Clearwater Park
Managed by Mount Prospect Park District
22 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Indy beetle · CC BY-SA 4.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Mount Prospect
8% of Mount Prospect’s land is conserved, and 97% of residents live within a half mile of a park
The biggest trail networks: Clearwater Park (0.5 mi). 8% of Mount Prospect’s land is conserved, about 522 acres. 485 acres are parks and preserves, 8.7 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 68% of U.S. towns · #329 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Conserved land
8%
522 acres · of 10.7 sq mi of land
Trails
3.0 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
485 ac
8.7 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
97%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
21 mi
2.0 mi lanes · 12 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Mount Prospect?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Mount Prospect have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Mount Prospect is ahead of 68% of U.S. towns, #329 of 768 in Illinois. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Mount Prospect’s overall grade.
Conserved land8% of the land · typical IL town 4% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (3 mi) · IL 0.3 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land8.7 acres of park per 1,000 residents (485 acres) · IL 15 · U.S. 13C+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 68%
LessMore
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 57%
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
The longest trail network is Clearwater Park, with 0.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Hill Street Nature Center
Managed by Mount Prospect Park District
4 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Lions Park
Managed by Mount Prospect Park District
23 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Sunrise Park
Managed by Mount Prospect Park District
10 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 29 parks & preserves
Clearwater Park22 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · Mount Prospect Park District
DirectionsHill Street Nature Center4 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Mount Prospect Park District
DirectionsLions Park23 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Mount Prospect Park District
DirectionsSunrise Park10 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Mount Prospect Park District
DirectionsTamarack Park2 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Kopp Park29 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Mount Prospect Park District
DirectionsBusse Park7 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Mount Prospect Park District
DirectionsAspen Trails Park5 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · River Trails Park District
DirectionsFairview Park5 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Mount Prospect Park District
Prospect Meadows Park3 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Mount Prospect Park District
Owen Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Mount Prospect Park District
Emerson Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Mount Prospect Park District
Maple Trails Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · River Trails Park District
DirectionsBusse Pocket Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Mount Prospect Park District
DirectionsMelas Park70 acres · Mount Prospect Park District
DirectionsWoodland Trails Park50 acres · River Trails Park District
DirectionsSycamore Trails Park19 acres · River Trails Park District
DirectionsWeller Creek Park16 acres · Mount Prospect Park District
Meadows Park15 acres · Mount Prospect Park District
DirectionsGregory Park12 acres · Mount Prospect Park District
DirectionsTamarack Trails Park11 acres · River Trails Park District
Burning Bush Park9 acres · River Trails Park District
Sunset Park9 acres · Mount Prospect Park District
DirectionsBluett Park4 acres · Mount Prospect Park District
Frost Park3 acres
Countryside Park3 acres · Mount Prospect Park District
We-Go Park2 acres · Mount Prospect Park District
Gloria Dei Presbyterian Church Walking Ground and Park1 acres
Centennial Green Park1 acres · Mount Prospect Park District
DirectionsWho protects it
522 conserved acres
8% of Mount Prospect’s land. Who manages Mount Prospect’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Regional agency300 ac
Private owners117 ac
Town or city105 ac
Local Park · 300 acPrivate Park · 117 acUnknown · 105 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 117 | Open |
| Old Orchard Country Club Unknown | Town or city | 105 | Open |
| Melas Park Local Park | Regional agency | 67 | Open |
| Woodland Trails Park Local Park | Regional agency | 48 | Open |
| Robert T Jackson Clearwater Park Local Park | Regional agency | 23 | Open |
| Lions Memorial Park Local Park | Regional agency | 20 | Open |
| Meadows Park Local Park | Regional agency | 15 | Open |
| Weller Creek Park Local Park | Regional agency | 14 | Open |
| Kopp Park Local Park | Regional agency | 12 | Open |
| Sunrise Park Local Park | Regional agency | 10 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
34 places to go in Mount Prospect
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Mount Prospect
Big Surf Wave PoolIn Lions Park
DirectionsPlus 1 public pool without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Mount Prospect
29 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Mount Prospect
Canine Commons Dog ParkIn Melas Park
DirectionsPicnic areas in Mount Prospect
2 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 0.7 mi
Busse Park Path0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
21 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.0 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
12 mi
off-road bike paths
7.4 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
45Tennis
35Baseball
20Soccer
18Basketball
8Pickleball
8Football
3Tracks
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
September is the best month for walking in Mount Prospect
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 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 31 | 35 | 46 | 58 | 70 | 80 | 84 | 82 | 75 | 62 | 48 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 1.9 | 1.8 | 2.3 | 3.8 | 4.5 | 4.6 | 3.9 | 3.9 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 2.4 | 2.1 |
February is the driest month (1.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 4.6 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Mount Prospect →
Next door
Mount Prospect 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Prospect | 8% | 0.3 | 9 | 97% | B+ |
| Arlington Heights | 5% | 0.6 | 8 | 99% | B+ |
| Des Plaines | 4% | 0.5 | 7 | 99% | B+ |
| Prospect Heights | 5% | 0.7 | 10 | 99%+ | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Mount Prospect
Where can I hike in Mount Prospect?
The longest trail networks: Clearwater Park, 0.5 miles; Hill Street Nature Center, 0.4 miles; Lions Park, 0.3 miles; Sunrise Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Mount Prospect is conserved land?
8% 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 Mount Prospect’s trails?
Clearwater Park and Hill Street Nature Center don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Mount Prospect?
21 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.0 of painted or protected lanes, 12 of off-road paths and 7.4 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Mount Prospect?
16,492 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Mount Prospect or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 485 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Mount Prospect have?
Ahead of 68% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #329 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 Mount Prospect 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 →