Wilson Park
Park
6 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Jared Winkler · CC BY-SA 4.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Red Oak
96% of residents live within a half mile of a park in Red Oak
2.8 miles of mapped trail cross Red Oak, 0.7 per square mile of land. 2% of Red Oak’s land is conserved, about 58 acres. 61 acres are parks and preserves, 11 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 68% of U.S. towns · #66 of 140 in Iowa. What drives it
Conserved land
2%
58 acres · of 3.9 sq mi of land
Trails
2.8 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
61 ac
11 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
96%
of residents within ½ mile
What kind of outdoors town is Red Oak?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Red Oak have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Red Oak is ahead of 68% of U.S. towns, #66 of 140 in Iowa. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Red Oak’s overall grade.
Conserved land2% of the land · typical IA town 3% · U.S. 4%C+Trails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (3 mi) · IA 0.3 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land11 acres of park per 1,000 residents (61 acres) · IA 19 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home96% of residents within a half mile of a park · IA 91% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 68%
LessMore
Iowa towns of 2,500+ (140)Ahead of 53%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B to A−. 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
The longest trail network is Wilson Park, with 0.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Kelly Park
Park
11 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 7 parks & preserves
Wilson Park6 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
Fountain Square Park2 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsCollege Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Legion Park21 acres
DirectionsChautauqua Park12 acres
DirectionsKelly Park11 acres
Dutton Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
58 conserved acres
2% of Red Oak’s land. Who manages Red Oak’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city58 ac
Local Park · 58 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Legion Park Local Park | Town or city | 22 | Open |
| Kelly Park Local Park | Town or city | 13 | Open |
| Chatauqua Park Local Park | Town or city | 12 | Open |
| Wilson Park Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Duton Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| College Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Fountain Square Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
3 places to go in Red Oak
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Red Oak
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
9Tennis
7Baseball
1Skate park
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →10 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Chautauqua ParkBuilding · listed 1972
About itMontgomery County CourthouseBuilding · listed 1981
About itAlfred Hebard HouseBuilding · listed 1984
About itMontgomery County JailBuilding · listed 1992
About itEdmund B. Osborne HouseBuilding · listed 1997
About itChicago, Burlington Northern and Quincy DepotBuilding · listed 1999
About itRed Oak Firehouse and City JailBuilding · listed 2006
About itMurphy, Thos. D. Co. Factory And Power PlantBuilding · listed 2008
About itRed Oak Downtown Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2016
About itRed Oak High SchoolBuilding · listed 2020
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Red Oak: April and September
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) | 33 | 38 | 51 | 63 | 73 | 82 | 86 | 84 | 78 | 65 | 50 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 0.8 | 1.1 | 2.0 | 3.5 | 5.4 | 5.3 | 4.2 | 4.0 | 3.4 | 2.9 | 1.7 | 1.3 |
January is the driest month (0.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 86 °F). 5.4 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Red Oak →
Questions about parks and trails in Red Oak
Where can I hike in Red Oak?
The longest trail networks: Wilson Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Red Oak is conserved land?
2% 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 Red Oak’s trails?
Wilson Park and Legion Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Red Oak?
1,736 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Red Oak or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 61 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Red Oak have?
Ahead of 68% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #66 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 Red Oak 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 →