Spotlight on Eldridge Park

Eldridge Park in Elmhurst is a wonderful multipurpose park that was named for early settler Edward Eldridge who originally farmed this parcel. Too swampy for development, the land was used as a landfill in the 1950s. The Elmhurst Park District purchased it a few years later, eventually expanding it to today’s 42.79 acres. Today it consists of ball fields, a basketball court, tennis courts, roller hockey court, playgrounds, a lagoon, the Park District preschool building, and several natural areas. In the winter the park provides ice skating and a sledding hill – presumably the former summit of the landfill. This time of year there are maples and oaks changing color and providing a fiery backdrop to your visit.

But here at Floofins, we’re most interested in the extensive trails around the park, which are perfect for dog walking!

Getting Around

We were at the park on a Sunday morning, and while it was busy, it wasn’t overly crowded. Like Oak Brook’s Central Park, Eldridge Park is divided by a waterway – in this case, Salt Creek. We began our adventure on the west side of the creek, where parking is available on the south edge of the park near the lagoon. There are poop bags located at the trailhead here, so if you need them, make sure to take advantage of this because while we didn’t walk every trail, this is the only poop bag station we saw.

The western trail merely loops around the lagoon, which was absolutely beautiful on this fall morning, and is a wonderful backdrop for photos. From here you can access the southern branch of the Salt Creek Trail by crossing Butterfield Road at the stoplight. The lagoon allows for catch-and-release fishing and provides fishing line recycling stations. There are picnic tables and garbage cans scattered throughout this area.

A bridge spans Salt Creek and leads to not only the east side of the park, but also the northern branch of the Salt Creek Trail. There is a canoe launch station here, so if your dog loves water sports, be sure to check it out! Cross the creek and you have a choice to turn left or right or continue on straight. Left takes you to the Salt Creek Trail, right loops around some of the fields, and straight takes you between some fields and a vast natural area. The trails on the east side are basically two loops that go around the ball fields, but the northern loop has an additional section that leads to the top of the sledding hill and affords a birds’ eye view of the park. We chose the central path, which took us from the end to the beginning of the Elmhurst Public Library’s StoryWalk. The StoryWalk was created by Eagle Scout Tyler Janiak and is based on the book All the Rocks We Love by Lisa Varchol Perron and Taylor Perron, illustrated in watercolor by David Scheirer.

Behind the StoryWalk is the native area, which this time of year is going dormant, but there is evidence of wonderful native plants going to seed like goldenrod, coneflower, little bluestem, and mountain mint, just to name a few. There are also several installations of pollinator hotels for wintering bees. Past the beginning of the StoryWalk is a large playground and a year-round restroom which is currently under construction, but is set to open soon. From here you can turn right to loop around the fields and arrive back at the creek crossing or turn left to go around the sledding hill. We climbed the sledding hill and then turned left to return to the creek.

Park Safety

Most of the park is bordered by residential areas, and with so many ballfields, there are few places that aren’t visible. The sledding hill is lit in the winter. It was busy but not overcrowded on an early Sunday morning.

Final Thoughts

While the trails at Eldridge Park are basically a series of loops, they allow you to tailor your experience. You can do a short walk around the fields or use the park as a jumping off point for the Salt Creek Trail and do a long out and back run. The park is absolutely lovely, and here at Floofins, we think you should give it a visit. Let us know if you do!

Vital Info

• West Parking: 363 W Commonwealth Lane
• East Parking: 301 W Butterfield Road
• Park Hours: dawn to dusk