Mason Township has 749 acres of parks, 446 for every 1,000 residents
33% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 6.8 miles of mapped trail cross Mason Township, 0.2 per square mile of land. 3% of Mason Township’s land is conserved, about 749 acres.
Ahead of 55% of U.S. towns. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Mason Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Mason Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Mason Township is ahead of 55% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls 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.
749 conserved acres
3% of Mason Township’s land. Who manages Mason Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wildcat Hollow State Habitat Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 747 | Open |
| Edgewood Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Edgewood Ball Field Unknown | Town or city | 1 | Open |
1 named trail
August is the best month for walking in Mason 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) | 9.7 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 14.9 | 14.6 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 37 | 42 | 53 | 66 | 75 | 84 | 87 | 86 | 80 | 68 | 53 | 42 |
| Rain (in) | 3.0 | 2.4 | 3.4 | 5.0 | 4.9 | 4.8 | 4.2 | 3.4 | 3.1 | 3.5 | 3.8 | 2.8 |
February is the driest month (2.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 87 °F). 5.0 inches fall in April, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 87 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Mason Township →
Mason Township and its neighbors
Mason Township has the most mapped trails of the 4 towns around it. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mason Township | 3% | 0.2 | 446 | 33% | B− |
| West Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Larkinsburg Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Union 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 Mason Township
How much of Mason Township is conserved land?
3% 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.
Is there public land near Mason Township?
1,022 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Mason Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 750 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Mason Township have?
Ahead of 55% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Mason Township 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 →