Hunt Club Prairie Wetland
Managed by Oswegoland Park District
36 acres1.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Jauerback · CC BY-SA 3.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Oswego
8% of Oswego’s land is conserved, and 96% of residents live within a half mile of a park
The biggest trail networks: Hunt Club Prairie Wetland (1.2 mi). 8% of Oswego’s land is conserved, about 808 acres. 847 acres are parks and preserves, 23 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 83% of U.S. towns · #154 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Conserved land
8%
808 acres · of 16.2 sq mi of land
Trails
8.6 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
847 ac
23 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
96%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
34 mi
34 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Oswego?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Oswego have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Oswego is ahead of 83% of U.S. towns, #154 of 768 in Illinois. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of residents near a park ranks highest, trail miles lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Oswego’s overall grade.
Conserved land8% of the land · typical IL town 4% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (9 mi) · IL 0.3 · U.S. 0.4BPark land23 acres of park per 1,000 residents (847 acres) · IL 15 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home96% 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 83%
LessMore
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 80%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A− 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 Hunt Club Prairie Wetland, with 1.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
South Point Park
Managed by Oswegoland Park District
7 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Prairie Point Community Park
Managed by Oswegoland Park District
71 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Farmington Lakes Park
Managed by Oswegoland Park District
67 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
All 40 parks & preserves
Hunt Club Prairie Wetland36 acres · 1.2 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
South Point Park7 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsPrairie Point Community Park71 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsAndover Park9 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
Hudson Crossing Park7 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsPrairie View Park5 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsStonegate Park3 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsFarmington Lakes Park67 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsEagle Ridge Park22 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsChesterfield Park19 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsWashington Park10 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsTownsend Park9 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsMundsinger Woods5 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsOdgen Falls Park4 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
Morgan Creek Park4 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
Saw Wee Kee Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Oswegoland Park District
Flag Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Old Post Park37 acres · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsBartlett Prairie & Wetland32 acres · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsMorgan Creek Prairie and Wetland28 acres · Oswegoland Park District
Bluegrass Park27 acres · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsPrairieFest Park25 acres · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsWormley Heritage Park20 acres · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsNorthampton Greenway18 acres · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsWaubonsie Wetland15 acres · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsTuscany Trail Park13 acres · Oswegoland Park District
Civic Center Park9 acres · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsNorthampton Park8 acres · Oswegoland Park District
Millstone Park4 acres · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsLinden Park4 acres · Oswegoland Park District
Jaycee Park4 acres · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsAdministration Office3 acres · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsSteeplechase Park3 acres
Barnaby Park3 acres · Oswegoland Park District
Pearce's Ford Park2 acres · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsTroy Park1 acres · Oswegoland Park District
North Adams Park1 acres · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsLakeview Park1 acres · Oswegoland Park District
Village Green Park1 acres · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsVeterans Serenity Park1 acres · Oswegoland Park District
DirectionsWho protects it
808 conserved acres
8% of Oswego’s land. Who manages Oswego’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Regional agency538 ac
Town or city272 ac
Local Park · 601 acLocal Recreation Area · 138 acUnknown · 70 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fox Bend Golf Course Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 138 | Open |
| Bluegrass Park Local Park | Town or city | 79 | Open |
| Farmington Lakes Park Local Park | Regional agency | 71 | Open |
| Prairie Point Community Park Local Park | Regional agency | 68 | Open |
| Morgan Creek Prairie/Wetland Local Park | Regional agency | 49 | Open |
| Bluegrass Prairie Park West Unknown | Town or city | 44 | Open |
| Waubonsie Greenway Local Park | Regional agency | 39 | Open |
| Bartlett Lake Prairie/Wetland Local Park | Regional agency | 35 | Open |
| Prairiefest Park Local Park | Regional agency | 27 | Open |
| Prairie Point Greenway Local Park | Regional agency | 24 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
49 places to go in Oswego
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Oswego
Oswegoland Park District PoolHours: May-Sep: Su-Sa 12:00-19:00 · In Civic Center Park
DirectionsPlus 1 public pool without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Oswego
Morgan Creek PlaygroundIn Morgan Creek Park
Directions42 playgrounds are on OpenStreetMap in all; the list shows named ones from the first 30.
Dog parks in Oswego
1 dog park without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Oswego
3 scenic views without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Campgrounds in Oswego
Fox Bluff
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Blue Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
34 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
34 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
35Baseball
32Basketball
32Tennis
20Soccer
5Football
4Volleyball
4Skate park
3Pickleball
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). The map also marks 14 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Downtown Oswego Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2022
About itWhen to get out
September is the best month for walking in Oswego
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 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 31 | 35 | 47 | 61 | 72 | 81 | 84 | 83 | 76 | 64 | 48 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 1.9 | 1.7 | 2.3 | 3.8 | 4.7 | 4.5 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 2.5 | 2.1 |
February is the driest month (1.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 4.7 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Oswego →
Next door
Oswego and its neighbors
Oswego has the second most mapped trails of the 5 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oswego | 8% | 0.5 | 23 | 96% | A− |
| Boulder Hill | 2% | 0.1 | 4 | 99%+ | C+ |
| Montgomery | 9% | 0.2 | 30 | 97% | A− |
| Aurora | 10% | 0.8 | 17 | 99% | A |
| Yorkville | 3% | 0.3 | 19 | 99%+ | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Oswego
Where can I hike in Oswego?
The longest trail networks: Hunt Club Prairie Wetland, 1.2 miles; South Point Park, 0.4 miles; Prairie Point Community Park, 0.2 miles; Farmington Lakes Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Oswego 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 Oswego’s trails?
Hunt Club Prairie Wetland and South Point Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Oswego?
34 miles of bike routes are on the map: 34 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Oswego?
18,817 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Oswego or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 894 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Oswego have?
Ahead of 83% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #154 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 Oswego 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 →