Towards the end of my most recent trip, I ended up spending time at a couple of parks in Rochester. On my last full day in Eagan, I came across Patrick Eagan Park on a gloomy afternoon. I was heading to Walgreens. After I was done shopping there, I drove over to this park to check it out. There is plenty of parking. You need to drive past Eagan Art House to get there. I was the only person at the park and backed into a spot. I saw picnic tables in a sheltered area, along with a grill. I envisioned having a barbeque (Minnesotans prefer derivatives of grill, which is still weird, but I have learned to live with it) in the summertime. You simply need to bring your own charcoal. I have stayed in Eagan a number of times since flying down to see Minnesota Wild games. I had no idea that it was named after a person until I read one of the informational signs. I do enjoy a park that feels like a self-discovery tour. Patrick Eagan was the first chairman of the town board of supervisors. He had farmland where the current town hall is. He and his girlfriend, Margaret, emigrated from Tipperary, Ireland, and settled in New York. They got married in 1843, and then moved to now Eagan roughly a decade later. This park is different than most. It's considered a natural park, meaning that it has preserved most of the park's natural beauty. The hiking trail is unpaved. There are natural wetlands and woods here, which was cool to briefly look at from a viewing deck. The play area, Nature Play, has logs, branches, and rocks. I also learned that you can ride a zipline. It wasn't open when I was there on a Sunday afternoon. I'm kind of glad that it wasn't, because who wants to hear me scream as I ride it and ruin the peaceful surroundings. I enjoyed my time at this park. When I left, a woman and her dog had arrived. It was a nice change of pace from my usual shopping, eating, and hockey viewing. I look forward to dropping by again when I'm back in the city. (121) read more