About Your Visit to Warner Park Nature Center

Location

7311 Highway 100
Nashville, TN 37221
615-862-8555

Hours of Operation

Warner Park Nature Center is open Tuesday through Saturday, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m, and is closed on Sunday and Monday. We are closed for most government holidays.

The Warner Parks are open sunrise to 11:00 p.m., 365 days per year.

Other Information

• Free admission
• Free programs for families, adults, and children year-round
• Pets allowed; must be on 6 foot or shorter leash
• Collecting of plant, fungi, wildlife, or other natural or historic items prohibited without permit from Metro Parks (Contact Nature Center for permit information)
• 15 MPH bike/pedestrian speed limit on Greenway
• Bike on paved trails only
• 15 MPH vehicle speed limit on park roads
• Motorized vehicles not permitted on Greenway or Old Roadway trails
• Camping not permitted in parks
• No alcohol, drugs, or firearms allowed in parks at any time
• No hunting or trapping permitted

Directions to Warner Park Nature Center

From Nashville, take Interstate 40 west to exit 199 (Old Hickory Blvd.), turn left and follow Old Hickory Blvd. for 4 miles to Highway 100 (Old Hickory will dead-end at this intersection). Turn left and go 0.2 miles to the Edwin Warner Park entrance and turn right into the Park. Follow the Park drive to the left for 0.3 miles to the Nature Center.

Coming from the south or southeast, follow Old Hickory Blvd. north (west exit off I-65 near Brentwood) to Hwy. 100. Turn left and go 0.3 miles to the Edwin Warner Park entrance and turn left into the Park. Follow the Park drive to the left for 0.3 miles to the Nature Center.

Warner Park Nature Center Map

Activities

Hiking and Trails

• 12 miles of primitive hiking trails span across Percy Warner Park and Edwin Warner Park
• Over 2 miles of primitive hiking trails in the Burch Reserve
• 11 miles of paved road through Percy Warner Parks, open to motorized vehicles, bicyclists, walkers, and runners
• 5 miles of paved trail through Edwin Warner Parks, not open to motorized vehicles but open to bicyclists, walkers, and runners
• 10 miles of bridle paths in Percy Warner Park
• 7 self-guided interpretive trails in Edwin Warner Park
  • Little Acorn Trail - Features Storywalk®
  • Hungry Hawk Trail
  • Nature Loop Trail
  • Meadow Tree Trail
  • Warner Parks Tree Trails

On the Nature Center Campus

• Natural History Museum
• Organic Garden
• Greenhouse
• Bluebird Boxes
• Beehives
• Teaching Pond
• Nature Play
• Hummingbird & Butterfly Gardens
• The Milbrey Warner Waller Library
• Native Fern Garden
• Wildflower Garden
• Bird Feeding Stations

Wildlife Viewing

Warner Park Nature Center and Warner Parks are ideal sites to view many species of wildlife. Crepuscular hours (dawn and dusk) are especially active times for viewing diverse populations of mammals, amphibians and birds. Warblers and many other Neotropical migrants may be seen or heard in early spring and fall. The back porch is a wonderful spot to observe hundreds of hummingbirds during fall migration. American toads, chorus frogs and spring peepers can be heard calling in late winter and spring; the Teaching Pond on the Nature Center Campus provides the perfect environment for listening and observing amphibians and reptiles throughout the year.

Mammals are abundant year-round, with white-tailed deer spotted regularly along with eastern cottontail rabbits, gray squirrels, eastern chipmunks, and coyotes.

If you aren’t sure what you saw, or maybe you ARE sure and want to tell someone about it, please stop by the Nature Center and ask to speak to a naturalist. We can often help you identify wildlife and make note of it in our records.

To learn more about Tennessee’s wildlife, visit Watchable Wildlife.

*Please remember that collecting, taking, hunting or harassing any wild animal within Warner Parks is strictly prohibited. Fishing is permitted at Willow Pond and the Little Harpeth River with a valid Tennessee Fishing License.

Geocaching

Geocaching is a real-world outdoor treasure hunting game! Players try to locate hidden containers, called 'geocaches', using GPS-enabled devices and then share their experiences online. Thanks to a permitted member of the Middle Tennessee Geocachers Club, Warner Parks has several hidden “treasures” within its boundaries!

Learn more about geocaching.