Prairie Creek Recreation Area
Managed by Jackson County Conservation
23 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Treymeister · Public domainC+Outdoors
Outdoors in Maquoketa
Maquoketa has 62 acres of parks, 10 for every 1,000 residents
90% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 0.1 miles of mapped trail cross Maquoketa. 1% of Maquoketa’s land is conserved, about 40 acres.
Ahead of 37% of U.S. towns · #128 of 140 in Iowa. What drives it
Conserved land
1%
40 acres · of 4.5 sq mi of land
Trails
0.1 mi
0.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
62 ac
10 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
90%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
4.1 mi
3.6 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Maquoketa?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Maquoketa have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Maquoketa is ahead of 37% of U.S. towns, #128 of 140 in Iowa. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
C+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Maquoketa’s overall grade.
Conserved land1% of the land · typical IA town 3% · U.S. 4%CTrails0.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (0 mi) · IA 0.3 · U.S. 0.4C−Park land10 acres of park per 1,000 residents (62 acres) · IA 19 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home90% of residents within a half mile of a park · IA 91% · U.S. 72%B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 37%
LessMore
Iowa towns of 2,500+ (140)Ahead of 9%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B−. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Horseshoe Pond County Park
Park
20 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
City Ball Park
Park
13 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Fifth Ward Park
Park
5 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 8 parks & preserves
Little Bear Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsPrairie Creek Recreation Area23 acres · Jackson County Conservation
DirectionsHorseshoe Pond County Park20 acres
City Ball Park13 acres
Fifth Ward Park5 acres
First Ward Park3 acres
Crawford Park1 acres
Glovik Community Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
40 conserved acres
1% of Maquoketa’s land. Who manages Maquoketa’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city40 ac
Local Park · 30 acLocal Recreation Area · 10 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Horseshoe Pond County Park Local Park | Town or city | 18 | Open |
| City Ball & Skate Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 10 | Open |
| Fifth Ward Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Little Bear Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| First Ward Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Crawford Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
3 places to go in Maquoketa
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Maquoketa
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Maquoketa
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Biking & sports
4.1 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
3.6 mi
off-road bike paths
0.5 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
10Tennis
7Baseball
3Football
1Softball
1Skate park
1Soccer
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →31 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Seneca Williams MillBuilding · listed 1976
About itAnson Wilson HouseBuilding · listed 1977
About itDecker House HotelBuilding · listed 1978
About itHurstville Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1979
About itD. H. Anderson BuildingBuilding · listed 1986
About itHotel HurstBuilding · listed 1989
About itMaquoketa Free Public LibraryBuilding · listed 1989
About itHotel Hurst GarageBuilding · listed 1989
About itA. A. Hurst HouseBuilding · listed 1991
About itAlexander Organ HouseBuilding · listed 1991
About itC. M. Sanborn BuildingBuilding · listed 1991
About itCundill BlockBuilding · listed 1991
About it19 more on the History page.
When to get out
September is the best month for walking in Maquoketa
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) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 29 | 33 | 47 | 60 | 72 | 81 | 84 | 82 | 76 | 63 | 47 | 34 |
| Rain (in) | 1.3 | 1.6 | 2.3 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 5.1 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 3.6 | 2.9 | 2.2 | 1.8 |
January is the driest month (1.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 5.1 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Maquoketa →
Questions about parks and trails in Maquoketa
How much of Maquoketa is conserved land?
1% of its land, against a typical 3% for an Iowa town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Maquoketa’s trails?
Prairie Creek Recreation Area and Horseshoe Pond County Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Maquoketa?
4.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 3.6 of off-road paths and 0.5 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Maquoketa?
2,156 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Maquoketa or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 62 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Maquoketa have?
Ahead of 37% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #128 of 140 in Iowa. 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 Maquoketa neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
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 →