Photo: Brandonrush · CC BY-SA 4.0Jacksonville has 22 miles of mapped trails, 0.8 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Dupree Park (0.9 mi), Heritage Park (0.9 mi). 1% of Jacksonville’s land is conserved, about 204 acres. 227 acres are parks and preserves, 7.8 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 47% of U.S. towns · #26 of 123 in Arkansas. What drives it
How much outdoors does Jacksonville have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Jacksonville is ahead of 47% of U.S. towns, #26 of 123 in Arkansas. Trail miles hold the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.
Few Arkansas towns conserve much land (a typical one, 1%; the U.S., 4%), so Jacksonville’s 1% is ahead of 63% of Arkansas towns, while its trails per square mile lead 91% of them.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Dupree Park, with 0.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Holland Bottoms WMA
All 16 parks & preserves
204 conserved acres
1% of Jacksonville’s land. Who manages Jacksonville’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 20 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dupree Park Local Park | Town or city | 82 | Open |
| Holland Bottoms State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 46 | Restricted |
| Paradise Park Local Park | Town or city | 19 | Open |
| Excell Park Local Park | Town or city | 12 | Open |
| Stonewall Park Local Park | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| Johnson Park Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Pleasure Park & Recreation Center Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Fireman Park Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Galloway Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
35 places to go in Jacksonville
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Plus 18 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Plus 1 dog park without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Plus 2 boat launches without a name on the map.
6 picnic areas without a name on the map.
1 disc golf course without a name on the map.
3 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
4 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 22 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
The walking year in Jacksonville
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 10.1 | 10.9 | 11.9 | 13.0 | 14.0 | 14.5 | 14.3 | 13.5 | 12.3 | 11.2 | 10.3 | 9.8 |
| High (°F) | 51 | 55 | 64 | 73 | 81 | 88 | 92 | 92 | 85 | 75 | 62 | 53 |
| Rain (in) | 3.7 | 4.2 | 5.1 | 5.7 | 5.4 | 3.5 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 3.3 | 4.4 | 4.7 | 5.1 |
September is the driest month (3.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 92 °F). 5.7 inches fall in April, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 92 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Jacksonville →
Jacksonville and its neighbors
Jacksonville has the most mapped trails of the 2 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville | 1% | 0.8 | 8 | 65% | B− |
| Sherwood | 1% | 0.4 | 7 | 67% | C+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Jacksonville
Where can I hike in Jacksonville?
The longest trail networks: Dupree Park, 0.9 miles; Heritage Park, 0.9 miles; Stonewall Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Jacksonville is conserved land?
1% of its land, against a typical 1% for an Arkansas town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Jacksonville’s trails?
Dupree Park and Heritage Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Jacksonville?
4,066 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Jacksonville or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 227 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Jacksonville have?
Ahead of 47% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #26 of 123 in Arkansas. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Jacksonville neighbors.
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →