Champ Park: An Oasis of Nature in North St. Louis County Suburbs
I like hiking, especially in state parks. I like the sense of being out in the wilderness, far away from civilization, just making my way along a trail lined with trees and grassland. It’s a feeling that not only is really cool, but rooted in science: there is research showing that being outdoors in nature is good for your mental health.
St. Louis County operates parks of all different shapes and sizes, from tiny postage stamp-sized properties to … well, Creve Coeur Lake Park.
Champ Park is one of those county parks that is easy to overlook, based on location and outside appearances. Inside, though, is a slice of state park wilderness right in the heart of the North County suburbs. Named after one of its donors, Norman B. Champ, the park consists of nearly 100 acres of hiking and varied naturescapes.
Getting There
Champ Park (Google Maps link) is nestled inside North County just off of Old Halls Ferry Road on Grand National Drive. The postal address says Florissant, but technically the park is located in unincorporated St. Louis County.
Anyone visiting from outside North County will likely take I-270 to New Halls Ferry northbound, then turn right onto Old Halls Ferry. Champ Park is off of Grand National Drive, which has a traffic light, making it easier to spot. Grand National winds briefly through a neighborhood of duplexes before turning into a one-lane gravel road. The gravel road, in turn, winds around the corner a short way before emptying into the parking lot.
Parking
Parking consists of a medium-sized gravel lot adjacent to the park. It’s never close to full, and on most days you’ll be lucky to see another car in the lot. It’s free, of course.
Costs and Considerations
The park is open daily from dawn to dusk. The gates open at 8 a.m.
As a public park, there is no cost to use it.
A few things to know about the trails. One, the park trail is unpaved with some moderate slopes and rises, so people with mobility concerns might want to look elsewhere. Two, parts of the trail can get a little narrow with foliage in the summer and early fall months, so dress appropriately. Three, some of the outer parts of the trail in the grassy area connect with private property — those are easy to spot and you’d be wise to stay off of them.
This is a very basic park. There are no restrooms of any kind in this park, so plan accordingly.
There are a few posted park rules, including no hunting, no dumping, and no off-road vehicles.
This park is sparsely used, and you’ll be unlikely to encounter other people while walking it.
Things to Do
There are two primary areas in the park: the wooded area and the grassland area.
The wooded area includes a dirt loop running about 0.8 miles across a wooden bridge and through the trees. The trail features a few splits and spurs here and there that add a little interest to the hike. The trail is also bisected by a gravel road that presumably allows maintenance vehicles to get to the grassy area of the park.
That grassland area consists of curated prairie grassland ringed by trees. Varying mowed-down grassy paths cut through the grassland and along the outer edge of the space. Here you will glimpse some of the surrounding houses, with private paths leading to some of those houses.
One curious feature of Champ Park are a few abandoned vintage vehicles a short ways off the trail. One of them is typically easy to spot. You can find it to your left of the gravel trail just before it empties into the grassland; it’s easier to find in the winter than in the summer. There are a couple of other old vehicles farther back in the woods that are hard to find. I don’t know how any of them got there.
Our Thoughts
Champ Park — or Norman B. Champ County Park if you want to be formal about it — is a basic park with little in the way of amenities. It’s so simple, in fact, that as of mid-2025 the St. Louis County website doesn’t even have a current page dedicated to it.
What it lacks in amenities, though, it makes up for in simple nature. The wooded trail reminds me of hiking through one of the nearby state parks, and the grassland paths offer a different type of view. It really is an oasis of peaceful outdoors in the midst of houses. It makes for a great little hiking spot, especially if you live in North St. Louis County.
