the fountains are back!

The fountains at RiverScape MetroPark are back for the summer. 

The five fountains shoot water about 200 feet high and 400 feet across the confluence of the Great Miami and Mad Rivers. These five fountains have been part of the Dayton skyline since 2001 when RiverScape MetroPark opened.

RiverScape is on the site of the old Sears Automotive Center. My Dad used to manage that Sears store back in the 1970s. VanCleve Park was next to the Auto Center and it was a trash-strewn area with criminal activity. Five Rivers MetroParks took control of this area and made it into an urban retreat with beautiful gardens, providing glimpses into Dayton's origins, with homage to poet Paul Laurence Dunbar and to the spirit of invention that was once so prevalent in the city. People have dubbed RiverScape as Dayton's Front Porch, with its incredible view of the Great Miami River and as a place that connects its surrounding neighborhoods.

The fountains start with a whoosh at five minutes before the hour and continue for five minutes after the hour. They are beautiful at any time of the day but sunset is particularly lovely. People also rent kayaks and paddle in the vicinity of the fountains as the water arcs across the rivers. I want to try that one of these days.