Spring Lake Forest Preserve
Managed by Forest Preserve District of Cook County
1,987 acres32.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailhead
Photo: Ron Cogswell · CC BY 2.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Barrington Township
Barrington Township has 73 miles of mapped trails, 2.1 for every square mile of land
1,329 acres are parks and preserves, 82 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: Spring Lake Forest Preserve (32.3 mi), Spring Lake Preserve (20.2 mi), Crabtree Preserve (4.6 mi). 7% of Barrington Township’s land is conserved, about 1,459 acres.
Ahead of 91% of U.S. towns · #76 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
1,459 acres · of 34.9 sq mi of land
Trails
73 mi
2.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,329 ac
82 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
79%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
7.4 mi
1.0 mi lanes · 6.0 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
16
1 beach
What kind of outdoors town is Barrington Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Barrington Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Barrington Township is ahead of 91% of U.S. towns, #76 of 768 in Illinois. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Barrington Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical IL town 4% · U.S. 4%B+Trails2.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (73 mi) · IL 0.3 · U.S. 0.4APark land82 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,329 acres) · IL 15 · U.S. 13AParks close to home79% of residents within a half mile of a park · IL 88% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 91%
LessMore
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 90%
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 Spring Lake Forest Preserve, with 32.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Spring Lake Preserve
Managed by Forest Preserve District of Cook County
1,914 acres20.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Beverly Lake Parking LotWebsite ↗
Crabtree Preserve
Managed by Forest Preserve District of Cook County
1,652 acres4.6 mi of trail
Bur Edge TrailPhantom Prairie TrailGiant's Hollow Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailhead
Stillman Nature Center
Nature preserve
79 acres3.2 mi of trail
South Loop (0.9 mi)Owl Loop (0.4 mi)Lakeside (0.5mi)Prairie+1
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Spring Lake Nature Preserve
Managed by Forest Preserve District of Cook County
565 acres2.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Village of Hoffman Estates Village Green
Park
13 acres0.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Ron Beese Park
Managed by Barrington Park District
41 acres0.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 24 parks & preserves
Spring Lake Forest Preserve1,987 acres · 32.3 mi of trail · Forest Preserve District of Cook County
DirectionsSpring Lake Preserve1,914 acres · 20.2 mi of trail · Forest Preserve District of Cook County
DirectionsCrabtree Preserve1,652 acres · 4.6 mi of trail · Forest Preserve District of Cook County
DirectionsStillman Nature Center79 acres · 3.2 mi of trail
Spring Lake Nature Preserve565 acres · 2.9 mi of trail · Forest Preserve District of Cook County
Village of Hoffman Estates Village Green13 acres · 0.9 mi of trail
DirectionsRon Beese Park41 acres · 0.8 mi of trail · Barrington Park District
Countryside Park21 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsNew Community Park34 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsBaker's Lake Nature Preserve110 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Forest Preserve District of Cook County
Seminole Park15 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsWhispering Lake Park5 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Marvin Dunteman Park5 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsHorizon Farm416 acres
DirectionsBaker's Lake111 acres · Forest Preserve District of Cook County
Barrington Club Park18 acres
DirectionsSouth Barrington Conservancy11 acres
DirectionsCipri Park5 acres
Lincoln Park5 acres
Pebble Park4 acres
Meadow Park3 acres
DirectionsDouglas Park3 acres
Huntington Park1 acres
Memorial Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
1,459 conserved acres
7% of Barrington Township’s land. Who manages Barrington Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State conservation656 ac
Regional agency653 ac
Joint401 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits66 ac
Town or city59 ac
State natural resources42 ac
Private owners11 ac
Conservation Easement · 1,081 acUnknown · 468 acLocal Park · 242 acState Conservation Area · 68 acLocal Conservation Area · 19 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 651 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Horizon Farms Unknown | Regional agency | 415 | Open |
| Ron Beese Park Local Park | Regional agency | 83 | Open |
| Stillman Park Local Park | Regional agency | 79 | Open |
| Palatine Road Marsh State Natural Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 42 | Open |
| Community Park Local Park | Regional agency | 26 | Open |
| Spring-Lake Greenway Penny Rd. Local Conservation Area | Regional agency | 19 | Open |
| Hawley Woods Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 17 | Open |
| Barrington Hills Park District Riding Center Unknown | Town or city | 15 | Open |
| Seminole Park Local Park | Town or city | 15 | Open |
| Far Field Preserve State Conservation Area | Land trusts & nonprofits | 12 | Closed |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
25 places to go in Barrington Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Barrington Township
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Public pools in Barrington Township
South Barrington Club Swimming PoolFee
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Barrington Township
Oaks of Barrington Playground
DirectionsPlus 19 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Fishing spots in Barrington Township
Beverly LakeIn Spring Lake Preserve
DirectionsPenny Road PondIn Spring Lake Preserve
DirectionsScenic views in Barrington Township
1 scenic view without a name on the map.
Trails & water
10 named trails and 16 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.0 miHorses · 4.0 miUnpaved · 50.7 mi
Bur Edge Trail1.5 mi
Phantom Prairie Trail1.4 mi
South Loop (0.9 mi)0.9 mi
R R 40.6 mi
Owl Loop (0.4 mi)0.4 mi
Lakeside (0.5mi)0.4 mi
Prairie0.4 mi
Rabbit Hill (0.4 mi)0.4 mi
Giant's Hollow Trail0.2 mi
Goldfinch Trail (0.1 mi)0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
7.4 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.0 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
6.0 mi
off-road bike paths
0.3 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
44Tennis
6Baseball
6Soccer
6Basketball
5Beach volleyball
3Lacrosse
2Football
1Golf
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
September is the best month for walking in Barrington Township
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 | 15.2 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 30 | 34 | 46 | 59 | 70 | 80 | 83 | 81 | 75 | 62 | 47 | 35 |
| Rain (in) | 1.8 | 1.8 | 2.3 | 3.8 | 4.7 | 4.6 | 3.9 | 4.0 | 3.5 | 3.3 | 2.5 | 2.1 |
February is the driest month (1.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.7 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Barrington Township →
Next door
Barrington Township and its neighbors
Barrington Township has the most mapped trails of the 8 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Barrington Township73 miDundee Township55 miPalatine Township52 miHoffman Estates35 miHanover Township30 miSouth Barrington6.1 miBarrington1.8 miInverness1.5 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barrington Township | 7% | 2.1 | 82 | 79% | A |
| Palatine Township | 10% | 1.4 | 8 | 97% | A− |
| Hanover Township | 6% | 0.9 | 11 | 99% | A− |
| Hoffman Estates | 6% | 1.7 | 18 | 99%+ | A |
| Dundee Township | 21% | 1.6 | 56 | 98% | A+ |
| South Barrington | 3% | 0.8 | 31 | 79% | B+ |
| Inverness | 5% | 0.2 | 13 | 80% | B |
| Barrington | 10% | 0.4 | 14 | 90% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Barrington Township
Where can I hike in Barrington Township?
The longest trail networks: Spring Lake Forest Preserve, 32.3 miles; Spring Lake Preserve, 20.2 miles; Crabtree Preserve, 4.6 miles; Stillman Nature Center, 3.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Barrington Township is conserved land?
7% of its land, against a typical 4% for an Illinois town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Barrington Township’s trails?
Spring Lake Forest Preserve and Spring Lake Preserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Barrington Township?
7.4 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.0 of painted or protected lanes, 6.0 of off-road paths and 0.3 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Barrington Township?
30,980 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Barrington Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,367 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Barrington Township have?
Ahead of 91% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #76 of 768 in Illinois. 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 Barrington Township 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 →