Neighborhood guide · Clovis

Dry Creek northeast Clovis, along the trail

Dry Creek is the name locals and listings use for the northeast Clovis neighborhood around Dry Creek Elementary, a mostly built-out mix of suburban subdivisions and leftover rural pockets. It sits near the Dry Creek Trail, the busiest trail in the city's 2020 counts, and the free Clovis Botanical Garden, which opened a new visitor center in October 2025.

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Street plan of Dry Creek with the area this guide covers outlined in gold
Dry Creek, drawn from OpenStreetMap and Census street data. The gold line marks the area this guide covers.
At a glance
Where
Northeast Clovis around Dry Creek Elementary, 1273 N Armstrong Ave; roughly south of Shepherd Ave and west of Locan Ave
City or county
City of Clovis, Fresno County
ZIP codes
93611 and 93619
Size
Not a subdivision and has no official boundary; roughly the Dry Creek Elementary attendance area
HOA
Varies by tract; check each listing
School district
Clovis Unified. Confirm attendance boundaries with the district.
Today

Dry Creek today

"Dry Creek" here doesn't mean a subdivision, a golf course or the creek itself. It's the part of northeast Clovis that Dry Creek Elementary serves, which is how our old page used the name. Clovis Unified describes the blocks closest to the campus as suburban now, with several newer subdivisions in the attendance area and rural pockets still left between them. In 2007–08 the part of Dry Creek's attendance area east of Locan Avenue moved to the new Bud Rank Elementary, in Harlan Ranch.

The newest addition is at the Clovis Botanical Garden, 945 N Clovis Ave. Its Evert Family Visitor Center, a 2,460 sq ft building designed by architect Arthur Dyson that cost about $2 million, opened with a ribbon-cutting on October 29, 2025. It adds a shaded public patio.

One thing to check on homes at the north edge: CAL FIRE's 2025 maps added "moderate" fire hazard zones in rural residential areas north of Shepherd Avenue along Dry Creek, outside Clovis. If you're looking near or north of Shepherd, check the parcel's zone and insurance.

Anchor
Dry Creek Elementary, 1273 N Armstrong Ave
Trailhead
Sunnyside and Shepherd avenues
Botanical garden
Free, Wednesday to Sunday, 9 to 4
Newest
Garden visitor center, October 2025
East limit
Locan Ave
Most visited

The Dry Creek Trail, and its trailhead

The Dry Creek Trail is a paved Class I path that meets the Clovis Old Town Trail at N Minnewawa Avenue, between Birch Avenue and Park Creek Drive, and runs northeast to the Dry Creek Trailhead. City counters logged about 6,003 uses a week on it in 2020, the highest of the Clovis trails counted.

The trailhead covers about 3 acres at the southwest corner of Sunnyside and Shepherd avenues, with parking, restrooms, drinking fountains, bike racks, a windmill, stone walls and pedestrian bridges. It serves 4 trails, including the Enterprise Canal Trail, which runs 2.4 miles east to Owens Mountain Parkway. The city planned for about 2 million users a year. Its design, which won 6 awards in 2015 and 2016, draws on local farm and water history and on Native American grinding holes in the granite outcrops.

Where
Sunnyside and Shepherd avenues, southwest corner
Size
About 3 acres
Weekly uses
About 6,003 on the Dry Creek Trail (2020)
Awards
6, in 2015 and 2016
Around the neighborhood

Where people go nearby

  • Old Town Clovis and the Rodeo Grounds

    About 3.3 miles, about 7 minutes

    The Clovis Rodeo, first held in 1914 and now on the last full weekend of April, draws more than 50,000 fans. Old Town also hosts Big Hat Days in April and ClovisFest in late September. See our Clovis guide.

  • Clovis Botanical Garden

    945 N Clovis Ave, between Alluvial and Nees avenues

    A free, volunteer-run garden with Mediterranean, cactus and sensory gardens, open Wednesday to Sunday, 9 to 4. Guided tours are $5 a person, booked 2 weeks ahead, and plant sales run in spring and fall.

  • Dry Creek Park

    855 N Clovis Ave, next to the garden

    A city park completed in 2009 with picnic shelters, playgrounds, restrooms and a fitness course.

  • Clovis Old Town Trail

    Meets the Dry Creek Trail at N Minnewawa Ave

    A 5.9-mile paved rail-trail that runs south past Old Town and the Rodeo Grounds. City counters logged about 4,679 uses a week on it in 2020.

  • Old Town Clovis Farmers Market

    Pollasky Ave, Old Town

    Friday evenings from 5:30 to 8:30, May through September, between 3rd and 7th streets, plus a Saturday morning market from 9 to 11:30.

  • Clovis–Big Dry Creek Museum

    401 Pollasky Ave, Old Town

    The local history museum, in the 1912 First State Bank building.

Homes

What the homes are like

Lots

A mix: the area was long rural, and newer subdivision lots now sit beside remaining rural and large-lot pockets. Lot sizes vary by tract, so check each listing.

Age and style

Ages and styles aren't documented for the area as a whole. Listings on our old page were on streets such as Jordan, Kelly Lane, N Coventry, Minarets, Goshen, Bedford and El Paso.

Builders

Gary McDonald, Granville, De Young and Wilson Homes appear in past listings here. We didn't confirm any builder selling new homes inside the attendance area now.

HOA and taxes

HOA dues and Mello-Roos or other special taxes vary by tract; none is documented for the area as a whole. Check each listing.

Good to know

The area is inside Clovis city limits, so city services and rates apply, including Measure Y, a 1% city sales tax since April 1, 2025. Check the fire hazard zone for homes near Shepherd Avenue.

Location

Getting around, and schools

Freeways

Nees and Fowler avenues lead to Highway 168, the Sierra Freeway, west toward Fresno and east into the Sierra. See our Shaver Lake guide for the drive up.

Distances

Drive estimates without traffic: Old Town Clovis about 3.3 miles (7 minutes), Fresno Yosemite International Airport about 9.1 miles (14 minutes), downtown Fresno about 11.7 miles (16 minutes) and Shaver Lake about 39 miles (55 minutes).

Shopping

Old Town Clovis, about 3.3 miles away, has shops, antique stores and restaurants along Pollasky Avenue. Sierra Vista Mall is at 1050 Shaw Ave.

Schools

The area is in Clovis Unified School District. Dry Creek Elementary (K–6) is at 1273 N Armstrong Ave. Published feeder lists show it feeding Alta Sierra Intermediate (380 W Teague Ave) and Buchanan High (1560 N Minnewawa Ave). The part of the old attendance area east of Locan Avenue moved to Bud Rank Elementary in 2007–08. Check an address on the district's boundary lookup and see our Clovis Unified guide. Boundaries change, so confirm any address with the district.

Map of Dry Creek, California, outlining the area this guide covers Dry Creek Shepherd Ave Herndon Ave Clovis Ave Locan Ave 1Dry Creek Elementary 2Dry Creek Trailhead 3Clovis Botanical Garden
  1. 1Dry Creek Elementary
  2. 2Dry Creek Trailhead
  3. 3Clovis Botanical Garden
Gold outline: the area this guide covers. It's our approximation, so confirm any address. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors; local streets from the U.S. Census Bureau. Open in Google Maps
History

A name older than Clovis, since 1866

The Dry Creek name is older than the city around it. The first Dry Creek School opened in 1866 at Academy, about 10 miles east of Clovis on today's Highway 168, years before the Clovis townsite was mapped in 1891. Closer in, the Nees Colony school was founded in 1906 at what is now the southwest corner of the Dry Creek Elementary campus.

Clovis Unified formed in 1959, and Dry Creek joined it in 1960. Today's school grew out of a merger of the Nees Colony, Garfield and Dry Creek schools. At the naming meeting, attended mostly by Dry Creek parents, "Dry Creek" was chosen unanimously. In 1973 the original Dry Creek School building was moved back to Academy.

  1. 1866The original Dry Creek School is founded at Academy.
  2. 1891December 29: The Clovis townsite is mapped.
  3. 1906The Nees Colony school is founded on today's campus site.
  4. 1912February 27: Clovis incorporates.
  5. 1960Dry Creek joins the new Clovis Unified School District.
  6. 1973The original Dry Creek School building is moved back to Academy.
  7. 2007The part of Dry Creek's attendance area east of Locan Avenue moves to the new Bud Rank Elementary for the 2007–08 school year.
  8. 2009Dry Creek Park is completed.
  9. 2015The Dry Creek Trailhead wins the League of California Cities' Helen Putnam Award, one of 6 awards in 2015 and 2016.
  10. 2016APA California names the trailhead one of its Great Places in California.
  11. 2025October 29: The Botanical Garden's Evert Family Visitor Center opens.
Scale

Dry Creek, by the numbers

6,003weekly uses on the Dry Creek Trail (2020)
2 millionyearly trail users the city planned for
197,000gallons of stormwater the trailhead can hold
5.9miles of Clovis Old Town Trail
1866year the first Dry Creek School opened
Worth knowing

Stories from the neighborhood

  • A building that went home

    The original Dry Creek School building was moved back to Academy, where the school started, in 1973.

  • A gateway without a school

    The old brick entryway of the former Garfield School, one of the 3 schools merged into Dry Creek, still stands at Minnewawa and Shepherd avenues.

  • A trailhead that soaks up rain

    Under the Dry Creek Trailhead, an underground system holds about 197,000 gallons of stormwater so it can soak into the ground.

  • A bank robbery, reenacted

    The Clovis–Big Dry Creek Museum is in the 1912 First State Bank building, which was robbed in 1923 and 1924. The 1924 robbery is reenacted every February.

FAQ

Dry Creek questions

What area is the Dry Creek neighborhood in Clovis?

It's an informal name for the part of northeast Clovis, inside city limits, served by Dry Creek Elementary, roughly south of Shepherd Avenue and west of Locan Avenue. It has no official boundary.

Where is Dry Creek Elementary?

At 1273 N Armstrong Ave, Clovis 93619. It is a Clovis Unified K–6 school. Confirm attendance for any address with the district.

Where is the Dry Creek Trailhead?

At the southwest corner of Sunnyside and Shepherd avenues. It has parking and restrooms and connects to the Dry Creek Trail and the Enterprise Canal Trail, and by way of the Dry Creek Trail to the Clovis Old Town Trail.

What is at Dry Creek Park and the Clovis Botanical Garden?

Dry Creek Park, at 855 N Clovis Ave, has picnic shelters, playgrounds and a fitness course. The free Clovis Botanical Garden next door is open Wednesday to Sunday, 9 to 4.

How far is Dry Creek from Old Town Clovis?

About 3.3 miles, or roughly 7 minutes by car without traffic.

Are homes near Dry Creek in a fire hazard zone?

CAL FIRE's 2025 maps added moderate fire hazard zones in rural residential areas north of Shepherd Avenue along Dry Creek, outside Clovis. Check the zone for any specific parcel.

Buying or selling here

Thinking about Dry Creek?

Baylen and Chris can help you sort the subdivisions from the rural pockets, check school assignments and fire zones by address, and find homes near the trail. Selling? We'll price your home against similar nearby sales.

See homes for sale in Dry CreekSee sold homes in Dry CreekWhat's my home worth?Call or text 559-213-7734

Trafton Home Team, brokered by Real (DRE #02022092). Baylen Trafton, DRE #02026482.

Sources and photo credits