Sunset Park
Park
6 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Brian Stansberry · CC BY 4.0B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Paris
Paris has 137 acres of parks, 17 for every 1,000 residents
89% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 4% of Paris’ land is conserved, about 137 acres.
Ahead of 46% of U.S. towns · #539 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Conserved land
4%
137 acres · of 5.7 sq mi of land
Trails
0.0 mi
0.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
137 ac
17 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
89%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
3
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Paris?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Paris have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Paris is ahead of 46% of U.S. towns, #539 of 768 in Illinois. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Paris’ overall grade.
Conserved land4% of the land · typical IL town 4% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (0 mi) · IL 0.3 · U.S. 0.4DPark land17 acres of park per 1,000 residents (137 acres) · IL 15 · U.S. 13BParks close to home89% of residents within a half mile of a park · IL 88% · U.S. 72%B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 46%
LessMore
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 30%
Water is 6% of Paris’ area (0 of 6 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 4%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to B+. 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.
Sunrise Park
Park
5 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Sylvain Park
Park
3 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Schwartz Park
Park
2 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
137 conserved acres
4% of Paris’ land. Water is left out: Paris has 5.7 square miles of land and 0.4 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Paris’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city137 ac
Local Park · 114 acLocal Recreation Area · 23 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blackhawk Park Local Park | Town or city | 65 | Open |
| American Legion Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 23 | Open |
| Twin Lakes Park Local Park | Town or city | 16 | Open |
| Laker Stadium Local Park | Town or city | 10 | Open |
| Sunset Park Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Kiwanis Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Sunrise Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Sylvain Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Schwartz Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
Things to do
4 places to go in Paris
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Paris
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Paris
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
3 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
14Tennis
9Baseball
3Football
1Soccer
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →7 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Edgar County CourthouseBuilding · listed 1981
About itFrance HotelBuilding · listed 1987
About itParis Elks Lodge No. 812 BuildingBuilding · listed 1987
About itParis Carnegie Public LibraryBuilding · listed 2002
About itShaw-Van Gilder HouseBuilding · listed 2007
About itHenry Clay Moss HouseBuilding · listed 2008
About itParis High School and GymnasiumBuilding · listed 2019
About itWhen to get out
August is the best month for walking in Paris
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 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 15.0 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 36 | 41 | 52 | 64 | 74 | 83 | 85 | 84 | 79 | 67 | 52 | 40 |
| Rain (in) | 2.8 | 2.4 | 3.2 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 5.0 | 4.1 | 3.1 | 2.9 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 2.8 |
February is the driest month (2.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 5.0 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Paris →
Next door
Paris and its neighbors
Paris has the second most mapped trails of the 2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paris | 4% | under 0.1 | 17 | 89% | B− |
| Paris 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 Paris
How much of Paris 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 Paris’ trails?
Sunset Park and Sunrise Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Paris?
600 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Paris or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 137 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Paris have?
Ahead of 46% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #539 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 Paris 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 →