Photo: jrmyers · CC BY-SA 3.017% of Charleston’s land is conserved: 981 acres
92% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 336 acres are parks and preserves, 20 per 1,000 residents. 3.3 miles of mapped trail cross Charleston, 0.4 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 82% of U.S. towns · #175 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Charleston?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Charleston have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Charleston is ahead of 82% of U.S. towns, #175 of 768 in Illinois. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; conserved land ranks highest, trail miles lowest.
Water is 7% of Charleston’s area (1 of 10 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 16%.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Sister City Park, with 0.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Coles County Fairgrounds
Lakeview Park
Reasor park
All 12 parks & preserves
981 conserved acres
17% of Charleston’s land. Water is left out: Charleston has 9.1 square miles of land and 0.7 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Charleston’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 36 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Charleston Unknown | Town or city | 498 | Open |
| Woodyard Conservation Area Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 248 | Open |
| Lakeview Park Local Park | Town or city | 61 | Open |
| Bike Trail Unknown | Town or city | 38 | Open |
| Reasor Park Local Park | Town or city | 17 | Open |
| Sister City Park Local Park | Town or city | 17 | Open |
| Neco Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 14 | Open |
| North Park Local Park | Town or city | 13 | Open |
| Baker Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 13 | Open |
| Kiwanis Park Local Park | Town or city | 10 | Open |
4 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
19 places to go in Charleston
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
16 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
3 boat launches without a name on the map.
1 named trail and 3 lakes & rivers
9.7 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
7 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
August is the best month for walking in Charleston
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) | 9.7 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 14.9 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 36 | 41 | 52 | 65 | 75 | 84 | 86 | 85 | 79 | 67 | 52 | 40 |
| Rain (in) | 2.6 | 2.1 | 3.0 | 4.7 | 4.4 | 5.0 | 4.2 | 2.9 | 3.1 | 3.6 | 3.5 | 2.5 |
February is the driest month (2.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 86 °F). 5.0 inches fall in June, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 86 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Charleston →
Charleston and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charleston | 17% | 0.4 | 20 | 92% | A− |
| Charleston Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Hutton Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Mattoon | 2% | 0.4 | 11 | 93% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Charleston
Where can I hike in Charleston?
The longest trail networks: Sister City Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Charleston is conserved land?
17% 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 Charleston’s trails?
Sister City Park and Coles County Fairgrounds don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Charleston?
9.7 miles of bike routes are on the map: 9.7 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Charleston?
2,242 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Charleston or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 870 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Charleston have?
Ahead of 82% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #175 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 Charleston neighbors.
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 →