Swimming the Quarry at Carrigan Farms: A Summer Day Worth the Drive
Local Summer Favorites: Part 2
A summer series celebrating family-owned businesses that are worth discovering, enjoying, and supporting. These are the people and places that add character to our communities and help make Western North Carolina such a special place to live and visit.
The Quarry at Carrigan Farms, a 25-foot-deep, spring-fed swimming hole surrounded by granite and trees.
The drive into Carrigan Farms doesn't feel much like the approach to a water park.
On both of our August visits, apples hung heavily from the branches and scattered the ground beneath the trees. Fields of sunflowers and zinnias were blooming near the quarry, and after check-in, a small farm stand offered fresh-cut flowers and vegetables grown right there at Carrigan Farms.
Then you walk down to the quarry.
Surrounded by granite and trees, with deep emerald-green water below, it's beautiful and surprisingly peaceful. Carrigan Farms calls it an oasis, and after spending two days there this summer, that's a pretty accurate description.
My 13-year-old could spend hours launching himself from the rope swing while I swam, floated, soaked up the sun, or stretched out on the lawn with a book.
It managed to be both one of our more adventurous summer outings and one of the most relaxing.
This emerald-green swimming hole began as a working granite quarry before filling with spring water.
A Swimming Hole With a History
Carrigan Farms is a fifth-generation family farm in Mooresville, North Carolina, where the Carrigan family has farmed the land since 1902.
The quarry came later.
Granite was mined here in the late 1960s, when large quantities of stone were needed for the construction of Interstate 77. Mining eventually hit an underground spring, and after demand for the stone declined, the quarry filled with water.
Today that spring continues to replenish a 25-foot-deep swimming hole covering more than an acre and a half. The water stays around 79 degrees during the summer.
It doesn't feel like a conventional swimming pool, and that's a large part of the appeal.
Trees surround the quarry. Dragonflies, including tiny bright-red ones, skim around the water. Fish are easy to spot near the shallow end, especially if you bring goggles or a snorkel mask.
Despite being in Mooresville rather than the mountains, the rock, trees and deep green water give the quarry a distinctly mountain-like feel.
What It's Like to Swim at the Quarry
There is one gradual shallow entrance to the water, located toward the far end of the quarry past the rope swing.
It's worth knowing about.
The first time we visited, it wasn't immediately obvious to us, and I noticed other visitors who also seemed unaware it was there. It's particularly useful for younger children or anyone who doesn't want to enter the quarry by jumping.
Everywhere else, you're entering deep water from the rocks or jumping areas. There are several places to jump from different heights, roughly 10 to 20 feet above the water, as well as a higher platform for jumping and diving.
The ladders around the quarry are for getting out of the water, not climbing down to get in.
And the water really is deep. Outside the gradual-entry area, you're swimming in a quarry that's about 25 feet deep.
That sounds more intimidating than the experience actually feels because Carrigan Farms takes water safety seriously.
Swimmers 12 and older who pass the swim test can enjoy the quarry without a life jacket.
Life Jackets and the Swim Test
Everyone wears a life jacket in the quarry unless they've passed Carrigan Farms' swim test.
Life jackets are provided at no additional charge, but take a moment to make sure yours actually fits. On our first visit, we were handed jackets that were too large. Once we were in the water, they rode up around our faces and were uncomfortable. We went back and found smaller, snugger ones, which made a huge difference.
Even if you plan to take the swim test, you may decide you want a life jacket sometimes anyway. In 25-foot-deep water, it's nice to be able to simply float without continuously swimming or treading water.
Only swimmers age 12 and older can take the swim test.
The test sounded much more intimidating to me before I took it than it actually felt. We jumped into the water, swam approximately 20 meters, treaded water for one minute, and then swam approximately another 20 meters while a lifeguard evaluated us.
Carrigan Farms describes the test as being for expert swimmers and assesses more than simply completing the distance, including stroke, endurance, comfort in the water and ability to follow directions.
If you pass, you receive a wristband allowing you to swim without a life jacket. Better yet, you don't have to repeat the swim test every time you visit. Carrigan Farms keeps a record, so on our second visit we received our wristbands at check-in.
You can only attempt the test once per visit, and lifeguards can require you to return to a life jacket if they see you struggling in the water.
My advice: if you're 12 or older and want to swim without a life jacket, sign up for the test early. Tests are offered during specific windows rather than continuously throughout the day, so don't wait until the end of your visit.
Swimming and jumping are only part of the fun. The rope swing quickly became the favorite option.
The Rope Swing Was the Winner
For my son, nothing competed with the rope swing.
To use it, you must be at least 54 inches tall and pass a separate strength test. You demonstrate that you can do a pull-up before you're given the wristband that allows you to use the swing.
Unlike the swim test, you have to demonstrate the pull-up again on every visit.
Once my son conquered it, that was basically the end of every other activity at the quarry. He got back in line again and again until we ran out of time.
The line varied from just a few people to a dozen or more during our visits, but it moved quickly.
There are air compressors nearby for inflating your own small floats, including one near the rope swing and another around the check-in area. You're allowed to bring your own one-person float, and I'd recommend it. Floating around the quarry is a nice break between swimming, jumping and climbing out to do it all over again.
A Place Where I Could Actually Relax
This was one of my favorite things about Carrigan Farms.
There were enough lifeguards and enough clear safety rules that I felt comfortable letting my 13-year-old do his own thing.
I didn't need to stand at the edge watching him every second while he waited for the rope swing or swam around the quarry. I could get in the water myself, lie in the sun, or sit on the lawn with a book while he played independently.
For families with older kids and teenagers, that's a pretty great combination.
The grassy lawn beside the quarry is sunny and spacious, with plenty of room to spread out a blanket. If you've had enough sun, there's also a huge open-air pavilion that's dramatically cooler. It's shaded, breezy and dark enough to feel like a real escape from the heat rather than just a patch of shade.
There’s also a sand volleyball court if you want a break from the water.
And if someone in your family or group doesn’t want to swim at all, there’s still plenty of space to relax in the sun or shade, play volleyball, grab something to eat, and enjoy the setting. You don’t have to get in the quarry to have a good time here.
The sunny lawn gives you plenty of room to spread out between swims.
What to Know Before You Go
We've visited twice this summer, both times on weekdays. We arrived around 11 a.m. and stayed until the end of the daytime swim session at 3 p.m.
Our Monday visit was extremely easy. There was essentially no line at check-in.
We returned on a Tuesday, when admission was slightly less expensive, and surprisingly found it considerably busier. We waited about 20 minutes to get through check-in even though local schools had already started.
Carrigan Farms offers a daytime session from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and an afternoon/evening session beginning at 3:45 p.m. and continuing until sunset. The quarry closes between sessions.
Reservations are recommended, particularly for weekends and holidays, because walk-ins aren't guaranteed admission.
If you reserve online, fill out the waiver using the link in your confirmation email before you arrive. If you're walking in, use the posted QR code and complete the waiver on your phone while you're waiting. Don't wait until you reach the front of the line to start it.
And bring cash.
Admission and the restaurant are cash only, and there is no ATM on the property.
One Thing I Wish I'd Known Before Reserving
Carrigan Farms recommends making an online reservation, particularly because walk-in admission isn't guaranteed. That's still what I'd do if I were going on a weekend, holiday, or any day when I thought the quarry might sell out.
But there's a detail I wish I'd understood before our first visit.
When we reserved online, we paid a $5 per-person deposit and then $25 per person at check-in. In return, we received $5-per-person vouchers for the Quarry Restaurant.
Because we weren't planning to eat at the restaurant, those vouchers weren't useful to us. On our second visit, we went without reservations and paid $25 per person at the door, effectively saving our family $5 per person.
There's a tradeoff: without a reservation, you're taking the chance that the session will fill up and you'll be turned away. We were comfortable taking that chance on a weekday, but I wouldn't necessarily do it on a busy weekend.
If you're planning to eat at the restaurant anyway, the voucher makes the distinction largely irrelevant. If you're not, and you're visiting at a time when you're comfortable risking a walk-in, it's worth knowing that you may have another option.
Check Carrigan Farms' current admission prices and policies before you go, since rates and procedures can change.
The Quarry Restaurant menu during our August 2026 visit. Outside food and drinks aren't permitted during open swim.
Food, Drinks and the Farm Stand
Outside food and drinks aren't permitted during open swim, so plan to purchase food at the Quarry Restaurant if you want to eat during your session.
The menu includes typical swimming-day fare such as hamburgers, pizza and fries, along with options like veggie burgers, salads and fruit. There's also a bar serving beer and wine. Despite the bar, both of our visits felt very family-oriented. I didn't notice excessive drinking or anything resembling a party atmosphere.
The restaurant wasn't a big draw for us, simply because we don't eat much of what's on the menu. If you have particular dietary preferences or restrictions, I'd look at the current menu before you go and plan accordingly. You can keep a cooler in your car and fuel up there as necessary.
There's also a small farm stand inside the quarry area selling vegetables and fresh-cut flowers grown at Carrigan Farms.
A Few Things I'd Bring
Bring goggles or a snorkel mask. The water is clear enough that exploring beneath the surface adds another dimension to the experience, particularly around the shallow area where we saw fish swimming.
A float is worth bringing, too. Carrigan Farms allows them and provides air compressors, so you don't have to arrive with an enormous inflated tube taking over your car.
I reserved a $5 locker on our first visit but wouldn't bother again. The locker was too small for my entire bag, and I felt comfortable leaving my belongings on our blanket on the lawn.
Is Carrigan Farms Worth the Drive?
Absolutely.
Carrigan Farms isn't technically in the Blue Ridge Mountains. It's in Mooresville, north of Charlotte, so it's a longer drive from Western North Carolina than most of the places we visit.
I'd still go back.
It's beautiful enough to feel like you've gone somewhere special, adventurous enough to keep a teenager entertained for hours, and relaxed enough that I could spend part of the afternoon lying in the sun with a book.
And the quarry is only one piece of a fifth-generation family farm.
You drive in past apple trees and summer flowers. You can buy produce and freshly cut flowers grown on the farm. In other seasons, Carrigan Farms offers strawberry picking, apple picking and pumpkins.
Plan Your Visit
The Quarry at Carrigan Farms is in Mooresville, North Carolina, about 30 minutes north of Charlotte and approximately an hour from Hickory.
Open swim runs during the summer, typically from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Daytime and evening sessions are available, and reservations are strongly recommended for busy days.
Complete your waiver before reaching the check-in counter, and if you want to take the swim test, sign up early in your visit.
Most importantly, leave enough time to actually relax. Four hours went remarkably fast both times we were there.
Fresh-cut sunflowers for sale at the quarry, one more reminder that Carrigan Farms is still very much a working family farm.
Ready for your next adventure?
Waterfall Adventure Guide for Families
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