Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
Park
141 acres3 mi of trail
Tallgrass Prairie TrailsPenn Trace
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: David Wilson · CC BY 2.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in West Branch
West Branch has 183 acres of parks, 70 for every 1,000 residents
4.2 miles of mapped trail cross West Branch, 1.6 per square mile of land. 95% of residents live within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Herbert Hoover National Historic Site (3 mi), Cubby Park (0.5 mi).
Ahead of 95% of U.S. towns · #3 of 140 in Iowa. What drives it
Conserved land
9%
143 acres · of 2.6 sq mi of land
Trails
4.2 mi
1.6 per sq mi of land
Park land
183 ac
70 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
95%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.1 mi
1.1 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is West Branch?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does West Branch have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, West Branch is ahead of 95% of U.S. towns, #3 of 140 in Iowa. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, conserved land lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of West Branch’s overall grade.
Conserved land9% of the land · typical IA town 3% · U.S. 4%B+Trails1.6 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (4 mi) · IA 0.3 · U.S. 0.4APark land70 acres of park per 1,000 residents (183 acres) · IA 19 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home95% 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 95%
LessMore
Iowa towns of 2,500+ (140)#3 of 140
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 Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, with 3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Cubby Park
Park
20 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Lions Field
Park
6 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 6 parks & preserves
Herbert Hoover National Historic Site141 acres · 3 mi of trail
DirectionsCubby Park20 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
Beranek Park5 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsVillage Green2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsLions Field6 acres
Wapsi Creek Park2 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
143 conserved acres
9% of West Branch’s land. Who manages West Branch’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
National Park Service136 ac
County7 ac
Historic or Cultural Area · 136 acLocal Recreation Area · 7 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Herbert Hoover National Historic Site Historic or Cultural Area | National Park Service | 136 | Restricted |
| Hoover Trail Local Recreation Area | County | 7 | Open |
Things to do
2 places to go in West Branch
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Picnic areas in West Branch
Boy Scout Picnic ShelterIn Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
DirectionsEast Picnic ShelterIn Herbert Hoover National Historic Site
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails
Named trails
Unpaved · 2.7 mi
Tallgrass Prairie Trails2.0 mi
Penn Trace0.1 mi
Biking & sports
1.1 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.1 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
5Baseball
4Beach volleyball
3Softball
1Soccer
1Football
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 places on the National Register, one a National Historic Landmark
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 4 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in West Branch: 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 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 29 | 34 | 48 | 61 | 72 | 81 | 84 | 82 | 76 | 63 | 48 | 35 |
| Rain (in) | 1.2 | 1.5 | 2.3 | 3.7 | 4.8 | 5.3 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 3.7 | 3.0 | 2.2 | 1.7 |
January is the driest month (1.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 5.3 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in West Branch →
Questions about parks and trails in West Branch
Where can I hike in West Branch?
The longest trail networks: Herbert Hoover National Historic Site, 3 miles; Cubby Park, 0.5 miles; Beranek Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of West Branch is conserved land?
9% 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 West Branch’s trails?
Herbert Hoover National Historic Site and Cubby Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in West Branch?
1.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.1 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near West Branch?
4,503 acres of parks and open public land lie inside West Branch or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 183 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does West Branch have?
Ahead of 95% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #3 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 West Branch 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 →