Upper Arlington's Hidden Gardens: A Complete Guide to the City's Most Beautiful Green Spaces

From historic estate gardens tucked behind Northwest Boulevard to riverside meadows along the Scioto, Upper Arlington shelters remarkably intimate green spaces that reward visitors who know where to look.

Thompson Park and the Red Oak Ravine Trail

Thompson Park sits at the corner of Cambridge Boulevard and Elmwood Avenue, a twenty-acre woodland that feels leagues removed from the Columbus suburbs. The Red Oak Ravine Trail descends from the upper parking area through mature hardwoods into a creek valley where spring wildflowers—trillium, bloodroot, Virginia bluebells—carpet the forest floor from late March through early May. The trail loops for just under a mile, with wooden footbridges crossing the seasonal stream in three places. Birders arrive early mornings in April and May to catch northbound warblers working the canopy; I counted fourteen species during a single May visit, including Blackburnian and cerulean warblers that rarely linger this far south. The park sees fewer than a dozen visitors on weekday mornings, making it ideal for quiet walks before meetings or after checking into your hotel.

The smaller ravine garden behind the community center shelter house holds a curated collection of native ferns and woodland perennials planted by the Upper Arlington Garden Club in 1998. Signage identifies Christmas fern, maidenhair fern, and interrupted fern alongside Jack-in-the-pulpit and Solomon's seal. This sheltered pocket stays cool even in July, with dense tree cover blocking most afternoon sun. From Thompson Park, it's a seven-minute drive south to the hotels clustered near Lane Avenue and Kenny Road, or a fifteen-minute walk through the Tremont neighborhood if you prefer residential streets lined with American elms and brick Colonials. The park has no admission fee, stays open dawn to dusk year-round, and offers free parking in a small paved lot that holds about twenty cars.

Late October brings the best color, when the red oaks and sugar maples lining the ravine turn scarlet and gold. The leaf drop usually peaks around October 20, give or take a few days depending on overnight temperatures. I'd avoid weekends during that window—locals flood the park for family photos and the lot fills by ten in the morning. Instead, plan a Monday or Tuesday walk when you'll share the trail with dog walkers and retirees, not weekend crowds. The garden club maintains the trail well, clearing fallen branches and repairing bridges each spring, so footing stays reliable even after rain.

Sunny Ninety Park Rose and Perennial Gardens

Sunny Ninety Park sprawls across ninety acres between Fishinger Road and Tremont Road, and while most visitors know the athletic fields and playground, few discover the formal rose garden hidden along the park's eastern edge. Reach it by following the paved path from the Tremont Road parking area, past the amphitheater, to a brick-walled enclosure where the Upper Arlington Parks Department maintains about three hundred rose bushes in island beds. Peak bloom runs from mid-June through early July, then again in September when cooler nights encourage a second flush. The hybrid teas and grandifloras perform best—I'd single out the deep red 'Mister Lincoln' and apricot 'Just Joey' beds for fragrance—while the shrub roses along the north wall offer consistent color even in August heat. Benches beneath four crabapple trees provide shade for reading or sketching, and a small fountain in the center bed adds ambient sound.

The perennial borders flanking the rose garden shift through the season: tulips and ornamental onions in May, daylilies and purple coneflower in July, black-eyed Susans and Russian sage in August, then asters and sedum carrying through to October frosts. The planting scheme repeats on both sides, creating a symmetrical effect that photographs well in morning light when the sun rises behind the eastern border. This garden sees steady foot traffic on summer weekends—families spread blankets on the lawn nearby, and the paved paths accommodate strollers—but weekday mornings remain quiet. If you're staying at one of the hotels near Kingsdale Shopping Center, the park is a ten-minute drive west on Henderson Road, then south on Fishinger. Free parking fills the lot off Tremont Road, with overflow spots along the street.

The Parks Department recently added a small pollinator meadow south of the rose garden, a three-acre plot of native grasses and wildflowers that blooms from June through September. Bergamot, rattlesnake master, and purple prairie clover attract monarchs and fritillaries in July, while goldfinches work the seed heads in October. A mowed path circles the meadow, about a half-mile loop that connects back to the rose garden via a gravel walkway. This area gets less maintenance than the formal beds, which means it looks scraggly in early spring but wild and abundant by midsummer. I'd visit in late August when the big bluestem grasses reach seven feet and the whole meadow turns bronze and purple. Bring water—there are no fountains in this section—and wear long pants if you plan to step off the mowed path.

Riverside Drive Scioto Greenway and Wyandot Woods

The Scioto River forms Upper Arlington's eastern boundary with Columbus, and the Scioto Greenway Trail follows the water for three miles from Fishinger Road south to Lane Avenue. The northernmost stretch, near Wyandot Woods, offers the best garden experience: a narrow floodplain forest thick with sycamores, cottonwoods, and river birch that opens onto riverside meadows where wildflowers bloom in waves. Spring beauties and Dutchman's breeches emerge in early April under still-bare trees, followed by wild geranium and golden Alexanders in May, then joe-pye weed and ironweed by July. The trail itself is paved asphalt, smooth for road bikes and running, but unmarked spur paths lead down to the riverbank where you can stand at water level and watch great blue herons stalk the shallows. I've seen bald eagles here in January, perched in dead snags over the river, and turkey vultures roosting in riverside sycamores most months of the year.

Access the trail from the small parking area on Riverside Drive just north of Fishinger, or from the much larger lot at Reed Road and Riverside if you're approaching from the south. The northern trailhead sees less use—maybe five or six cars on a Saturday morning—while the Reed Road lot serves as a hub for cyclists heading into Columbus along the greenway. From most Upper Arlington hotels, you're looking at a fifteen-minute drive east to either access point, though traffic on Lane Avenue during weekday rush hours can stretch that to twenty-five minutes. The trail itself runs flat and easy, with only gentle grades where it climbs over stormwater berms. In spring, high water sometimes closes the lowest sections near the river, usually for a few days in March or early April after heavy rain; check the city's Parks website for closure alerts before planning a visit.

The Wyandot Woods section, about a mile north of Reed Road, features interpretive signs describing the floodplain ecology and the restoration work that removed invasive honeysuckle and autumn olive starting in 2009. The native plantings have matured nicely, creating layered habitat where songbirds nest in May and June. Bring binoculars if you're interested—wood thrushes and rose-breasted grosbeaks both breed here, and their songs carry across the meadows on calm mornings. The meadow flowers peak in late June and again in September; July and August are hot, humid, and buggy, with mosquitoes thick near the water. I'd walk this trail early, before eight in the morning, when deer browse the meadow edges and the air stays cool. By midday in summer, the asphalt radiates heat and shade is scarce except under the narrow riparian forest canopy.

Northam Park Woodland Garden and Indian Run Falls

Northam Park occupies sixty-five acres on Upper Arlington's northern edge, bordered by Henderson Road and Indianola Avenue, and its highlight is the woodland garden surrounding Indian Run Falls. The falls itself is a modest cascade, maybe six feet of drop where Indian Run Creek tumbles over a limestone ledge, but the setting—a shaded glen thick with ferns, wild ginger, and mayapples—feels transported from Appalachian hollows. The garden was designed in the 1970s by landscape architect James Bare, who planted Carolina rhododendrons, mountain laurel, and azaleas along the creek banks to extend the blooming season beyond the native wildflower peak. Late April and early May bring the best show: rhododendrons in pink and white against the emerging green of unfurling ferns, with trout lilies and spring beauties dotting the forest floor. The path descends from the parking area via stone steps, crosses the creek on a wooden bridge, then loops back upstream through a ravine where hemlocks and white pines create a year-round evergreen backdrop.

The falls run strongest in March and April when snowmelt and spring rains swell the creek; by August, flow slows to a trickle and the cascade becomes more decorative than dramatic. Even in low water, the glen stays noticeably cooler than the surrounding park, thanks to dense canopy and the ravine's orientation that blocks afternoon sun. I'd plan thirty to forty-five minutes for the loop trail, longer if you pause to photograph or simply sit on the benches near the bridge. This garden attracts a devoted local following—regular visitors include watercolorists working from folding stools and retirees who walk the loop daily—but rarely feels crowded. The small parking lot off Tremont Road holds about fifteen cars; if it's full, park along the street and walk in from the playground area.

Northam Park connects to Thompson Park via the Upper Arlington bike path system, a paved trail that runs west from Northam along Henderson Road, then south on Cambridge Boulevard. The ride covers about two miles through quiet residential neighborhoods, passing some of Upper Arlington's most impressive private gardens—gardeners here compete informally with elaborate perennial borders and specimen trees visible from the street. If you're cycling between the parks, budget twenty minutes and watch for the bike-path markers at intersections; the route crosses several streets without signals, requiring attention during school drop-off and pick-up times. From hotels along Lane Avenue, Northam Park is a twelve-minute drive north on Kenny Road, then west on Henderson. The park has no admission fee, no hours restrictions, and no concessions, so bring your own water and snacks.

Where to Stay and When to Visit

Upper Arlington's hotels cluster along Lane Avenue and near the intersection of Kenny Road and Henderson Road, positioning you within ten to fifteen minutes of all the gardens covered here. The properties along Lane Avenue put you closest to the Scioto Greenway access points and offer easy highway access via State Route 315 for day trips to gardens in Columbus proper or north to the suburbs near Cleveland. Rooms in Upper Arlington typically run moderately priced compared to downtown Columbus, and you'll find both chain properties and smaller business hotels. I'd book a hotel with free parking—you'll drive to each garden, as public transit doesn't serve the parks effectively—and choose a property with early check-in if you're arriving in spring when daylight burns quickly and the best wildflower viewing happens in morning light.

The garden calendar runs like this: late March through April for woodland wildflowers at Thompson Park and Northam Park; late April and early May for the azaleas and rhododendrons at Northam; mid-June through early July for roses at Sunny Ninety; late June through September for the pollinator meadows; and mid-October for fall color across all locations. If I were planning a single trip to catch the most gardens at peak, I'd choose the first two weeks of May. You'll see the tail end of spring ephemerals in the woods, the beginning of rose bloom, and the native meadows just starting their show. Weather in May averages pleasant—daytime highs in the upper sixties to mid-seventies Fahrenheit—with enough rain to keep everything lush but not so much that trails turn muddy. Summer visits work fine if you go early in the day and don't mind heat; winters are quiet and gray, better for contemplative walks than garden color.

Upper Arlington sits within easy driving distance of Franklin County's other garden destinations: the Inniswood Metro Gardens in Westerville are thirty minutes northeast, the Columbus Park of Roses is fifteen minutes southeast, and the Topiary Park downtown is twenty minutes east. If you're driving in from Summit County or Cleveland, the straight shot down Interstate 71 takes between two and two-and-a-half hours depending on traffic, making Upper Arlington a manageable weekend destination. From Van Wert County to the northwest, budget about ninety minutes via U.S. Route 30 and State Route 315. The city itself is safe, walkable in the commercial districts along Lane Avenue and Northwest Boulevard, and well-supplied with cafes and casual restaurants where you can grab a meal between garden visits. I'd plan at least two full days to cover the major parks without rushing, three if you want to linger and explore the connecting trail system.

Questions, answered

Do any of Upper Arlington's gardens charge admission?

All the gardens and parks described here—Thompson Park, Sunny Ninety Park, the Scioto Greenway, and Northam Park—are municipally owned and free to visit year-round. Parking is also free at all locations, though some lots are small and fill on weekends during peak bloom times in May and June.

Which garden is best for photography?

The rose garden at Sunny Ninety Park offers the most formal composition with symmetrical beds and fountain features, ideal for structured garden photography. For natural landscapes, I'd choose Northam Park's woodland glen around Indian Run Falls in late April when rhododendrons bloom, or Thompson Park's ravine in mid-October for fall color.

Are the gardens accessible for wheelchairs or strollers?

The Scioto Greenway trail is fully paved and ADA-accessible, as are the main paths at Sunny Ninety Park. Thompson Park and Northam Park have steeper terrain with steps and unpaved sections that make wheelchair access difficult, though strollers can navigate the upper portions of both parks if you avoid the ravine trails.

Can I visit these gardens in winter?

The parks stay open year-round and winter walks through the bare woods can be beautiful after snow, but there's minimal garden color from November through March. The evergreen hemlocks and pines at Northam Park provide some visual interest, and the Scioto Greenway attracts birdwatchers in January and February for winter raptors and waterfowl.

Is Upper Arlington a good base for visiting other Ohio gardens?

Yes—staying in Upper Arlington puts you within thirty minutes of several significant Central Ohio gardens including Inniswood Metro Gardens, Franklin Park Conservatory, and the Columbus Park of Roses. The city's position just northwest of downtown Columbus and near major highways makes it convenient for day trips throughout Franklin County and north toward Cleveland.

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