Coral Woods Conservation Area
Managed by McHenry County Conservation District
108 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Andy McMurray · CC BY 2.5A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Marengo
97% of residents live within a half mile of a park in Marengo
276 acres are parks and preserves, 39 per 1,000 residents. 5% of Marengo’s land is conserved, about 279 acres. 2.1 miles of mapped trail cross Marengo, 0.2 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 76% of U.S. towns · #247 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
279 acres · of 8.9 sq mi of land
Trails
2.1 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
276 ac
39 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
97%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.5 mi
1.5 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Marengo?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Marengo have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Marengo is ahead of 76% of U.S. towns, #247 of 768 in Illinois. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Marengo’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical IL town 4% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (2 mi) · IL 0.3 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land39 acres of park per 1,000 residents (276 acres) · IL 15 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home97% 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 76%
LessMore
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 68%
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
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Sponable Park
Park
4 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
279 conserved acres
5% of Marengo’s land. Who manages Marengo’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Regional agency256 ac
Private owners26 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits4 ac
Local Park · 135 acPrivate Conservation · 126 acLocal Resource Management Area · 9 acLocal Conservation Area · 8 acLocal Recreation Area · 4 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 3 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indian Oaks Park Local Park | Regional agency | 132 | Open |
| Coral Woods Local Resource Management Area | Regional agency | 110 | Open |
| HUM Railroad Prairie West Private Conservation | Private owners | 26 | Restricted |
| Coral Woods 12 Local Conservation Area | Regional agency | 7 | Open |
| Marengo Little League Local Recreation Area | Land trusts & nonprofits | 4 | Open |
| Calvin Spencer Park Local Park | Regional agency | 2 | Open |
| Coral Woods 10 Local Conservation Area | Regional agency | 1 | Open |
| Renwick Park Local Park | Regional agency | 1 | Open |
| Ridge Park Local Park | Regional agency | 1 | Open |
Things to do
4 places to go in Marengo
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Marengo
Above Ground Pool
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Marengo
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Marengo
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Biking & sports
1.5 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.5 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
14Tennis
13Baseball
5Soccer
2Basketball
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
September is the best month for walking in Marengo
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 | 15.2 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 29 | 33 | 46 | 59 | 70 | 80 | 83 | 81 | 75 | 62 | 47 | 34 |
| Rain (in) | 1.7 | 1.7 | 2.2 | 3.8 | 4.5 | 4.9 | 4.0 | 3.9 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 2.4 | 1.9 |
February is the driest month (1.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.9 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Marengo →
Questions about parks and trails in Marengo
How much of Marengo is conserved land?
5% 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 Marengo’s trails?
Coral Woods Conservation Area and Indian Oaks Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Marengo?
1.5 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.5 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Marengo?
9,427 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Marengo or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 276 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Marengo have?
Ahead of 76% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #247 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 Marengo 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 →