Heritage Park
Park
38 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Crete
Crete has 86 acres of parks, 10 for every 1,000 residents
93% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 2% of Crete’s land is conserved, about 114 acres. 2.8 miles of mapped trail cross Crete, 0.3 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 54% of U.S. towns · #464 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Conserved land
2%
114 acres · of 9.4 sq mi of land
Trails
2.8 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
86 ac
10 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
93%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.4 mi
1.4 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Crete?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Crete have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Crete is ahead of 54% of U.S. towns, #464 of 768 in Illinois. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Crete’s overall grade.
Conserved land2% of the land · typical IL town 4% · U.S. 4%C+Trails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (3 mi) · IL 0.3 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land10 acres of park per 1,000 residents (86 acres) · IL 15 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home93% 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 54%
LessMore
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 40%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ 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
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Crete Park
Managed by Crete Park District
6 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Swiss Valley Park
Park
3 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Lincolnshire Park
Park
2 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Crete Park6 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Crete Park District
Lincolnshire Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Heritage Park38 acres
Swiss Valley Park3 acres
Lions Park1 acres
Who protects it
114 conserved acres
2% of Crete’s land. Who manages Crete’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city68 ac
Regional agency45 ac
Local Park · 72 acUnknown · 41 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unnamed Property Unknown | Town or city | 41 | Open |
| Heritage Park Local Park | Regional agency | 39 | Open |
| Swiss Valley Park Local Park | Town or city | 16 | Open |
| Peter Halligan Park Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Crete Park Local Park | Regional agency | 6 | Open |
| Lincolnshire Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Garret Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Martin Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
4 places to go in Crete
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Crete
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Trails & water
1 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
1.4 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.4 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
10Tennis
10Baseball
3Soccer
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Joseph Ferris Perry HouseBuilding · listed 2022
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Crete: April 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) | 9.5 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 32 | 36 | 48 | 60 | 71 | 81 | 84 | 82 | 76 | 64 | 49 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 2.3 | 2.0 | 2.4 | 3.8 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.1 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 2.8 | 2.2 |
February is the driest month (2.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 4.6 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Crete →
Next door
Crete 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crete | 2% | 0.3 | 10 | 93% | B− |
| Steger | 1% | under 0.1 | 2 | 83% | C− |
| University Park | 10% | 1.0 | 25 | 95% | A |
| Crete Township | 3% | 0.2 | 9 | 57% | C+ |
| Bloom Township | 3% | 0.6 | 10 | 92% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Crete
Where can I hike in Crete?
The longest trail networks: Crete Park, 0.2 miles; Lincolnshire Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Crete 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 Crete’s trails?
Heritage Park and Crete Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Crete?
1.4 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.4 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Crete?
7,282 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Crete or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 128 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Crete have?
Ahead of 54% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #464 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 Crete 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 →