Babcock Woods
Nature preserve
76 acres1.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Billwhittaker · CC BY-SA 3.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Waverly
96% of residents live within a half mile of a park in Waverly
11 miles of mapped trail cross Waverly, 1.0 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Babcock Woods (1.9 mi). 362 acres are parks and preserves, 34 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 84% of U.S. towns · #24 of 140 in Iowa. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
235 acres · of 11.3 sq mi of land
Trails
11 mi
1.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
362 ac
34 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
96%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
8.4 mi
8.4 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
2 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Waverly?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Waverly have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Waverly is ahead of 84% of U.S. towns, #24 of 140 in Iowa. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of residents near a park ranks highest, conserved land lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Waverly’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical IA town 3% · U.S. 4%B−Trails1.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (11 mi) · IA 0.3 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land34 acres of park per 1,000 residents (362 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 84%
LessMore
Iowa towns of 2,500+ (140)Ahead of 83%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A− 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 Babcock Woods, with 1.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Cedar Hill Park
Managed by City of Waverly
6 acres0.3 mi of trail
Cedar Hill Nature Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Prairie Park
Park
42 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 21 parks & preserves
Babcock Woods76 acres · 1.9 mi of trail
DirectionsCedar Hill Park6 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · City of Waverly
DirectionsEastgate Park2 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Brookwood Park29 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsPrairie Park42 acres
Three Rivers Park40 acres
DirectionsMemorial Park23 acres
DirectionsCedar River Park21 acres
DirectionsRugby Field19 acres
DirectionsRed Cedar Park14 acres
DirectionsSouth Riverside Park13 acres
Crestwood Park6 acres
Kohlmann Park6 acres
DirectionsRidgewood Park5 acres
Adams Parkway3 acres
Rolling Meadow Park2 acres
Hickory Heights Park2 acres
Pelikan Park1 acres
DirectionsSecond Home Park1 acres
Gateway Park1 acres
Knott's Playlot1 acres
Who protects it
235 conserved acres
3% of Waverly’s land. Who manages Waverly’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city154 ac
County79 ac
Local Park · 145 acLocal Conservation Area · 79 acLocal Recreation Area · 9 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Babcock Woods Local Conservation Area | County | 79 | Open |
| Three Rivers Park Local Park | Town or city | 41 | Open |
| Brookwood Park Local Park | Town or city | 28 | Open |
| Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 15 | Open |
| Red Cedar Park Local Park | Town or city | 14 | Open |
| South Riverside Park Local Park | Town or city | 10 | Open |
| Rugby Field Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| Cedar Hill Park Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Ridgewood Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Kohlmann Park Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
25 places to go in Waverly
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Waverly
Waverly Municipal PoolIn Memorial Park
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Waverly
Kid's Kingdom Memorial Park PlaygroundIn Memorial Park
DirectionsPlus 17 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Waverly
Waverly Dog Park
DirectionsBoat launches in Waverly
2 boat launches without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Waverly
1 campground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Disc golf in Waverly
Brookwood Disc Golf CourseCity of Waverly
DirectionsCommunity gardens in Waverly
1 community garden without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 2.0 mi
Cedar Hill Nature Trail0.3 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
8.4 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
8.4 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
17Baseball
14Tennis
11Basketball
11Tracks
5Football
3Soccer
2Volleyball
1Skate park
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).
Waverly HouseBuilding · listed 1976
About itWartburg Teachers' SeminaryBuilding · listed 1978
About itBremer County Court HouseBuilding · listed 2003
About itOld Fourth Ward Southeast Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2013
About itWaverly East Bremer Avenue Commercial Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2014
About itHarmon and LeValley Northwest Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2014
About itSturdevant Southwest Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2016
About itThird Street Bridge (FHWA No. 012250)Structure · listed 2018
About itWartburg College Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2022
About itWaverly Municipal Hydroelectric PowerhouseDistrict · listed 2026
About itWhen to get out
September is the best month for walking in Waverly
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 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 26 | 30 | 44 | 59 | 71 | 80 | 83 | 81 | 75 | 61 | 45 | 31 |
| Rain (in) | 1.0 | 1.2 | 2.0 | 3.9 | 4.8 | 5.8 | 4.5 | 4.1 | 3.6 | 2.7 | 1.9 | 1.4 |
January is the driest month (1.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 5.8 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Waverly →
Questions about parks and trails in Waverly
Where can I hike in Waverly?
The longest trail networks: Babcock Woods, 1.9 miles; Cedar Hill Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Waverly is conserved land?
3% 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 Waverly’s trails?
Babcock Woods and Cedar Hill Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Waverly?
8.4 miles of bike routes are on the map: 8.4 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Waverly?
5,365 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Waverly or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 362 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Waverly have?
Ahead of 84% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #24 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 Waverly 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 →