Photo: Boscophotos · CC BY-SA 3.0Mount Pleasant has 493 acres of parks, 55 for every 1,000 residents
93% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 7% of Mount Pleasant’s land is conserved, about 395 acres. 2.6 miles of mapped trail cross Mount Pleasant, 0.3 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns · #30 of 140 in Iowa. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Mount Pleasant?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Mount Pleasant have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Mount Pleasant is ahead of 80% of U.S. towns, #30 of 140 in Iowa. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; park acres per resident rank highest, trail miles lowest.
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 Central Park, with 0.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
All 9 parks & preserves
395 conserved acres
7% of Mount Pleasant’s land. Who manages Mount Pleasant’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Big Creek County Park Local Park | County | 189 | Open |
| East Lake Park Local Park | Town or city | 115 | Open |
| Saunders Park Local Park | Town or city | 29 | Open |
| Mcmillan Park Local Park | Town or city | 28 | Open |
| Prairie View Park Local Park | Town or city | 13 | Open |
| Little League Ball Park Local Recreation Area | Land trusts & nonprofits | 10 | Open |
| Crane Pond Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Central Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Sheaffer Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| United Thru Playground Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 1 | Open |
9 places to go in Mount Pleasant
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
9 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
5.9 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.
25 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
13 more on the History page.
September is the best month for walking in Mount Pleasant
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) | 9.5 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.1 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 31 | 36 | 49 | 62 | 73 | 82 | 85 | 83 | 77 | 64 | 49 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 1.4 | 1.6 | 2.4 | 3.8 | 5.2 | 5.2 | 4.1 | 4.0 | 3.5 | 2.9 | 2.2 | 1.8 |
January is the driest month (1.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 5.2 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Mount Pleasant →
Questions about parks and trails in Mount Pleasant
Where can I hike in Mount Pleasant?
The longest trail networks: Central Park, 0.3 miles; McMillan Park, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Mount Pleasant is conserved land?
7% 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 Mount Pleasant’s trails?
Central Park and East Lake Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Mount Pleasant?
5.9 miles of bike routes are on the map: 5.9 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Mount Pleasant?
1,713 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Mount Pleasant or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 493 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Mount Pleasant have?
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #30 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 Mount Pleasant 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 →