Hazel Landing Is Closed, the Bur Oak Bridge Is Fine, and River Road Is Carmel's Way to the White River

"Two portions of that trail collapsed. It's just simply not there," Carmel Clay Parks & Recreation Director Michael Klitzing told Current in Carmel this week. "It collapsed into the creek, and I'm sure part of the asphalt is in the bottom of the quarry."

He was talking about the paved trail to the Bur Oak Bridge in Hazel Landing Park. The bridge opened less than a year ago. Signs at the park entrance now say trespassers will be prosecuted.

If Hazel Landing was how you got to the White River, the bridge is the part you'd expect to have failed. It didn't. The parks that sit right on the riverbank along River Road also came through and reopened within weeks. The worst damage came where the flooding river pushed into a small creek next to a quarry and made it run backward in mid-August. That explains why one park may stay closed for up to two years while the rest of Carmel's river corridor is already open. It also means River Road is the way to reach the White River this fall and probably next fall too.

A Bridge That Survived and Ground That Didn't

The Bur Oak Bridge was cut with a ribbon on October 20, 2025. It's 500 feet long and 14 feet wide, built for people on foot and bike, and it links Hazel Landing Park in Carmel to Heritage Park in Fishers. Five local partners split the $11 million cost. At the opening, it was billed as the piece that connects the Monon, the Big-4 Rail Trail, the Nickel Plate Trail and the White River Greenway.

As of the Oct. 5 report, the bridge looks to be in solid shape. On the Carmel side, though, the edges of the parking lot have crumbled away and sections of the trail leading to the bridge are gone.

Carmel Clay Parks & Recreation has a written account of what happened. From August 11 to 17, repeated thunderstorms dropped more than 12 inches of rain on parts of central Indiana. On August 15, the White River backed up into Blue Woods Creek, which it often does in high water. This time the floodwater wore away a levee next to the Martin Marietta quarry west of the park. That pulled river water into the quarry, and Blue Woods Creek started flowing backward. At the peak, about 2.8 million gallons a minute carved a deep clay channel where the creek used to be, brought down the Hazel Dell Parkway bridge near the park entrance, and sent more than 7 billion gallons into the quarry.

The river supplied the water, and the reversed creek between the park and the quarry is where it tore the ground apart. That's why the repair isn't just a matter of repaving.

Why "Up to Two Years" Is a Realistic Estimate

Klitzing expects heavy equipment to run through the park for the bridge and creek repairs, and that work will do more damage. Blue Woods Creek will likely be rerouted, and the parks department can't seriously plan the park's reopening until that new route is set. "We really have to figure out what everyone else is doing before we can completely reconstruct the park," he said.

Several other jobs have to happen first:

1. The Hazel Dell Parkway bridge comes down. Demolition of the destroyed bridge just south of 106th Street started September 28. The contract calls for it to be done by October 30, while design of the permanent replacement continues.
2. Hamilton County settles on the creek. In its August 27 update, the city said the county was speeding up replacement plans and weighing options to repair or realign Blue Woods Creek.
3. The park gets redesigned around the new ground. In the week of that update, officials met with engineers and Ball State University archaeology and geology teams to plan long-term restoration.

There may be one shortcut. The parks department has said it would let people walk onto the bridge from Fishers' Heritage Park to look at the river, but only after an independent engineer certifies it. As of the department's September 22 update, engineers had inspected the bridge and the inspection report was still pending. The Oct. 5 report still described the bridge as closed. Fishers White River Park, just south of Heritage Park, has 2.45 miles of trail, three overlooks and a kayak launch. The latest Fishers flood page I could find, updated August 24, still listed it as closed. Check with Fishers before you plan a walk on that side.

River Road Is Where the River Is Open

Per the Oct. 5 report, Hazel Landing is the only Carmel park still closed. Some sections of the White River Greenway closed while the water was up but weren't seriously damaged. So the White River is easy to reach. You just reach it from River Road, not Hazel Dell Parkway.

River Heritage Park is the closest match for what Hazel Landing offered. The loop runs along the White River, the two overlooks put you right at the water, and the whole loop is wheelchair accessible. The historic Moffitt House is right by the park. The city describes it as adjacent, and Current describes it as inside. Floodwater got into its cellar and crawlspace, and Current reports a restoration company fixed the damage quickly. The city had said earlier that the house had no structural damage. You'll see the name spelled "Moffett" in some news coverage. The city and parks department spell it "Moffitt." I haven't found anything confirming whether the house is open for tours yet.

The Hannah Wilkinson Moffitt Trailhead is the north door to the White River Greenway. It has its own river overlook. I'm leaving out an exact Greenway length on purpose. The parks department's own pages disagree, with one describing just under three miles and another more than five after the north extension.

Two Smaller Comebacks on the East Side

The flood reached past the river. Flowing Well Park, a 15-acre park off 116th Street, opened in 1994 as the parks department's very first park. In August, total coliform turned up in its artesian well. The well was closed for a chlorinated flush while the trails, restrooms and parking stayed open. As of September 11, the well is open again. The parks department tests it monthly with the City of Carmel's Water Department, more often than the quarterly testing the law requires, and says most visitors bring empty jugs to fill.

Founders Park, also on Hazel Dell Parkway, is open, minus the paved trail around the south pond. That trail was closed for a new floating boardwalk, and the city's August 27 update aimed to finish it by late October. The Oct. 5 report still listed that section as closed, so for now the boardwalk is a "targeted for late October" project, not a done one.

The Hazel Landing That Comes Back Will Look Different

Blue Woods Creek used to run gently through the park. Klitzing says it eroded so much when it reversed that filling it back in doesn't make sense. Instead, the department is looking at ways to use the new terrain. "Maybe there's a way that we can work with that new topography and create mountain bike experiences, for example," he said. He'd also like to add an interpretive section along the rebuilt trail about the flood, possibly using ancient stones the erosion uncovered, and to bring in geologists and maybe the state museum for ideas.

On cost, Klitzing expects Federal Emergency Management Agency money to cover part of the repairs. He's also hopeful about a Lilly Endowment grant of up to $30 million, which he'd use for a broader plan to connect the department's properties along the White River on Carmel's eastern border. He named three places that plan would help: Hazel Landing Park, River Heritage Park and the historic Moffitt House.

River Heritage Park and the Moffitt House are both on River Road, and the park is open today. The long-term plan treats the riverbank parks and the rebuilt Hazel Landing as one connected corridor. Until the creek is rerouted and the Carmel side of the Bur Oak Bridge has a trail again, that corridor starts at 11813 River Road.

If you were in the middle of planning a move when the August flood hit, or you're just trying to keep track of which Carmel roads and trails are open, I'm glad to compare notes. Andrew Prince follows these updates across Central Indiana and keeps it straightforward. Let's Connect.