This year three of the businesses that sell time at Creve Coeur Lake Park changed in one way or another. A new outfitter took over the boat and bike rentals in the spring. The treetop course in the park now lists itself as closed for 2026. The restaurant by the trailhead posts regular hours but adds that it may close for weather or slow business. The trails, the water trail and the waterfall stayed exactly as they were. So for a fall visit in 2026, plan around what the county maintains and treat the businesses as extras you confirm by phone.
The park is a St. Louis County property with a Maryland Heights mailing address. It still gave the city of Creve Coeur its name, and for many people in the city it's the nearest big body of water. Here is how this fall's version of it differs from last year's.
A new name at the same dock
In April, Terrain magazine reported that Big Muddy Adventures would take over boat and bike rentals at Creve Coeur Lake Park, with a planned opening on Friday, May 1. Anyone who rented a kayak here before will find the same setup. The magazine said kayaks, canoes and paddleboards would stay available "with no major changes to hours or on-water access." It also said visitors would find "the familiar rental gazebo and dock, scenic sand beach, and easy lake access."
The change is in who runs it. Big Muddy Adventures says it was founded in 2002 and specializes in guided and outfitted paddling on the Mississippi and Missouri rivers. Its founder, Michael Clark, moved to St. Louis in 2001 after working as an urban educator in Chicago. He built the outfit out of educational canoe expeditions, including a Missouri River trip in 2002. The company already runs rentals at The Boathouse in Forest Park and at Simpson Park, plus bike rentals on Leonor K. Sullivan Boulevard near the Gateway Arch.
Natalie Rolwes, the company's director of communications, explained why it wanted this site:
"Creve Coeur is the region's largest and most accessible natural lake, making it perfect for beginners and families, and anyone looking to spend a couple hours outside."
The operator's Creve Coeur Lake page lists these rates:
| Rental | Listed rate |
|---|---|
| Canoe | $20 per hour |
| Double kayak | $20 per hour |
| Single kayak | $15 per hour |
| Paddleboard | $15 per hour |
| Bike | $15 per hour |
| Surrey | $25 per hour |
The same page gives the rental address as 13171 Dripping Springs Rd. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., with the last boat going out at 5 p.m. Rentals are walk-up and first come, first served, with no reservations. Pedal boats aren't on the list. The page also doesn't say which days of the week it's open or when the 2026 season ends. On a cool October weekend, the gazebo is worth a phone call before you load the car.
The company has started some programming of its own here. It offered a $10 "Paddling 101" session on flatwater basics and water safety on September 3. Rolwes told Terrain that offerings the company runs at its other sites, like paddleboard yoga, ecology tours with wilderness educators, and discounted or free paddling for seniors and youth, "may come to Creve Coeur." She said they could build on the lake's existing water trail. For now that's a possibility, not a schedule. The company's advertised fall-color trip, a two-day overnight canoe trip on October 17–18, 2026 at $250 per person, runs on the Missouri River, not on the lake.
The treetop course and the restaurant
Go Ape's treetop course sits in the park at 13219 Streetcar Drive. Its St. Louis page carries a banner that reads "CLOSED FOR 2026," followed by "Closed for the 2026 season!" and a pointer to the company's other locations. The page doesn't say when it last operated or whether it plans to reopen. If you've been holding a fall zipline outing for visiting grandchildren, plan something else this year.
The Lakehouse, the bar and grill at the trailhead, lists hours of Wednesday through Saturday 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. It's closed Monday and Tuesday. Its website says the restaurant may close for private groups, bad weather or slow business, and asks people to call to confirm on days with poor weather. The posted hours carry no date. In late fall, when the weather turns and the crowds thin, that caveat is the part to take seriously.
Taken together, the businesses that sell time on the lake are all a little less certain this fall. One is under new management, one says it's closed, and one posts hours that come with conditions.
What the county keeps running
The county maintains a different set of things, and none of them depends on a staffed counter. The county's park page lists the trails by name and surface:
- Lakeview Loop Trail: paved, 3.8 miles
- Meadows Loop Trail: paved, 3 miles
- Mallard Lake Loop Trail: paved, 1.7 miles
- Bootleggers Run Trail: earthen, 2.5 miles
- Creve Coeur Connector Trail: paved
The Connector's length depends on the source. The county lists it at 3.8 miles. Great Rivers Greenway, which describes the Connector as linking Creve Coeur Park to the wider trail network, puts it at 4.7. In either case it crosses the Page Avenue Extension Bridge on a separated bike and pedestrian path, heading toward the Katy Trail-to-Schaefer Park greenway on the St. Charles side. In February, Great Rivers Greenway posted that it was updating wayfinding signs along the Connector and the Mallard Lake, Meadows and Lakeview loops, and that the trails would stay open during the work.
The lake is 320 acres, and only non-gasoline boats are allowed on it. The Dripping Springs waterfall is on the southeast shore. A wildlife area runs along the south and west shores, and the sand beach on the northeast shore is for sitting only, since swimming isn't allowed.
The water trail is the most overlooked piece. The county and Great Rivers Greenway built a 6-mile route across the lake and up the creek, with points of interest on the park's history, plants and wildlife. You can read them from a brochure or on a smartphone. The county says some of those points can be reached from the trail system around the lake. So the water trail is also open to people on foot, even on days when the rental dock is closed.
Restrooms are open year-round at the Tremayne Shelter and at Go Ape. The park also has a StoryWalk sponsored by Foss Swim School, four playgrounds and a disc golf course.
Two races on the loops
The rest of this fall's calendar happens on that same free trail system. Fleet Feet's St. Louis race calendar lists two events at the lake:
- Creve Coeur Lake Haunted Hustle 5K, Friday, October 30, 2026, at 5 p.m. It includes a 5K run/walk and a youth 1-mile run/walk. Race Discovery shows the same date and time with a listed price of $50.
- Run for ALD, Cure the Boys, Saturday, November 21, 2026, at 9 a.m., with 5K and 1-mile options.
Both dates come from third-party race calendars, not organizer pages, so check registration before you plan the weekend around either one. A Friday-evening start just before Halloween means the Haunted Hustle finishes close to dusk. Expect more people on the Lakeview Loop than usual for a weeknight.
Where the county's money is pointed
The biggest public-spending proposal tied to the park this year isn't for the lake. In July, St. Louis Public Radio reported that County Executive Sam Page proposed spending $14.8 million in tourism-tax revenue on three more soccer pitches and an administrative building at the Creve Coeur Park Soccer Complex. The report described a proposal, not an approved project. In the coverage gathered for this piece, we found no 2026 announcement of comparable work on the lake itself, its trails or its shoreline.
So the lake's free parts stay as they are this fall, while the open questions concern the businesses and a soccer expansion that hasn't been approved. A good fall afternoon here might be the Lakeview Loop from the Lakehouse trailhead, a stop at Dripping Springs, a few water trail markers read from the shore, and a kayak if the gazebo is staffed that day. The only parts you'd need to check ahead are the kayak and the restaurant.
If you're weighing how close a property sits to the Connector or the lake loops, that trail access is something The Ryan Tradition can map for you street by street in Creve Coeur. Contact Us when you'd like that conversation.
