete and the fee paid the camper will be given a permit with a city seal as proof of registration. 

Camping is limited to three nights per application. There is a seven day grace period in which a camper must wait to reserve a campsite again.

A complete set of rules and regulations for camping will be provided to each camper at the time of application.


There is also a wildlife sanctuary next to the camping area in Ouabache Park.

Riley Park Sign

Riley Park

Riley Park is a three and eight-tenths acre area with two soccer fields located off of Summit Street.

Harrison Hills Golf Course Attica Indiana

Harrison Hills Golf Course

Need Information Here

Portland Arch Waterfall

Portland Arch Nature Preserve

Portland Arch Nature Preserve is a beautiful 436 acres with its sandstone gorge and meandering creek that follows the well-worn path of the preserve. Also found in large quantities are cliffs, forests, open prairies, spring-seep wetlands and savannas – all offering an abundance of plants, wildflowers and trees.

Portland Arch Nature Preserve takes its name from a sandstone arch carved by Spring Creek, a small tributary of Bear Creek. While not the largest arch in Indiana, this National Natural Landmark is arguably the best known. The preserve encompasses the wooded valleys, ravines and rocky cliffs around the lowest section of Bear Creek, which flows northwest toward the Wabash River.

A few native white pine are mixed with oaks and hickories on the thin mantle of soil on steep slopes. The ground is covered with mosses and lichens, and supports scattered beds of blueberry, huckleberry, and wintergreen.

This is the only place in the state of Indiana where Canada blueberry is found. Vertical cliff faces have small crevices form which grow bulb let, hayscented, and marginal shield ferns. Several colonies of Forbe’s saxifrage are found in larger pockets of soil. Liverworts cover moist portions of some rocks, and are occasionally joined by the creeping fronds of walking fern.


Portland Arch has been recognized for its uniqueness since the first settlers came to Western Indiana. A resort and then a Boy Scout camp were located in this area in the past, and building foundations are still visible in places. There are two parking areas and trails, north and south; the arch lies along the former. Brochures are sometimes available at the trail entrances.


North Trail: After passing through the entrance stile, turn right. You’ll descend gradually at first, the veer left and descend dramatically into the bottom of the ravine formed by Spring Creek.
A cliff rises to your left, sometimes overhanging the path, while the creek is to your right. Soon Spring Creek takes a sharp left and cuts straight through the cliff face, quickly joining Bear Creek on the other side.


The view of the bluffs between markers 16 and 17 is especially impressive; exuberant fern occupy deep fissures in the rock face.
Swallows nest in these cliffs, and while they ceaselessly patrol for insects over water that alternately runs swift or backs up in clear quiet pools, mosquitoes still prosper. Eventually the trail makes a hard left towards a cliff; check the dry sandy soil under overhangs for the conical traps of ant lions that metamorphose into improbably beautiful and delicate adults.
From here, the path makes another hard left and begins climbing out of the valley, thence back to the parking area.


South Trail: This trail explores a section of the Bear Creek canyon further upstream, passing at times through areas only recently acquired and now reverting to forest. It does not have the same scenic appeal as its companion, and receives many fewer visitors.
You’ll approach Bear Creek a couple of times, but most of the tread is through woods, including a rather long level stretch like an old railroad bed. Look here for fire pink in early summer.
After approaching Bear Creek for the second time, the path climbs left and drops into, then quickly climbs out of, another ravine with an intermittent stream. From there it’s a short walk back to the parking area.

Shawnee Bottoms Sign

Shawnee Bottoms

Shawnee Bottoms is part of NICHES (Northern Indiana Citizens Helping Ecosystems Survive) Land Trust. It is located along the Wabash River just north of small town of Fountain and is only one-quarter mile from Portland Arch Nature Preserve.

Containing 470 acres, it is slightly larger than the Portland Arch Nature Preserve. Shawnee Bottoms features 1.5 miles of frontage on the Wabash River. In addition, there is a 3.3-mile looping trail, part of which is on the towpath of the former Wabash and Erie Canal. There are multiple seep streams, high quality ferns, mature woods, restored and naturally regenerating stands of floodplain tree species, Scott’s Pond, a 20 acre floodplain pond, and oak woodlands.


NICHES works with the Indiana Division of Nature Preserves to move the boundaries of Shawnee Bottoms and Portland Arch closer to one another until they eventually will meet to form a 1,000 acre permanently protected natural area. Shawnee Bottoms and Portland Arch offer extensive unique hiking opportunities in northern Fountain County.


Explore Shawnee Bottoms along the trails to connect with a beautiful natural area rich with wildlife and diverse native plant populations. Shawnee Bottoms also provides quality access to the Wabash River and Scott’s Pond with plenty of room for fishing, wildlife viewing, and cultivation of the soul.