Bethalto Sports Complex
Park
105 acres1.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Paul Sableman · CC BY 2.0BOutdoors
Outdoors in Wood River Township
Wood River Township has 564 acres of parks, 19 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Bethalto Sports Complex (1.4 mi), Steve Bryant Park (1.1 mi), Roxana Community Park (0.5 mi). 86% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 6.3 miles of mapped trail cross Wood River Township, 0.3 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 61% of U.S. towns · #394 of 768 in Illinois. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
510 acres · of 24.9 sq mi of land
Trails
6.3 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
564 ac
19 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
86%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
6.2 mi
6.2 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
7
What kind of outdoors town is Wood River Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Wood River Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Wood River Township is ahead of 61% of U.S. towns, #394 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 Wood River Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical IL town 4% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · IL 0.3 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land19 acres of park per 1,000 residents (564 acres) · IL 15 · U.S. 13BParks close to home86% 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 61%
LessMore
Illinois towns of 2,500+ (768)Ahead of 49%
Water is 5% of Wood River Township’s area (1 of 26 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 3%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B 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
The longest trail network is Bethalto Sports Complex, with 1.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Roxana Community Park
Park
39 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Wood River Central Park
Park
6 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 16 parks & preserves
Bethalto Sports Complex105 acres · 1.4 mi of trail
DirectionsSteve Bryant Park29 acres · 1.1 mi of trail
DirectionsRoxana Community Park39 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
Van Preter Park18 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
DirectionsSixth Street Park17 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsWood River Central Park6 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsRotary Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Belk Park31 acres
DirectionsKutter Park29 acres
DirectionsCamp DuBois29 acres
Wood River Soccer and Skate Park15 acres
Veterans of Foreign Wars Park14 acres
DirectionsKendall Hill Park10 acres
Burbank Park3 acres
East End Park3 acres
Brushy Grove Park2 acres
Who protects it
510 conserved acres
3% of Wood River Township’s land. Water is left out: Wood River Township has 24.9 square miles of land and 1.3 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Wood River Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city355 ac
Private owners122 ac
Regional agency30 ac
Other state land3 ac
Local Park · 394 acLocal Recreation Area · 104 acLocal Conservation Area · 5 acLocal Historic or Cultural Area · 4 acState Other or Unknown · 3 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bethalto Sports Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 104 | Open |
| Tosco Kendall Hill Park Local Park | Private owners | 101 | Open |
| Unknown Park Local Park | Town or city | 60 | Open |
| Camp Du Bois Park Local Park | Town or city | 34 | Open |
| Roxana Community Park Local Park | Regional agency | 30 | Open |
| Kutter Park Local Park | Town or city | 29 | Open |
| Steve Bryant Community Park Local Park | Town or city | 27 | Open |
| Wood River Soccer & Skate Park Local Park | Town or city | 24 | Open |
| Vfw Memorial Park Local Park | Private owners | 22 | Open |
| Van Preter Park Local Park | Town or city | 17 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
24 places to go in Wood River Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Wood River Township
23 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Waterfalls in Wood River Township
1 waterfall without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
7 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
6.2 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
6.2 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
30Baseball
18Tennis
9Basketball
6Pickleball
4Soccer
2Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The walking year in Wood River Township
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 | 9.5 |
| High (°F) | 39 | 45 | 55 | 67 | 76 | 85 | 88 | 87 | 80 | 69 | 55 | 44 |
| Rain (in) | 2.5 | 2.2 | 3.3 | 4.7 | 5.0 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 3.2 | 3.5 | 2.6 |
February is the driest month (2.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 88 °F). 5.0 inches fall in May, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 88 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Wood River Township →
Next door
Wood River Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
West Alton34 miAlton8.1 miAlton Township8.1 miWood River Township6.3 miFort Russell Township5.6 miFoster Township4.0 miBethalto2.9 miEast Alton1.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wood River Township | 3% | 0.3 | 19 | 86% | B |
| Alton | 6% | 0.5 | 20 | 59% | B+ |
| Alton Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| East Alton | 2% | 0.2 | 10 | 82% | C+ |
| Foster Township | under 1% | 0.1 | under 1 | 2% | D |
| Fort Russell Township | 1% | 0.2 | 5 | 43% | C− |
| Bethalto | 3% | 0.4 | 19 | 91% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Wood River Township
Where can I hike in Wood River Township?
The longest trail networks: Bethalto Sports Complex, 1.4 miles; Steve Bryant Park, 1.1 miles; Roxana Community Park, 0.5 miles; Van Preter Park, 0.5 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Wood River Township is conserved land?
3% 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 Wood River Township’s trails?
Bethalto Sports Complex and Steve Bryant Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Wood River Township?
6.2 miles of bike routes are on the map: 6.2 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Wood River Township?
13,783 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Wood River Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 565 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Wood River Township have?
Ahead of 61% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #394 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 Wood River Township 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 →