Kenny F. is a volunteer ambassador for Great Rivers Greenway. Ambassadors are trained volunteers who represent Great Rivers Greenway at a variety of daytime, evening and weekend events such as Life Outside, earthday365, Pedal the Cause, GO! St. Louis® and more: “I volunteer because I love everything that Great Rivers Greenway represents. As a Greenway Ambassador, I get to talk about and do all of things I love. I’ve been into fitness for almost 50 years. I remember so often when I was one of very few runners out there. Now it’s exciting to see so many more people involved in exercise and being outside. I love meeting fitness and health minded individuals and talking to them–whether they are an ultra-marathoner or just like to walk. It’s fun to talk about the greenways and see the overwhelmingly positive and enthusiastic responses about what’s happening and what’s coming next. Whether I am on a greenway or driving by I give everyone I see a thumbs up. I’ve been doing the same to all the construction workers building the Gravois Greenway extension- a big cheer and a thumbs up!” (Learn more about Great Rivers Greenway Volunteer Opportunities here: https://greatriversgreenway.org/volunteer/)
Home Greenway: River des Peres and Gravois Greenway
Meet Hogan
Posted on Thursday July 25, 2024
Have you ever seen people riding uni-cycles on a greenway? There’s a good chance it’s Hogan H. & his son Corvin:
“I’ve lived in St. Louis for 15 years and been an active distance uni-cyclist for about 10 of those years. Many people have seen my son and I uni-cycling on the greenways. I enjoy the dedicated spaces to ride and be safe. It allows me to explore the city and enjoy an interesting method of traveling. A typical ride for me is 5 – 10 miles out and back. My longest ride to date was the MRT loop in downtown St. Louis. When I finished, my GPS logged just over 26 miles-it was quite an accomplishment for me! I’m currently on a quest to unicycle for 1 hour in all lower 48 US states with my son Corvin. To date, we have uni-cycled in 35 states.”
Home greenways: Deer Creek, Gravois (Grant’s Trail), Meramec: Greentree Park to Arnold’s Grove Park, Mississippi: Riverfront Trail, Missouri: Monarch Chesterfield Levee & River des Peres Greenway
Meet Michael
Posted on Thursday July 25, 2024
Michael H. is a former long distance runner turned long distance walker. He’s currently training for a walk on the 62.3 mile Wabash Trace Nature Trail in Southwest Iowa. He plans to cover all 62 miles in one day to celebrate being 62 years old!
“I train on the greenways because it keeps me away from cars. There’s also both sun and shade. I like walking along the River des Peres and can get there from my house on the connector from Carondelet Park. I see animals every so often and I like that too. Someone pointed out to me today that they saw a bald eagle. I see hawks, geese, and ducks …even a great blue heron. So that’s kind of neat. You can connect with nature even in the city.”
Home Greenway: River des Peres Greenway
Meet Mona
Posted on Thursday July 25, 2024
Mona Vespa is the President of GO! St. Louis. GO! is a local non-profit organization that encourages individuals and families in the #STL region to adopt a healthy and active lifestyle year round. They accomplish this through community collaborations, school-based programming and the creation of new and fun fitness events:
“Running is my sport, my hobby and my profession! Personally, I can’t imagine a better way to explore your own city than on foot, and the greenways are the perfect way to do that! Every time I run a greenway, I am reminded that our city is incredibly diverse in landscape and character, but is also comprised of neighborhoods and communities who are all working towards a similar goal: to make their part of our city a vibrant and welcoming home. And as a part of my job, what a joy it is to share that with the runners and walkers of our area. I’ve used greenways for several GO! St. Louis race routes, and our Summer Passport program’s entire focus is to introduce more runners to the incredible gem of these paths throughout our city. GO! St. Louis is thankful for GRG’s work and dedication to outdoor recreation in our region!”
Home Greenway: All of them!
Greenway Getaway: River des Peres Greenway
Posted on Wednesday July 17, 2024
If you like Grant’s Trail in the Gravois Greenway, but prefer the route “less traveled,” you’ll love the River des Peres Greenway! This greenway, along with its two connectors, offers plenty of sunshine and is great for walkers, runners and bikers of all skill levels. We’ve broken down the mileage for different segments, as well as connections to surrounding parks so you can “build your own” adventure.
6 mile route: Out and back from Lansdowne to Gravois
The 3-mile section between Lansdowne and Gravois was recently rebuilt, offering a smooth ride and gentle sloping grades. You can park at the Shrewsbury/Lansdowne MetroLink Station and enjoy a slow-paced out-and-back ride for a total of 6 miles. Be sure to take note of the rain garden near the Shop-n-Save Parking lot at Weil Avenue. You’ll see plenty of pollinators enjoying the native plantings this time of year. There are restrooms and drinking fountains at Fultz field.
10 miles: Lansdowne to Alabama
The full distance of the current greenway between Lansdowne and Alabama is 5 miles. If you do an out-and-back walk or ride, you’ll log 10 miles.
11 mile route: Full tour from Carondelet Park
Start your run or ride in Carondelet Park and jump on the “Carondelet Connector” paved trail near the intersection of Holly Hills and Grand Avenue in the park. Follow it for one mile to Highway 55 and Germania. Take a right and follow the greenway all the way to the Shrewsbury/Lansdowne Metrolink Station, turn around and follow it back to the current end of the paved trail at Alabama and then return to Carondelet Park via the Carondelet Connector.
Side Trips for Your Walking/Running/Biking Pleasure:
Willmore Park You can connect to Willmore Park by crossing the River des Peres at Gravois and heading west on Hampton Avenue via a dedicated bike lane. There, an additional 1.5 miles of paved trails meander around the lakes in Willmore Park to explore and enjoy!
Carondelet Park A two mile network of paved trails runs throughout Carondelet Park. Take a journey through these trails on to boost your mileage!
The Carondelet Connector The Carondelet Connector spurs off the River des Peres Trail at the intersection of Highway 55 and Germania. You can walk or ride your bike 1 mile on the paved trail and connect to all of the businesses at Loughborough Commons as well as Carondelet Park near the YMCA.
Christy Greenway The Christy Greenway is a neighborhood greenway that spurs off the River des Peres Greenway between Gravois and Morgan Ford Rd. that will take you approximately 1 mile to Holly Hills Boulevard. Once there, you can connect with Bike St. Louis on street bike routes to Carondelet Park.
Here are some other things to do along the River des Peres Greenway:
Stop by Lyle House in Carondelet Park and see the oldest existing frame house within the City Limits of St. Louis
Check out the YMCA Rec Plex in Carondelet Park. The outdoor pool is open to the public Monday-Friday during the summer.
Enjoy the playgrounds in Carondelet Park and River des Peres Park
Enjoy the lakes in Willmore and Carondelet Parks
Board the Metrolink at the Shrewsbury/Lansdowne Station and take it to the Forest Park-DeBaliviere station where you can connect to Forest Park. You can also take it to points beyond! If you want to bring your bike on the train, click here for the guidelines.
More Greenway Coming Soon!
Within the next year, there will be even more River des Peres Greenway to explore and enjoy as it will extend from Alabama Avenue to the River City Casino, connecting to the Mississippi Greenway and Jefferson Barracks Park. Construction is currently underway and should be completed by spring 2017.
Birdwatching on the Greenways
Posted on Wednesday July 17, 2024
Birdwatching is a hobby that combines fresh air, exercise, and beautiful scenery wrapped up in a treasure hunt. Not only that, birdwatching has no age limitations, requires minimal equipment and gives everyone the opportunity to be a citizen-scientist. The only word of caution from experienced birdwatchers is that once you start, it can become addicting!
Greenways are great places for birdwatching. In fact, several have been recognized by the Audubon Society as “important bird areas.” We asked the St. Louis Audubon Society to recommend the best greenways for spotting a wide variety of birds along with some tips for beginners.
The best place for spotting birds along this greenway is the area from McKelvey Woods to Creve Coeur Park. It meanders through what is known as an “edge habitat”—the space between a developed area and a natural habitat. The greenway’s location on a prairie flood plain near the Missouri River provides food and refuge for many migrating waders, waterfowl, and shorebirds.
Carondelet Park is on the eastern end of the River des Peres Greenway. This historic, 179-acre park provides stopover habitat for many migrating species in spring and fall. It also provides some breeding habitat for many birds excluded from the surrounding urban landscape (e.g., hawks and owls). The Audubon Society recently recorded 29 different species of birds on a single early-morning beginner bird walk in Carondelet Park!
Busch Greenway: Katy Trail to Missouri Research Park to August A. Busch Conservation Area
A good portion of the Busch Greenway passes through second-growth upland and bottomland forest, shrubland, and cropland areas managed by the Missouri Department of Conservation. All of this great breeding and stopover habitat means great birdwatching! If you want to see lots of birds, focus on the area between the Duckett Creek trail head and Katy Trail or the section that stretches between Weldon Spring and August A. Busch Conservation areas.
Birdwatching for Beginners: What do you need?
A pair of binoculars
Comfortable walking shoes
Weather-appropriate clothing
A field guide to birds. There are several options:
If you prefer to use an app on your phone, Cornell Lab of Ornithology has created the Merlin Bird Identification App. It prompts you to answer five questions about the bird you have seen and it offers suggestions about what kind of bird it is based on your location. Learn more about Merlin here.
The Audubon Society also has a free app for identifying birds. Learn more about the Audubon Society app here: https://www.audubon.org/app
Birdwatching Tips
Walk slowly
Use quiet voices; no shouting
Smaller groups are better
Observe; do not interact with the birds
Look low along the ground in “shrubby” areas and high up in the tree tops
Listen carefully (If you want to familiarize yourself with different bird songs, visit the Cornell Lab of Ornithology “All about Birds” field guide. You can enter the name of the bird and hear their song. Find it here: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/ )
Become a Citizen Scientist: Share the birds you have seen on the greenways!
eBird is the world’s largest biodiversity-related citizen science project, with more than 100 million bird sightings contributed each year by eBirders around the world. This collaborative effort is managed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. eBird lets you:
Brickline and Deer Creek Greenways awarded a total of $7 million in Federal Construction Funds!
Posted on Monday July 15, 2024
Two greenway projects were recently awarded a total of $7 million through the regional planning agency, East-West Gateway Council of Governments.
$4 Million for Brickline Greenway: Page Avenue to Washington Avenue in the City of St. Louis
This $4 million grant will be used to support a half mile section of the greenway on Spring Avenue between Page Blvd and Washington Avenue. This will extend the reach of the Brickline Greenway from Fairground Park to Page Blvd that was awarded $15 million in Federal RAISE Grant (Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity) funding earlier this year. Construction is slated for 2026. Read more about the Brickline Greenway here.
$3 Million for Deer Creek Greenway: Maplewood to River des Peres Greenway in the City of St. Louis
This $3 million grant will be used for a 1 mile extension of the Deer Creek Greenway from its current endpoint at Big Bend Blvd. to the River Des Peres Greenway at Francis R. Slay Park (intersection of Canterbury and Ellendale Ave in the City of St. Louis). When complete, it will create a greenway connection between the cities of Webster Groves, Maplewood, and St. Louis with connections* to Deer Creek Shopping Center, the Maplewood business district, surrounding neighborhoods, multiple parks, and the Shrewsbury Lansdowne MetroLink station. (And Gravois Greenway too!) Construction is slated for summer 2025. Read more about the project here.
Volunteer: Tree Planting along the Christy Greenway
Note: This event is at capacity! Checkout our other events here! Thank you for your interest in volunteering!
This in-person event is a great opportunity to connect with nature and make a positive impact on our community as we celebrate the Christy Greenway and all it has to offer. Don’t miss out on this chance to contribute to the beauty of our surroundings. Mark your calendars and join us for a day of planting and camaraderie.
No experience necessary; Forest ReLeaf of Missouri, Great Rivers Greenway, and St. Louis City Forestry staff will teach volunteers how to properly plant native trees.
What to wear: Please dress for the weather and bundle up. Long sleeve shirts, pants and closed toe shoes are required. Eye protection and gloves will be provided.
What to bring: All tools will be provided for this event. Please bring a water bottle to help us reduce plastic waste. Light snacks and water will be provided.
All ages are welcome!
This event will take place between Loughborough Avenue and Germania Avenue along the Christy Greenway. Please park along Loughborough Avenue.
Join Oasis for a bike ride: River Des Peres Greenway and the Mississippi River Ride
Wednesday, September 20, 2023 • 9:30 am - 1:30 pm
Wednesday, September 20, 20239:30 am - 1:30 pm
Event Details
LAUGHING BEAR BAKERY
Laughing Bear Bakery, Utah Street, St. Louis, MO, USA
4001 Utah St.
St. Louis, Missouri 63116
Ride with us on the paved city streets to River Des Peres Greenway for views of our mighty Mississippi River. All are welcome to come early for coffee and a muffin. Approximately 15 miles.
Visit stloasis.org or call (314) 862–4859 ext 24 to learn more or to enroll.
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