Pacific Palisades Conservation Area: Hike Through Flowers and by Ponds

Hike through fields full of flowers in the spring and walk by swamps and ponds that used to be gravel pits at the Pacific Palisades Conservation Area.

*Map of the area showing the two sections of the trail and where I hiked between them to form the back loop.*

Overview

The conservation area sits south of Eureka, Missouri, just off Highway K. There’s another section off Loop 44, but you can’t get to it from the hiking area on the south side of the Meramec River, and it only includes a boat ramp.

The hike covers 2.5 miles and gains about 75 feet of elevation. It starts out as an out-and-back, then I did the hike in a loop. In summer, tall grasses might make the loop hard to follow.

Start of the Hike

I parked in the gravel lot on Buscher Road. There’s an information sign and maps on the east side of the lot.

*This hike starts on a gravel service road.*

The trail begins at the northwest corner of the lot and heads down to the MDC Service Road, which you follow at first.

You head downhill by a field and then by shrubs and trees, crossing a ditch on a gravel surface.

Middle Area

At 0.4 miles, the gravel gives way to a mowed field walk. A low spot can be wet in here.

Then at 0.5 miles, turn right. There’s a side trail to the left near a row of trees.

Next, at 0.7 miles, I turned right. I will return to this spot from the left, having looped around the back field.

This area can be muddy, but once you get past the mud, you can see the trail returns.

Loop Area

I continue around the field, keeping the woods to the right. Narrow side trails go down into the wooded bottomlands but tend to peter out.

*I think these are Virginia springbeauty flowers.*

Hiking here in spring, I come across white flowers.

The map at the information board shows the trail once went northeast into the swamp, but I couldn’t find it.

I chose to walk around the field to make a loop. This isn’t an official section of the trail system, so it might be overgrown in warmer months.

I went west, with the field to my left and the woods to my right.

Along the walk, I came across black-and-white butterflies.

Then I look to the north and see a swamp at 1.2 miles.

I also passed a field filled with purple flowers here.

The Other Trail

At 1.4 miles, I came to the trail I had passed earlier. Next, I noticed a narrow trail going north through some ivy.

I followed it north, and it ended at what the map calls Glavel Lakes. I believe these are the old gravel pits that are now lakes.

A side trail goes a short way along the shoreline, but I decided to turn back around to the main trail once more.

At 1.6 miles, I continued south along the west side of the field.

Then at 1.8 miles, I was back at the start of the loop. Know that other side trails intersect this trail, so take note of where you walked into this area.

On the way back, I saw a large hill in the distance above what looked like a cornfield in summer. (Main blog photo)

As you return, you’ll have a bit of uphill to reach the trailhead.

Final Thoughts

If I came back, I’d probably just hike the west and north sides of the loop and maybe explore the lake area. That would make it an out-and-back. I was disappointed there wasn’t a clear path to the Meramec River. It looks like you’d have to do a lot of bushwhacking to get there.

Details

Directions: Take Interstate 44 southwest to Exit 261. Turn left onto Allenton Road, then right onto Business Loop 44. Next, turn left onto Highway K in Pacific, Missouri. After you cross the Meramec River, look for Buscher Road on the left and turn there. Then make another left into the gravel parking lot for the conservation area.

Hours: Closed from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m.

Address: 1648 Buscher Road, Pacific, MO., 63069

*Outside of Little Ireland Coffee house*

Snack/Lunch Stop: Little Ireland Coffee

I had a yummy blueberry muffin and coffee.

Hours: 6 a.m. – 4 p.m., Monday- Saturday; Closed Sunday

Address: 121 N. 1st Street, Pacific, MO., 63069

MORE NEARBY HIKES

A Route 66 State Park Ghost Town

Hike along a former street in a ghost town near the skeletal remains of a Meramec River bridge at Route 66 State Park near Eureka, Mo. This area has a lot of history, from once being a resort town to becoming contaminated by the dangerous chemical dioxin.