Ross Ferraro Town Center
Park
17 acres1.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: bogdanstepniak · CC BY 3.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Carol Stream
7% of Carol Stream’s land is conserved, and virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Ross Ferraro Town Center (1.2 mi), Kent Park (0.7 mi), McCaslin Park (0.5 mi). 6.1 miles of mapped trail cross Carol Stream, 0.7 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 81% of U.S. towns · #183 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
384 acres · of 9.3 sq mi of land
Trails
6.1 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
497 ac
13 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
21 mi
0.2 mi lanes · 21 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
5
What kind of outdoors town is Carol Stream?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Carol Stream have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Carol Stream is ahead of 81% of U.S. towns, #183 of 768 in Illinois. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of residents near a park ranks highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Carol Stream’s overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical IL town 4% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · IL 0.3 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land13 acres of park per 1,000 residents (497 acres) · IL 15 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · IL 88% · U.S. 72%A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 81%
LessMore
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 76%
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 Ross Ferraro Town Center, with 1.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Kent Park
Managed by Carol Stream Park District
33 acres0.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
McCaslin Park
Managed by Carol Stream Park District
32 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Slepicka Park
Managed by Carol Stream Park District
5 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Armstrong Park
Managed by Carol Stream Park District
72 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Community Park
Managed by Carol Stream Park District
62 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Hampe Park
Managed by Carol Stream Park District
19 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Veterans Park
Managed by Carol Stream Park District
21 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
All 33 parks & preserves
Ross Ferraro Town Center17 acres · 1.2 mi of trail
DirectionsKent Park33 acres · 0.7 mi of trail · Carol Stream Park District
DirectionsMcCaslin Park32 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · Carol Stream Park District
DirectionsSlepicka Park5 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · Carol Stream Park District
Armstrong Park72 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Carol Stream Park District
DirectionsCommunity Park62 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Carol Stream Park District
DirectionsHampe Park19 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Carol Stream Park District
DirectionsVeterans Park21 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Carol Stream Park District
DirectionsBierman Park8 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Carol Stream Park District
Jirsa Park9 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Carol Stream Park District
Spring Valley Park5 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Carol Stream Park District
DirectionsStonebridge Park4 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Carol Stream Park District
Barbara O'Rahilly Volunteer Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Carol Stream Park District
DirectionsPapoose Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Carol Stream Park District
Red Hawk Park46 acres · Carol Stream Park District
DirectionsMitchell Lakes Park25 acres · Carol Stream Park District
DirectionsBlue Heron Park14 acres · Carol Stream Park District
Evergreen Lakes Park13 acres · Carol Stream Park District
Birchbark Sport Fields11 acres
Tedrahn Park9 acres · Carol Stream Park District
Horizon Park8 acres · Carol Stream Park District
DirectionsCambridge Park7 acres · Carol Stream Park District
Shining Waters Park5 acres · Carol Stream Park District
Walter Park5 acres · Carol Stream Park District
DirectionsJan Smith Park4 acres · Carol Stream Park District
Murray's Meadow3 acres · Carol Stream Park District
DirectionsFair Oaks Central Park3 acres · Carol Stream Park District
Sundance Park3 acres · Carol Stream Park District
DirectionsAmerican Legion2 acres · Wheaton Park District
DirectionsFair Oaks West Park2 acres · Carol Stream Park District
Charger Court Park1 acres · Carol Stream Park District
Carolshire Park1 acres · Carol Stream Park District
DirectionsMemorial Park1 acres · Carol Stream Park District
Who protects it
384 conserved acres
7% of Carol Stream’s land. Who manages Carol Stream’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Regional agency321 ac
Town or city93 ac
Local Park · 350 acUnknown · 43 acConservation Easement · 21 acLocal Conservation Area · 1 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Armstrong Park Local Park | Regional agency | 61 | Open |
| Red Hawk Park Unknown | Regional agency | 42 | Open |
| Heritage Lake Park Local Park | Regional agency | 34 | Open |
| Mccaslin Park Local Park | Regional agency | 31 | Open |
| Mitchell Lakes Park Local Park | Regional agency | 24 | Open |
| Hampe Park Local Park | Regional agency | 21 | Open |
| Veterans Park Local Park | Regional agency | 18 | Open |
| Shining Waters Park Local Park | Town or city | 17 | Open |
| Unnamed Property Unknown | Town or city | 16 | Open |
| Evergreen Lakes Park Local Park | Regional agency | 14 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
30 places to go in Carol Stream
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Carol Stream
Memorial Park PlaygroundIn Memorial Park
DirectionsPlus 26 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Carol Stream
Bark Park
DirectionsWaterfalls in Carol Stream
1 waterfall without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Disc golf in Carol Stream
Disc Golf Horizon ParkIn Horizon Park
DirectionsTrails & water
5 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
21 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.2 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
21 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
17Baseball
13Basketball
11Tennis
6Soccer
3Football
2Beach volleyball
1Cricket
1Volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Carol Stream: April, July 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) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 30 | 35 | 46 | 59 | 71 | 80 | 84 | 82 | 75 | 62 | 48 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 1.8 | 1.8 | 2.3 | 3.8 | 4.8 | 4.5 | 3.8 | 3.9 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 2.5 | 2.1 |
February is the driest month (1.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 4.8 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Carol Stream →
Next door
Carol Stream and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Wayne Township36 miBloomingdale Township19 miWheaton8.1 miCarol Stream6.1 miGlendale Heights4.4 miBloomingdale4.3 miWinfield1.8 miHanover Park1.1 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carol Stream | 7% | 0.7 | 13 | 99%+ | A− |
| Glendale Heights | 6% | 0.8 | 6 | 99%+ | A− |
| Bloomingdale Township | 9% | 0.5 | 10 | 98% | A− |
| Winfield | 17% | 0.6 | 16 | 99%+ | A |
| Wayne Township | 28% | 1.0 | 66 | 98% | A+ |
| Hanover Park | 6% | 0.2 | 8 | 99%+ | B |
| Wheaton | 7% | 0.7 | 10 | 99%+ | A− |
| Bloomingdale | 7% | 0.6 | 12 | 98% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Carol Stream
Where can I hike in Carol Stream?
The longest trail networks: Ross Ferraro Town Center, 1.2 miles; Kent Park, 0.7 miles; McCaslin Park, 0.5 miles; Slepicka Park, 0.5 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Carol Stream 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 Carol Stream’s trails?
Ross Ferraro Town Center and Kent Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Carol Stream?
21 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.2 of painted or protected lanes and 21 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Carol Stream?
23,697 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Carol Stream or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 508 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Carol Stream have?
Ahead of 81% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #183 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 Carol Stream 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 →