Rogier Park
Park
28 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Jon Platek · CC BY-SA 3.0COutdoors
Outdoors in Vandalia
Vandalia has 51 acres of parks, 8.8 for every 1,000 residents
0.4 miles of mapped trail cross Vandalia. 67% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 27% of U.S. towns · #671 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Conserved land
1%
39 acres · of 8.2 sq mi of land
Trails
0.4 mi
0.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
51 ac
8.8 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
67%
of residents within ½ mile
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Vandalia have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Vandalia is ahead of 27% of U.S. towns, #671 of 768 in Illinois. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
C
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Vandalia’s overall grade.
Conserved land1% of the land · typical IL town 4% · U.S. 4%CTrails0.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (0 mi) · IL 0.3 · U.S. 0.4C−Park land8.8 acres of park per 1,000 residents (51 acres) · IL 15 · U.S. 13C+Parks close to home67% 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 27%
LessMore
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 13%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C. 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.
Greer Park
Park
7 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Kelley Park
Park
4 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Simma Park
Park
3 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
39 conserved acres
1% of Vandalia’s land. Who manages Vandalia’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city39 ac
Local Park · 39 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greer Park Local Park | Town or city | 12 | Open |
| Unknown Park Local Park | Town or city | 12 | Open |
| Rogier Park Local Park | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| Kelley Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Simms Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
Things to do
5 places to go in Vandalia
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Vandalia
5 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
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
6Tennis
5Baseball
4Basketball
2Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
August is the best month for walking in Vandalia
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 | 43 | 53 | 66 | 76 | 84 | 87 | 86 | 80 | 68 | 53 | 42 |
| Rain (in) | 2.8 | 2.4 | 3.2 | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.7 | 4.3 | 3.7 | 3.3 | 3.5 | 3.6 | 2.7 |
February is the driest month (2.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 87 °F). 4.8 inches fall in May, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 87 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Vandalia →
Next door
Vandalia 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vandalia | 1% | under 0.1 | 9 | 67% | C |
| Sharon Township | 5% | 0.1 | under 1 | under 1% | D |
| Sefton 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 Vandalia
How much of Vandalia is conserved land?
1% 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 Vandalia’s trails?
Rogier Park and Greer Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Vandalia?
1,534 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Vandalia or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 51 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Vandalia have?
Ahead of 27% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #671 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 Vandalia 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 →