Ways to Beat the Heat in Bowling Green

As we all have seen recently, it has been incredibly hot outside. Temperatures have been soaring into the mid 90s across the region; and this, combined with dewpoints approaching the upper 70s, has made conditions just unbearable.

h/t giphy.com
h/t giphy.com

Some of you would prefer to just stay inside on days like this and drink a nice glass of tea. However, that isn’t as fun. It’s summer! You gotta enjoy it while you can. After all, we were looking at this 3 months ago:

h/t NWS Jackson
h/t NWS Jackson

So, in light of that, here are a few ways you can beat the heat across the region.


Beech Bend ParkLocated only about 10-15 minutes from WKU’s main campus, Beech Bend is a sweet amusement park right in our own backyard. You have roller coasters, kiddie rides, expensive food and all of the other stuff that makes amusement parks awesome!

h/t Beech Bend
h/t Beech Bend

You have the Kentucky Rumbler, an awesome wooden roller coaster that will cool you down. My fiancée’s family and I have gone each of the past two years, and this was my favorite ride both times.

Source is unknown
The Kentucky Rumbler! h/t brentwood.thefuntimesguide.com

Then, you’ve got the water park, which will no doubt bring a cool down to you. They have three large water slides to choose from, a long lazy river, a wave pool and two kiddie pools. Additionally, Beech Bend added four new water slides this year, making it one of the top amusement park destinations in the region. It really is a great option if you need to have a place that is family friendly.

Overall, Beech Bend is an awesome, and inexpensive way, to cool down that is just in our backyard. Here are the directions and times to Beech Bend from WKU.

h/t Google Maps
h/t Google Maps

Go Swimming: The Warren county region provides plenty of natural and recreational places to swim. There are plenty of rivers and lakes around the region that you can choose from, including:

  • Phil Moore park, Trammel Creek access
  • Romanza Johnson Park, Drakes Creek access
  • Bank access to the Barren river, and not to mention Barren Lake.
  • Shanty Hollow Lake

There are many other natural areas that can also be used to swim in.

Additionally, you have recreational pools at Beech Bend and the Russell Sims Aquatic Center. I talked about Beech Bend above, but the Russell Sims Aquatic Park has two large slides, a 50 meter pool and two diving boards! It’s a family friendly place, and a great way to cool off.

rsa_header
h/t Russell Sims Aquatic Center

Explore The Natural Wonders: The South-Central Kentucky region that we reside in is surrounded by natural wonders. Even here in Bowling Green, we see plenty of opportunities to explore.

The biggest one that comes to mind is obviously Mammoth Cave National Park just 30 minutes north of Bowling Green, and is the largest cave system in the world. There are plenty of things to do there, including camping, touring and sightseeing.

h/t mammothcave.com
h/t mammothcave.com

Tours are relatively inexpensive, so this is affordable and family friendly.

In our own backyard, you can go check out Lost River Cave. You can go hiking, tour the caves in boats or climb your way through the caves. Additionally, it is no more than 10 minutes away from WKU’s main campus. For more info, you can check out their website.

In addition to all of these options, the region provides many locations to fish. There are abundant streams, rivers and lakes too. These areas all have shaded regions, which make it ideal to go out and enjoy a couple hours of fishing.


Even though it is hotter than hades outside this time of year, it’s easy to find a place to cool down across the region. And if you don’t like these options, then you can easily find something in Nashville. Or you can just chill inside. Either way, it’s easy to stay cool in the dog days of summer.