Kickapoo State Recreation Area
Managed by Illinois Department of Natural Resources
718 acres6 mi of trail
Clear Lake TrailWhite Oak TrailX-Country TrailNorth Riverview Trail+1
No dogs
Directionsto the parking lot
BOutdoors
Outdoors in Catlin Township
Catlin Township has 680 acres of parks, 222 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Kickapoo State Recreation Area (6 mi). 18 miles of mapped trail cross Catlin Township, 0.4 per square mile of land. 2% of Catlin Township’s land is conserved, about 779 acres.
Ahead of 64% of U.S. towns · #359 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Conserved land
2%
779 acres · of 49.8 sq mi of land
Trails
18 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
680 ac
222 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
56%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.0 mi
1.0 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
8
1 beach · 1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Catlin Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Catlin Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Catlin Township is ahead of 64% of U.S. towns, #359 of 768 in Illinois. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.
B
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Catlin Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land2% of the land · typical IL town 4% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (18 mi) · IL 0.3 · U.S. 0.4BPark land222 acres of park per 1,000 residents (680 acres) · IL 15 · U.S. 13AParks close to home56% 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 64%
LessMore
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 53%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B− to B+. 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 Kickapoo State Recreation Area, with 6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
779 conserved acres
2% of Catlin Township’s land. Who manages Catlin Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources711 ac
Private owners66 ac
State conservation25 ac
Town or city2 ac
State Recreation Area · 711 acPrivate Conservation · 66 acConservation Easement · 25 acLocal Park · 2 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kickapoo State Recreation Area State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 711 | Open |
| Salt Fork Vermilion River Private Conservation | Private owners | 66 | Restricted |
| Catlin Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
Things to do
12 places to go in Catlin Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Catlin Township
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Catlin Township
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Catlin Township
Clear LakeIn Kickapoo State Recreation Area
DirectionsScenic views in Catlin Township
Peck's PointIn Kickapoo State Recreation Area
DirectionsCampgrounds in Catlin Township
ErieIn Kickapoo State Recreation Area
DirectionsPlus 3 campgrounds without a name on the map.
Disc golf in Catlin Township
Kickapoo Disc GolfIn Kickapoo State Recreation Area
DirectionsTrails & water
6 named trails and 8 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 6.2 mi
Clear Lake Trail2.0 mi
White Oak Trail1.0 mi
X-Country Trail1.0 mi
Mouth of Jordan Reserve trails0.7 mi
North Riverview Trail0.5 mi
Mouse Mountain Trail0.3 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
1.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.0 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
4Softball
1Baseball
1Football
1Soccer
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
August is the best month for walking in Catlin 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) | 9.6 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.0 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 35 | 39 | 51 | 64 | 74 | 83 | 85 | 84 | 79 | 66 | 51 | 39 |
| Rain (in) | 2.4 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 4.1 | 4.5 | 4.8 | 4.2 | 3.4 | 3.1 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 2.5 |
February is the driest month (2.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 4.8 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Catlin Township →
Next door
Catlin Township and its neighbors
Catlin Township has the second most mapped trails of the 8 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Blount Township31 miCatlin Township18 miOakwood Township12 miDanville Township11 miVance Township5.1 miCarroll Township5.0 miJamaica Township3.3 miGeorgetown Township1.6 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Catlin Township | 2% | 0.4 | 222 | 56% | B |
| Oakwood Township | 5% | 0.2 | 565 | 59% | B+ |
| Danville Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Georgetown Township | 1% | 0.1 | 5 | 61% | C− |
| Vance Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Jamaica Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Blount Township | 11% | 0.6 | 1,117 | 43% | A− |
| Carroll Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Catlin Township
Where can I hike in Catlin Township?
The longest trail networks: Kickapoo State Recreation Area, 6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Catlin Township is conserved land?
2% 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 Catlin Township’s trails?
Kickapoo State Recreation Area and Catlin Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Catlin Township?
1.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.0 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Catlin Township?
12,100 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Catlin Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 680 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Catlin Township have?
Ahead of 64% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #359 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 Catlin 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 →