Elkhart: Nature Trails, Gardens and Culture

Elkhart can be explored through a variety of highlights: wetlands, forests, and prairie sit alongside historic mill sites, gardens, and performing arts. When planning a hotel stay, you can shape your activities around whether natural attractions or cultural venues are your priority. Even the natural attractions vary—from trails beside a pond to longer routes designed for different kinds of travel.

Parks, Wetlands and Trails

Bonneyville Mill County Park covers 222 acres of gently rolling terrain, forests, wetlands, and open meadows. The park is home to Bonneyville Mill, Indiana’s oldest continuously operating grist mill. Here, the landscape and mill bring together views of the natural surroundings and a living part of the region’s milling history.

Boot Lake Nature Preserve is a state-designated nature preserve covering 300 acres of wetland, forest, and prairie habitats. National Audubon recognizes it as an Important Bird Area, and more than 200 bird species have been documented there. Four miles of trails and overlooks of wetlands and prairie give the preserve a clear focus on nature observation. Its varied habitats and bird species also make it an interesting stop if you’d like to experience different types of landscape on one trip.

At 84-acre Cobus Creek County Park, prairie, forest, and wetlands meet a cold-water trout stream. Paved and natural-surface hiking trails loop around a five-acre pond, and trout fishing is available in the stream. The park thus offers different trail surfaces as well as a body of water with its own fishing opportunity.

River Preserve County Park follows the Elkhart River for four miles south of Goshen, between Benton and New Paris. Mill foundations, canals, and spillways are reminders of past commercial activity in the landscape. At the same time, the park provides access to waterways for kayaks and canoes at several portage points. The same river landscape offers a way to explore both nature and history, while the portage points shape how the waterways can be used.

For a longer route, the Pumpkinvine Nature Trail runs from Goshen to Shipshewana. More than 16 miles have been completed; the trail has asphalt and crushed-limestone surfaces suitable for narrow-tire bicycles. It is intended for walkers, runners, inline skaters, and cyclists. Its more than 16 completed miles and variety of intended uses give the trail a different focus from park paths around individual ponds or through particular habitats.

Gardens, History and Performing Arts

The Elkhart County Historical Museum preserves more than 30,000 objects reflecting the county’s cultural heritage. Ruthmere offers a different way to explore history: this restored 1908 residence showcases a Gilded Age interior, historic furnishings, decorative arts, and fine art. While the museum centers on an extensive collection, Ruthmere can be discovered through the furnishings and design of a historic home.

DeFries Gardens covers 13 acres and includes an 1880s-style Victorian residence surrounded by gardens and woody plantings. The grounds also include a one-acre Calendar Garden, designed to be enjoyed year-round and featuring a 365-foot loop trail. The acreage gives the gardens a distinct scale, while the house, plantings, and loop trail offer different points of interest for visitors.

The Lerner Theatre is a 1920s movie palace that was converted into a performing arts center. Its theater seats 1,700, and performances take place year-round. Behind-the-scenes tours explore the architecture, history, and stories of the venue. If you’d like to plan a tour, confirm its availability before your trip.

The RV/MH Hall of Fame showcases models and the history of the recreational vehicle and manufactured housing industries across more than a century; the museum is open year-round. The cultural offerings thus range from performing arts and historic homes to an exhibition about an industry and its development. The Heritage Trail offers another perspective on the area, following scenic back roads to historic sites and Amish heritage.

There’s also a specific place to stop for a meal: Dutchman Essenhaus serves à la carte dishes, a buffet, and family-style meals featuring authentic Amish-style dishes, which have been served there since 1971.

Discover More Destinations

Discover more destinations: Goshen, New Paris, Nappanee, Middlebury, Elkhart, Carroll County, Hendricks, Washington County.

For the main travel overview: Indiana.