Things to Do in Columbus

Paradise Rental Boats carefully curates fleets of Yamaha, Bayliner, and Sun Tracker boats, so that sun-kissed riders can jet across the sparkling waters of Indiana’s Lake Monroe and Georgia’s Lake Lanier and Lake Allatoona at their leisure. The company's vessels range from party barges and yachts—which hold groups of up to 26—to the smaller, two-person WaveRunner, whose highly responsive steering suits drivers trying to chase down and catch their fish dinner. Onboard radios and CD players let mariners groove to their favorite tunes, and the company also rents optional accessories for water sports, such as wakeboards, water skis, and artificial bait for licensed fishermen.

There are bears at Jellystone Park at Lake Monroe—two of them, to be precise. They hang around the flag pole each morning, loom during story time just before bed, pose for photos with children, and, almost always, dress in dapper neckties.

Yogi Bear and Boo Boo, Jellystone’s resident ursine population, welcome families to campgrounds that lie under a canopy of trees near the shores of Lake Monroe. Rustically inclined campers can set up tents deep in the woods, and nearly 100 pull-through campsites offer electric, water, and sewer hookups. For camping with access to modern amenities, there are spacious cabins built to withstand the mightiest huffing and puffing from the mascots' cartoon enemies.

Pools, mini golf, and hiking trails fuel hours of family fun, which includes a snowball toss during Christmas in July and a pudding wrestling match during the Death by Chocolate weekend. [Located] 15 minutes south of Bloomington, the campground can form a launch pad for excursions to golf courses, wineries, and other cultural attractions near Indiana University Bloomington.