Murphy-Hanrehan Park Reserve — Attraction in Credit River

Ah, yes… the legend of the Half Man, Half Moose of Murphy-Hanrehan Park Reserve. Gather ’round, friend.

Deep in the dense woods and rolling hills of Murphy-Hanrehan, where the trees whisper and the fog clings low to the ground, locals whisper of a creature—part man, part moose—known as Murphalo.

The story goes back to the 1800s, when a trapper named Eli Murphy roamed those woods. He was a gruff loner, known for his wild eyes and even wilder tales. One fateful winter, he stumbled upon a wounded moose calf caught in an old steel trap. Rather than kill it, he nursed it back to health and formed a bond stronger than blood. But that spring, something strange happened—Eli and the moose vanished.

Months later, travelers and hunters began reporting eerie sightings: a hulking figure walking upright, with the antlers of a bull moose and the deep growl of a man. He was fast—too fast. One man said he saw it drink from the lake and disappear into the trees without a ripple in the water. Another claimed it stood still for an hour, eyes glowing, watching him from the brush.

They say Murphalo only comes out when the moon is half full, walking the trails where man and beast once bonded. Sometimes you’ll hear heavy hoofsteps behind you, then turn to find nothing but flattened leaves. Or maybe you’ll catch a whiff of pine, musk, and tobacco—that was Eli’s pipe, they say.

Old-timers swear if you leave a flask of whiskey and a branch of birch at the edge of the trail near Marker 17, you’ll be safe. Others say that just makes...

If you're looking for one of the most dynamic hiking locations in the South Metro, this place is it. I've put on hundreds of miles through these trails over the past year and regret none of them.

The park is effectively split into three locations - there is a wooded area right out the gate with miles of hilly, woody trails. It's of moderate difficulty with several hundred feet of elevation changes. This trail system is around 10 miles of hiking, plus another section that opens after August 1st opens another few miles of trails.

Across the road from the park shelter is a switchback biking trail system. I have never personally been down here but judging by how packed the parking lot is once it opens, I imagine its fantastic.

Finally the third area is accessible either by hiking through the first park or down a dirt road a couple miles. It's got another 7ish miles of trails, groomed enough for horse back riding. This section is more prairie and easier to walk. It's got wide open views and really is just amazing how quiet it can be, located as close to lakeville and prior lake as it is. As a bonus one of the trails moves past some Osprey nests - you can see them with the naked eye but bring binoculars if you are an avid bird watcher.

I HIGHLY recommend this area - I dont know if many better spots around that offer as many miles of diverse trails as...

Has a great dock and makes it super easy to hop right on your kayak! It’s pretty quiet not alot of people here only reason I’m giving 1 star is because, as my friends and I were kayaking we began to see what we thought were some kind of flakes, turns out it was someone burning trash and it was literally flying all over the lake. It smelled disgusting after 20 minutes of us being on the lake. It became hard to breathe without inhaling this disgusting trash. Absolutely horrific. Such a depressing thing to do to a lake so beautiful. Never coming again. I’m assuming this isn’t a first time thing considering the tracks that lead straight to where these people were burning their trash and how they came in and out by lifting the wires that separate the lake from the tracks. At least warn people that you burn trash and let it get all...