Elm Creek Park Reserve

We don’t get out this way that often, but since we were driving through we decided to stop and let our little guy get out and run around.
We didn’t know the playground was that far into the park, but eventually found it. On Mother’s Day it was packed with people picnicking and playing on the cool playground structure. There are a ton of cool things to play on.
Slides
Sandbox
Hammock
Cargo nets
Ladybugs, bumblebees and so much more.
Our son loved it and loved running down the colored matted hills and climbing around the smaller kid area.
Really a wonderful, fun and interactive playground.
Not sure we would make the trek back, but will definitely stop on the way in or out of town.
Bathrooms had a super long line, only to realize it’s like a icky port a john in the floor. Oh well I guess all the funds went to the playground equipment.
Lots and lots of tables, picnic tables in the sun and shade.
Nice paths for biking and walking etc.

I loved the off leash doc park/​trails. Whomever said they were small probably went to the wrong park since there are two. They have a gated pond if you’re up to letting your dog swim and frolic. My dog never listens and loves to wander and for some reasons stuck close and listened here. She loved it! The other dog were great as well as the people. I got in a good walk and had a nice time.
If you decide to let your dog wade in the water it is fantastic since it is manmade there is no mud, just sand. So much less of a mess on your pup. She was quite beat once we got home. Mission accomplished!

Winter tubing is fun and a good value. The primary parking lot is usually full weekends but there is a frequent, convenient shuttle from the larger parking area about a half mile down the road, if you don’t mind being forced to listen to spiritual music and the odd rider singing along («the cross… the cross…”’).
The food here is TERRIBLE. My son ordered chili, a cheeseburger, and fries for us to split. The chili was bland tomato sauce. The cheeseburger oozed grease and had no flavor. I can stomach White Castle but this went into the garbage, it was that bad. Fries were fine. Trying to be healthy I ordered a chicken wrap that had saline-​injected, badly seasoned (oregano?) chicken that had dried out over the days it was in the cooler.

It’s nice to be trail connected to ECPR. Straight off my backyard, I have about a 1.5 mile ride or walk to get there. I typically take my bike out for a lap around the outside of the park, which is about a 16-​mile loop depending on which little offshoot trails you take when in the park.
The trails are well-​maintained, but often too congested with flocks of arrogant Lance Armstrong type geared out geeks all wearing the same spandex outfits and generally being road hogs with no respect for their self-​imposed bike etiquette. Then you have the slow walkers that travel 4 abreast and block the whole effing trail and never move the right direction or fast enough when you call out «on your left», as one is supposed to do when obeying trail/​biker v. walker etiquette. Now I remember why I avoid riding around ECPR so much – the maddening frustration of dealing with all of these dawdling a-​holes!
There is also a disc golf course that I have only hit up once. It was a decent course, but price was a little steep in my mind at $ 10 a head. I have only biked around the man-​made sand bottom pond/​pool/​swimming hole. It looks cool, but I can just see it overcrowded with soccer moms and screaming kids. Not my bag, baby.

***This review pertains to their dog park. ***
Our pup hasn’t had the opportunity to roam off-​leash in several weeks, so my girlfriend and I decided to head north to check out Elm Creek Park Reserve’s nearly 30-​acre dog park.
30 acres, huh? Well, it most certainly doesn’t feel like it.
For starters, there are only three trails — left, right, and middle — and they all eventually converge together. There’s a couple ponds, several small short hills, and part of a trail with looming trees, and that’s about it. The defined dirt trails seem to not take advantage of the entire 30 acres. In other words, the trails don’t really span the entire dog park. Kind of a let-​down.
Other helpful information:
–The dog park requires all attendees to pay five dollars, by putting cash or check into an envelope at the entrance.
–You’ll also have to write your name and license plate information on it. It’s by honor system. Nonetheless, you should support. ;0
–An area for small dogs exists, but it’s somewhat dull.
–Parking is not an issue.
–Don’t use the GPS, rather, while on Highway 610, take the Zachary Lane exit and head north until it intersects with Elm Creek Road. (It’ll be several miles, and you’ll pass several neighborhoods.) It should be on your right.
It’s a decent dog park if you live close by, but I would favor several others over this one.

This sensational park is best used with the whole family. I have grown up seeing the improvements made on this park since the 80’s. It is a favorite place in the Twin Cities for a quick respite from city life with miles of bicycle trails. Off road biking in on the north side of the park where it is best to enter for a medium paced challenge. Up hill at first then down hill for the ride home! The play ground is better than any other park in the metro area, unless it is winter. Then you’ll have to trek over to the Maple Grove community center:) The Eastman Nature center is a favorite with my grandma and best of all are the cross country ski trails that are well groomed and lit for night riding.

I ride these trails most of the year. They keep them clean and well maintained. It is a very nice park to ride in and offers some secludedness to it. There are some rides where I will only pass one person on the trails. It’s a very peaceful park reserve. The wildlife there have included deer, coyote, ground squirrels, snakes, turtles, egrets, pheasents and turkeys. Depending on which bridge you cross, you might get a glance at the fish in the many creeks as well.
There is one thing they could improve upon however. When the snow starts flying they don’t clean off the trails. They also leave the snow on the trails until it naturally melts. As a bike rider, I can’t ride in that. I know it’s mainly for the cross country skiiers, however they should at least keep the part of the regional trail that goes through the park clean during winter for those that commute.

We started renting our house there about 1.5 years ago now with our three small
children. Our oldest is 3.5 years old now and he loves the park and we were so happy to find the park here. It is amazing! compare it to chutes and ladders in Bloomington, not as large and no water playground area but still really nice for the kids.
They have an area for younger kids and an area for the older kids who are more adventurous.
you can tell it is newer and very clean.
They also have a man made lake and beach within walking distance. Plenty of space and great that it is so nearby us. We have used the biking trails to get there, which are amazing and extend for miles and miles so you can definitely get a great ride in.
Like any other park, they have grills and tables for a good BBQ with good friends and family if you are looking for an outdoor area to hang out and eat I would definitely recommend the park here. There is also a pavilion that you can rent out, I had looked into it for my son’s birthday last year, ended up doing something different but would use it if we ever planned an event at the park,

Whatever you picture as a park multiply it by 10. Climbing ropes, climbing walls, spinning things, platform swings, multi level slides, foam padding, and a dinosaur skeleton to excavate in the sandbox.

I love this park! It’s a sanctuary and escape and a good reminder that there are still wide open spaces in the metro/​suburban area in the Twin Cities.
My favorite area of the Three Rivers Elm Creek Parks is the Elm Creek dog park. One of the biggest off leash fenced in dog parks in the Twin Cities, this 29 acres of land will give both you and your furry friend a wonderful time exercising and socializing with other furry friends.
It’s pretty safe and social. Other park goers are usually very responsible with there dogs too. With rolling hills and open areas, it’s a great place to spend time socializing your pet.

Part of this review has nothing to do with Elm Creek and everything to do with my delight as a recent transplant to the Twin Cities. I absolutely LOVE the fact that there is still lots of fun to be had, even in the dead of winter. Thus, I embrace the cold, don my warmest gear, and fight for my winter social life. Now, onto my review:
Elm Creek Park Reserve is the epitome of winter awesome. I have discovered my inner snowboarder (I watch while on the tubing hills and tell myself that I WILL work up the courage to do it someday. The Park is crazy busy on warm weekends, but the facility is always clean and orderly, the prices are reasonable, I appreciate the shuttle and overflow parking and the staff are just the best at giving pushes to get me started down the icy hills and celebrating my triumphs at the bottom. And the moving sidewalk that takes riders back up to the top? Fabulous.
I know that tubing may be primarily a childhood activity (I’m surrounded by little kids whenever I go), but I. Don’t. Care. My inner child is getting giddy just writing this review. Elm Creek Park Reserve makes me happy…

This review is for winter season activities only.
Love, love, love this park.
Snow tubing here is the most fun I have had anywhere in the metro. Its inexpensive, the tubes are awesome and well kept, the staff is helpful and will give you a good spin down the hill if you so request. There are probably 10 or so lanes, the best, biggest ones on the end will normally have a wait, but the others usually allow you to go straight down the hill with little to no waiting.
One of the best things about this particular park for tubing is the moving sidewalk and allows you and your tube an easy ride back up the hill. No shlubbing you and your heavy tube up yourself, or ruining your gloves with a tow rope. That makes it worth every penny if you ask me. Plus, they take Discover Card, big plus for me.
Parking can be a beast, but they have overflow and shuttles to get you to/​from the chalet with ease. Be patient, sometimes you have to wait a few minutes. If you are lucky enough to find a place in the parking lot, don’t be a d-​bag and be mindful of how you park. Sometimes it is difficult to drive down the lanes because people park like idiots.
This place is always busy, even when it is bitterly cold, so be aware and be patient. You will struggle to find a table in the chalet, you will wait in line for your ticket, you will wait in line to get back up the hill, you will wait in line to go down the big hills. It is worth it though.
Normally this is where I would give you a helpful tip, but I think I will have to be selfish in this review and keep the ‘inside information’ to myself, so I don’t ruin my secret to success.
They have a lot of other activities too, snowboarding, skiing, cross country skiing, ice skating… just go, you will have fun.

We have gone here a couple times for tubing in the winter. I like it because it’s far less crowded than Buck Hill, closer than Wild Mountain, and actually has a decent chalet. Nothing too fancy, but you can get hot food and a place to sit near the fire.
Tubing is well organized, and lots of lanes to use. I can’t speak to the skiing or snowboarding, but I saw a lot of people doing that as well, so it must be fun.

First, I knocked off a star (yes a one point deduction. Call it restitution for blindly driving around looking for the dog park) is that gps-​ing to the dog park will always get you lost. I can’t recall if i ever followed the signs successfully, but trying to go by gps will take you to the nature center which is nowhere near the dog park. Oh, and the star is also for all the times someone’s big muddy dog jumps on me when I walk by the dog swimming area.
I love the dog park tho. It’s huge and my dogs who tend to either by shy or over-​gregarious can sniff and explore without having to interact with dogs if they don’t want to. There’s also a little bit of everything. Big open areas to run, swimming, woods. I’m sure my dogs find this place to be like dog valleyfair.
I’ve also used the running trails, which are very nice. I think just once we had a trail that just kinda ended or we could keep running another 10mi (no thanks).
Today we ventured out to do some snowshoeing on the nature trails which was a lot of fun too. We had our own, but the nature center also had snowshoes to rent.
There’s a ton of winter sports things to do making one actually appreciate when it snows.

I live in the north suburbs so this is a close option for me. Im a fan of power walking and hiking. This is far enough outside of the city that you get the quiet country feel. There are paved paths, and unpaved paths. There are even horse trails that Ihave walked on before. Its also a favorite due to the lenth of the paths. I like to walk good distances and alot of the paths in the city are somewhat short and therefore you have to walk arond them 2 – 3 times and get tired of looking at the same things. This one is perfect in that aspect. The only thing I would have to say I don’t like (and its just a small thing) is that there is a lack of hills. But if I want hills I go further out of city and am sure to find those kinds of paths.
So to sum it up, this is a great place to get away and go for a nice peaceful walk, or bikeride. I even saw a gentleman riding along the patch in his electric wheelchair!

A bit of a drive for us being in Maple Grove, but this is one of our favorite summer destinations!
This park is huge! If you wan’t something a park has to offer, this one has it all. Over 20 miles of bike trails, you can ride through the whole Elm Creek Park Reserve experience. They have a disc golf course (which I have yet to play). The swimming area is not free, but a good time for all. It is a cross between a lake and a water park. Near the water, there is a newly remodeled playground that is amazing! The old one was nothing to scoff at, but this one provides activities for kids of all ages. Yes, even into your twenties! Between the playground and the water, there is a huge picnic area with tables and grills. Plenty of room for yard games as well, they even have a volleyball court ready to go. (I have never been to the dog park, but it seems there are other reviews that cover that.)
My only issue with this place is that it is often extremely busy! It makes the shortage of bathrooms difficult to handle, especially with kids. Sometimes you have to wait for a table, but I always bring my own grill.
That being my complaint, I think this place is pretty cool. I will definitely be back!

Review of dog park only.
Great for the dogs. Plenty of open fields for running, chasing, and jumping in the water. Not as great for the owners. Paths are fairly short — took us about 25 mins to make a full loop.
It’s a hike from mpls and costs $ 5 to get in, so I prob won’t be back. But, the pooch did love it. I’ll stick with minnehaha as it’s better hiking for the bipeds.

I’ll probably update this as I make myself more familiar. Its not bad by any means, but Im a park snob.
I went snowshoeing here today, because its the closest trail to my house. The last place I went was near Lutsen, so naturally I expected to be disappointed.
The trail was decent, but I wanted it to meander a bit off the beaten path. We were too close to the road, and the views of houses and cars reminded you that you weren’t really deep in the wilderness.
That being said, the cross country ski trails looked pretty awesome. The ski/​snowboard area on the opposite side of the park seems like it would be an ideal place to learn how to do either sport. The hill is quite small, and the day pass is $ 4.
All in all, its a decent park and I anticipate I will go back this winter.

I am only going to write about the dog park area of this park reserve, because it’s the area I am most likely to frequent.
This is my favorite off-​leash dog park in the metro area. It’s huge, something like 20 acres of «fenced in» land. I use the term «fenced in» loosely. The fences are not trustworthy — so if you can’t trust your dog to stick by you while you are at the park — do not trust the fences to keep them in.
There is a separate fenced in area with a man-​made pond for the dogs that is great. It does tend to be a bit mud pit at times, but my dogs don’t seem to mind. :)
There are great walking paths and nice big open areas for the dogs to run… I love this park!

OK, a very large open park in the middle of a metro area. Very good swimming beach and a nice large area in the winter for tubing and sledding. Nice area to get out and walk, run or bike. Lots of trails and I mean lots.
Biking through this park is a cluster though. I have ventured out this way many times now and have never seen such a large area that is so poorly marked with signs. I came across 1 of 2 maps while riding. Both of the maps used the surrounding roads as markers. Hello, your in a forest, does a road, miles away, really help you when you have no idea of where it, or you are. One of the two signed was hung upside down. The little arrow that said «you are here» made no sense until I figured out the sign was upside down and everything was backwards (You work in a park and you can’t figure out how to hang a sign! Money on the college degree was not well spent)! Many of the paths here are very poorly marked, no markers or any kind to help you find your way. Thank god for GPS or I would still be riding around.
Overall if you live in the area it is a good way to get out and enjoy the outdoors. If you want to get rid of someone for a while though simply send them out for a ride. Want them back? I would recommend a big bag of bread crumbs!
KT