Photo: IvoShandor · CC BY 2.5Lena has 33 acres of parks, 12 for every 1,000 residents
86% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 0.1 miles of mapped trail cross Lena. 4% of Lena’s land is conserved, about 60 acres.
Ahead of 46% of U.S. towns · #537 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Lena?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Lena have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Lena is ahead of 46% of U.S. towns, #537 of 768 in Illinois. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
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
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Dodds Park
Polhill Park
60 conserved acres
4% of Lena’s land. Who manages Lena’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 29 | Open |
| Lena Community Park District Local Park | Regional agency | 21 | Open |
| Dodds Park Local Park | Regional agency | 8 | Open |
| Jaycees Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
3 places to go in Lena
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
0.0 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.
2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
The best walking months in Lena: 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) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 28 | 33 | 46 | 59 | 71 | 80 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 62 | 46 | 33 |
| Rain (in) | 1.5 | 1.7 | 2.3 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 5.7 | 4.6 | 4.0 | 3.9 | 3.0 | 2.4 | 1.9 |
January is the driest month (1.5 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 5.7 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Lena →
Lena 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lena | 4% | under 0.1 | 12 | 86% | B− |
| Erin Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Kent 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 Lena
How much of Lena is conserved land?
4% 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 Lena’s trails?
Lions Park and Dodds Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Lena?
1,409 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Lena or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 33 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Lena have?
Ahead of 46% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #537 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 Lena 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 →