Bryson City Island Park
The Bryson City Island Park is a small island located in Bryson City, North Carolina. It is surrounded by the Tuckasegee River and rests at the mouth of historic Deep Creek of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
The Bryson City Island Park is located in the town of Bryson City at the intersection of Bryson City and Ramseur Streets. The island has a perimeter of .43 miles (690 m) and is located at the geographic coordinates of 35°25′54.54″N 83°26′31.51″W / 35.4318167°N 83.4420861°WCoordinates: 35°25′54.54″N 83°26′31.51″W / 35.4318167°N 83.4420861°W.
Dating back to its revitalization in the 1980s, the Island Park has served as a recreational destination for tourists and locals alike. The trails were created by Bryson City resident R.T. (Buddy) Abbott, to whom the park is dedicated. Only accessible by foot bridge, the Island Park is cut off from the mainland by the Tuckasegee River that runs through the center of the Bryson City business district. In 2004, the island was devastated by hurricane like weather and severe flooding from Hurricane Katrina that left the island closed to the public for several years. Up until the year 2008, the Island Park was only accessible by swinging foot bridge, but due to years of weathering a new, fixed concrete bridge was erected to replace the old swinging bridge. Today, the island is home to a slalom course that makes use of the white water rapids, most notably the "Devil's Dip" rapid. Up until recently, the Island Park was home to the Bryson City Fire Department's annual walk though haunted Halloween island, one of the fire department's most famed fundraisers.
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