Walking is my favorite form of exercise and my favorite place to walk is Radnor Lake State Natural Area - a wildlife sanctuary just a few miles from my home in Brentwood, Tennessee. The park's 1200 acres are largely comprised of wooded hills that are laced with hiking trails. It was established in 1914 and before that it was the property of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, now a part of CSX.

The lake is man-made and was originally used as a source of water for steam engines and livestock at the nearby Radnor freight yards. Otter Creek is the name of the stream that is the source of the lake and, yes, otters still inhabit the area although they are not seen as often as other forms of wildlife.

Birders like the park not only for the abundance of songbirds but also for the migratory waterfowl that pay the lake a visit. On occasion the resident Great Horned Owls can be heard calling to each other, and, once in a great while, one of the owls can be spotted perched in a trailside tree and people watching.
 
In addition to the birds and otters there are beavers, turtles (including some massive snappers), snakes and a multitude of whitetail deer. The latter are almost tame and sometimes need to be shooed off the trails. One day in the summer of 2008 I spotted thirteen different fawns. Twice I have encountered newborn fawns right by the trail. The does apparently sense that hikers won't bother the fawns and their presence keeps predators at bay.
 
This past fall (2009) hikers on the trails south of the lake were treated to sparring contests by the stags as they fought for domination. All of the people who stop their cars in the middle of the Cades Cove loop road in the Smokies in order to ogle the deer there should take note. At Radnor Lake you can get up close and personal with the deer on almost any day.
 
On weekends Radnor can be very crowded and parking is a big problem. I always go on weekday afternoons and there are many days when I encounter few, if any, other hikers on the trails. The park rules that are posted on signs near the trailheads sound like instructions to a two-year-old: no no no no no. Jogging, boating, fishing, picnicking and collecting are all verboten. Pets are not allowed on the trails and hikers must stay on the trails. Strangely enough, the state legislature recently passed a law allowing people with hand gun carry permits to carry guns in the parks. A guy with an AK47 (no kidding!) pistol was detained the other day because a park ranger thought that it was a rifle.
 
I'm all for gun rights within reason but I fail to see why someone would feel compelled to pack heat in a place like Radnor. I have yet to see anyone there resembling a terrorist. Then again, the deer do wear camo....