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A+Outdoors
Outdoors in West Deerfield Township

West Deerfield Township has 36 miles of mapped trails, 2.0 for every square mile of land

97% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 11% of West Deerfield Township’s land is conserved, about 1,256 acres. 1,214 acres are parks and preserves, 38 per 1,000 residents.

Ahead of 95% of U.S. towns · #26 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it

Conserved land
11%
1,256 acres · of 17.8 sq mi of land
Trails
36 mi
2.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,214 ac
38 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
97%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
27 mi
0.1 mi lanes · 22 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
10
1 beach

What kind of outdoors town is West Deerfield Township?

Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.

A trail town2.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 93% of U.S. towns.Parks close to home97% of residents live within a half mile of a park.Land that stays wild11% of the land is conserved; a typical Illinois town, 4%.
Outdoors grade

How much outdoors does West Deerfield Township have?

On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, West Deerfield Township is ahead of 95% of U.S. towns, #26 of 768 in Illinois. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, park acres per resident lowest.

A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of West Deerfield Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land11% of the land · typical IL town 4% · U.S. 4%A−Trails2.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (36 mi) · IL 0.3 · U.S. 0.4APark land38 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,214 acres) · IL 15 · U.S. 13A−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 95%
LessMore
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 97%
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.

12345678
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 Prairie Wolf Forest Preserve, with 4.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.

Prairie Wolf Forest Preserve

Managed by Lake County Forest Preserves
430 acres4.8 mi of trail
Dogs on leash
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗

Walter E. Heller Nature Preserve

Managed by Park District of Highland Park
89 acres3.1 mi of trail
Red trailsBlue trailsGreen trailsGold trails
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗

Danny Cunniff Park

Managed by Park District of Highland Park
61 acres1.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗

Everett Farm Nature Preserve

Managed by Lake Forest Open Lands Association
35 acres1.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗

West Skokie Nature Preserve

Managed by Lake Forest Open Lands Association
21 acres1.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot

Northcroft Park

Managed by City of Lake Forest
34 acres0.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot

Townline Community Park

Managed by City of Lake Forest
32 acres0.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet

Olson Park

Managed by Park District of Highland Park
18 acres0.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 36 parks & preserves
Prairie Wolf Forest Preserve430 acres · 4.8 mi of trail · Lake County Forest Preserves
Directions
Walter E. Heller Nature Preserve89 acres · 3.1 mi of trail · Park District of Highland Park
Directions
Danny Cunniff Park61 acres · 1.6 mi of trail · Park District of Highland Park
Directions
Everett Farm Nature Preserve35 acres · 1.1 mi of trail · Lake Forest Open Lands Association
Directions
West Skokie Nature Preserve21 acres · 1.1 mi of trail · Lake Forest Open Lands Association
Directions
Northcroft Park34 acres · 0.8 mi of trail · City of Lake Forest
Directions
Townline Community Park32 acres · 0.8 mi of trail · City of Lake Forest
Olson Park18 acres · 0.8 mi of trail · Park District of Highland Park
Directions
Woodland Park18 acres · 0.7 mi of trail
Directions
Maplewood Park12 acres · 0.7 mi of trail · Deerfield Park District
Directions
Berkeley Prairie19 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · Lake County Forest Preserves
Directions
Carruthers Nature Preserve18 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · Lake Forest Open Lands
Everett Park15 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · City of Lake Forest
Directions
Jewett Park14 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · Deerfield Park Ditrict
Directions
Highmoor Park Nature Preserve10 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · Park District of Highland Park
Directions
Floral Park13 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · Deerfield Park District
Directions
Jaycee Memorial Park9 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · Deerfield Park District
Directions
Sleepy Hollow Park14 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Park District of Highland Park
Directions
Keller Park8 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Deerfield Park District
Discover Financial Park12 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Directions
Cloverdale Park3 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Park District of Highland Park
Directions
Village of Bannockburn Open Space8 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Shepard Park7 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Deerfield Park District
Pine Street Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Skokie River Woods23 acres · Lake County Forest Preserves
Directions
Waveland Park21 acres
Clavery Park14 acres
Deerspring Park9 acres · Deerfield Park District
Directions
Buena Park9 acres · City of Lake Forest
South Park5 acres · Deerfield Park District
Wilmot Park5 acres · Deerfield Park District
Walden Park4 acres
Leonardi Park3 acres · Park District of Highland Park
Directions
Briarwood Park2 acres · Deerfield Park District
Kipling Park2 acres · Deerfield Park District
Directions
Deerfield Historic Village1 acres · Deerfield Area Historical Society.
Directions
Who protects it

1,256 conserved acres

11% of West Deerfield Township’s land. Who manages West Deerfield Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.

Regional agency864 ac
Town or city332 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits56 ac
State conservation49 ac
Private owners26 ac
State natural resources23 ac
Local Conservation Area · 610 acLocal Park · 423 acUnknown · 171 acConservation Easement · 108 acState Conservation Area · 35 ac
Good to know

Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 16 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 48 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.

The biggest protected parcels
Parcel (PAD-US)Managed byAcresPublic access
Prairie Wolf Forest Preserve
Local Conservation Area
Regional agency421Open
Deerfield Park District Golf Club
Unknown
Town or city147Open
Heller Nature Center
Local Conservation Area
Regional agency88Open
Duffy Stormwater Facility
Local Conservation Area
Regional agency78Open
Danny Cunniff Park
Local Park
Regional agency62Open
Townline Community Park
Local Park
Town or city34Open
Everett Farm Nature Preserve
Local Park
Town or city32Open
Northcroft Park
Local Park
Town or city27Open
Hybernia Nature Preserve
State Conservation Area
Private owners25Closed
Dickinson
Unknown
Land trusts & nonprofits24Open

5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.

Things to do

34 places to go in West Deerfield Township

Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.

Dog parks in West Deerfield Township
Prairie Wolf Off-Leash Dog AreaIn Prairie Wolf Forest Preserve
Directions

Plus 1 dog park without a name on the map.

Trails & water

4 named trails and 10 lakes & rivers

Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.5 miUnpaved · 4.0 mi
Red trails1.3 mi
Blue trails0.8 mi
Green trails0.4 mi
Gold trails0.4 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Conway Farms Golf Club Pond 1pondGavin Woods Pond 1pondGavin Woods Pond 2pondLake EleanorlakeLake Forest PondpondLarson Michels Ross Pond 1pondLarson Michels Ross Pond 2pondPrairie Wolf SloughpondRiley PondpondSkokie River
Biking & sports

27 miles of bike routes

Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.

0.1 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
22 mi
off-road bike paths
4.7 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
102Tennis
43Soccer
41Baseball
20Pickleball
18Basketball
3Football

Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.

When to get out

The best walking months in West Deerfield Township: July to September

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.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)9.410.511.813.314.615.215.013.912.411.09.79.1
High (°F)313545576878838174624836
Rain (in)1.91.82.23.84.44.53.83.83.43.32.52.1

February is the driest month (1.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.5 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in West Deerfield Township →

Next door

West Deerfield Township and its neighbors

Tap a town to see its outdoors.

Northfield Township58 miVernon Township44 miWest Deerfield Township36 miMoraine Township28 miShields Township26 mi
TownConserved
of land		Trail mi
per sq mi		Park acres
per 1,000		Near a park
½ mile		Outdoors
West Deerfield Township11%2.03897%A+
Vernon Township18%1.24797%A+
Moraine Township9%2.42399%+A
Northfield Township9%1.71591%A
Shields Township14%1.52599%A

The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.

Questions about parks and trails in West Deerfield Township

Where can I hike in West Deerfield Township?

The longest trail networks: Prairie Wolf Forest Preserve, 4.8 miles; Walter E. Heller Nature Preserve, 3.1 miles; Danny Cunniff Park, 1.6 miles; Everett Farm Nature Preserve, 1.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.

How much of West Deerfield Township is conserved land?

11% 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 West Deerfield Township’s trails?

OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Prairie Wolf Forest Preserve (on leash). For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.

Where can I bike in West Deerfield Township?

27 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.1 of painted or protected lanes, 22 of off-road paths and 4.7 of shoulders and shared lanes.

Is there public land near West Deerfield Township?

16,803 acres of parks and open public land lie inside West Deerfield Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,237 of them inside the town line.

How much outdoors does West Deerfield Township have?

Ahead of 95% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #26 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 West Deerfield Township neighbors.

Town Square →
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 →