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Coffee and Cafe - Belvidere, IL 'City of Murals' - panoramioPhoto: RSchulenburg · CC BY-SA 3.0
A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Belvidere

Belvidere has 23 miles of mapped trails, 1.8 for every square mile of land

19% of Belvidere’s land is conserved, about 1,538 acres. 1,159 acres are parks and preserves, 47 per 1,000 residents. 92% of residents live within a half mile of a park.

Ahead of 96% of U.S. towns · #20 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it

Conserved land
19%
1,538 acres · of 12.8 sq mi of land
Trails
23 mi
1.8 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,159 ac
47 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
92%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
6.1 mi
6.1 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
1 boat launch

What kind of outdoors town is Belvidere?

Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.

A trail town1.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 92% of U.S. towns.Land that stays wild19% of the land is conserved; a typical Illinois town, 4%.Parks close to home92% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Outdoors grade

How much outdoors does Belvidere have?

On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Belvidere is ahead of 96% of U.S. towns, #20 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 Belvidere’s overall grade.
Conserved land19% of the land · typical IL town 4% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (23 mi) · IL 0.3 · U.S. 0.4APark land47 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,159 acres) · IL 15 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home92% of residents within a half mile of a park · IL 88% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 96%
LessMore
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 98%
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.

12345678
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 LIB Conservation Area, with 3.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.

LIB Conservation Area

Managed by Boone County Conservation District
179 acres3.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot

Prairie Fields Park

Park
91 acres2.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot

Distillery Road Conservation Unit

Managed by Boone County Conservation District
207 acres2.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot

Ballard Farm Conservation Area

Managed by Boone County Conservation District
171 acres1.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet

Belvidere Park

Park
114 acres1.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot

Spencer Conservation Unit

Managed by Boone County Conservation District
243 acres1.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot

Anderson Bend/Woods Conservation Unit

Managed by Boone County Conservation District
145 acres1.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet

Glenn Green Park

Nature preserve
68 acres0.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 16 parks & preserves
LIB Conservation Area179 acres · 3.3 mi of trail · Boone County Conservation District
Directions
Prairie Fields Park91 acres · 2.7 mi of trail
Directions
Distillery Road Conservation Unit207 acres · 2.4 mi of trail · Boone County Conservation District
Directions
Ballard Farm Conservation Area171 acres · 1.9 mi of trail · Boone County Conservation District
Belvidere Park114 acres · 1.7 mi of trail
Directions
Spencer Conservation Unit243 acres · 1.6 mi of trail · Boone County Conservation District
Directions
Anderson Bend/Woods Conservation Unit145 acres · 1.6 mi of trail · Boone County Conservation District
Glenn Green Park68 acres · 0.7 mi of trail
The Preserve Family Park3 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
Ipson Road Conservation Area146 acres · Boone County Conservation District
Doty Park10 acres
Directions
Winteroath Park6 acres
Beaver Bluff Conservation Area3 acres
Glen H. Green Open Space3 acres
Bob's Park1 acres
Directions
General Mills Park1 acres
Who protects it

1,538 conserved acres

19% of Belvidere’s land. Who manages Belvidere’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.

Regional agency963 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits406 ac
County347 ac
Town or city218 ac
Private owners9 ac
Local Conservation Area · 963 acLocal Park · 563 acConservation Easement · 406 acPrivate Conservation · 9 acUnknown · 1 ac
Good to know

Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 1 acre is a conservation easement, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.

The biggest protected parcels
Parcel (PAD-US)Managed byAcresPublic access
Spencer Park
Local Park
County347Open
Distillery Road Conservation Area
Local Conservation Area
Regional agency237Open
Shaw Farm Conservation Area
Local Conservation Area
Regional agency220Open
Ipsen Road Conservation Area
Local Conservation Area
Regional agency186Open
LIB Conservation Area
Local Conservation Area
Regional agency175Open
Anderson Bend Conservation Area
Local Conservation Area
Regional agency146Open
Prairie Fields
Local Park
Town or city94Open
Belvidere Municipal Park
Local Park
Town or city69Open
Harkless Park
Local Park
Town or city35Open
Doty Park
Local Park
Town or city11Open

4 smaller protected places aren’t shown.

Things to do

19 places to go in Belvidere

Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.

Playgrounds in Belvidere
Bloom PlaygroundIn Belvidere Park
Directions
Tot Lot ParkIn Tot Lot Park
Directions

Plus 15 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.

Trails & water

1 named trail and 2 lakes & rivers

Named trails
Open to bikes · 2.1 miUnpaved · 11.8 mi
Walking0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Farmington Fields Phase 1 Retention PoundpondKishwaukee River North Branch
Biking & sports

6.1 miles of bike routes

Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.

6.1 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
15Tennis
7Soccer
6Pickleball
5Basketball
4Baseball
3Softball
3Football

Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.

History along the way

6 places on the National Register

The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 5 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.

History →
Pettit Memorial ChapelBuilding · listed 1978
About it
Belvidere High SchoolBuilding · listed 1997
About it
United States Post Office-BelvidereBuilding · listed 2000
About it
Lampert-Wildflower HouseBuilding · listed 2005
About it
Belvidere North State Street Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2012
About it
Belvidere South State Street Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2012
About it
When to get out

September is the best month for walking in Belvidere

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.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)9.410.511.813.314.615.315.013.912.411.09.79.1
High (°F)293446597180848275624734
Rain (in)1.61.62.23.74.45.03.94.03.52.82.31.9

February is the driest month (1.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 5.0 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Belvidere →

Next door

Belvidere and its neighbors

Belvidere has the most mapped trails of the 2 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.

Belvidere23 miCherry Valley17 mi
TownConserved
of land		Trail mi
per sq mi		Park acres
per 1,000		Near a park
½ mile		Outdoors
Belvidere19%1.84792%A+
Cherry Valley38%2.152461%A+

The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.

Questions about parks and trails in Belvidere

Where can I hike in Belvidere?

The longest trail networks: LIB Conservation Area, 3.3 miles; Prairie Fields Park, 2.7 miles; Distillery Road Conservation Unit, 2.4 miles; Ballard Farm Conservation Area, 1.9 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.

How much of Belvidere is conserved land?

19% 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 Belvidere’s trails?

LIB Conservation Area and Prairie Fields Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.

Where can I bike in Belvidere?

6.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 6.1 of off-road paths.

Is there public land near Belvidere?

12,611 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Belvidere or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,160 of them inside the city line.

How much outdoors does Belvidere have?

Ahead of 96% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #20 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 Belvidere neighbors.

Town Square →
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 →