Charlestown State Park
Managed by Indiana Department of Natural Resources
3,087 acres14.9 mi of trail
Trail 4Trail 6Trail 1Trail 3+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Chris Flook · CC BY-SA 4.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Charlestown Township
Charlestown Township has 4,267 acres of parks, 269 for every 1,000 residents
10% of Charlestown Township’s land is conserved, about 4,058 acres. The biggest trail networks: Charlestown State Park (14.9 mi), Nine Penny Branch Nature Preserve (1.6 mi). 38% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 73% of U.S. towns · #67 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it
Conserved land
10%
4,058 acres · of 64.5 sq mi of land
Trails
25 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
4,267 ac
269 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
38%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
3
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Charlestown Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Charlestown Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Charlestown Township is ahead of 73% of U.S. towns, #67 of 593 in Indiana. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Charlestown Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land10% of the land · typical IN town 2% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (25 mi) · IN 0.1 · U.S. 0.4BPark land269 acres of park per 1,000 residents (4,267 acres) · IN 10 · U.S. 13AParks close to home38% of residents within a half mile of a park · IN 51% · U.S. 72%C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 73%
LessMore
Indiana towns of 2,500+ (593)Ahead of 89%
Few Indiana towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Charlestown Township’s 10% is ahead of 92% of Indiana towns, while its trails per square mile lead 75% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B 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 Charlestown State Park, with 14.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Nine Penny Branch Nature Preserve
Managed by Indiana Department of Natural Resources
122 acres1.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Tunnel Mill Boy Scout Camp
Park
217 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
4,058 conserved acres
10% of Charlestown Township’s land. Who manages Charlestown Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State parks3,903 ac
State natural resources120 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)20 ac
Town or city17 ac
State Park · 3,077 acState Conservation Area · 945 acConservation Easement · 20 acLocal Park · 17 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 20 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charlestown State Park State Park | State parks | 2,338 | Open |
| Fourteen Mile Creek Nature Preserve State Conservation Area | State parks | 825 | Open |
| Fourteen Mile Creek Nature Preserve Addition State Park | State parks | 740 | Open |
| Nine Penny Branch (Run Woods) Nature Preserve State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 120 | Restricted |
| Greenway Park Local Park | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| Charlestown Family Activities Park Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Church Street Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
10 places to go in Charlestown Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Charlestown Township
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Charlestown Township
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Scenic views in Charlestown Township
Riverview Overlook
DirectionsRiverview OverlookIn Charlestown State Park
DirectionsPicnic areas in Charlestown Township
Cedar GroveIn Charlestown State Park
DirectionsPlus 1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Charlestown Township
Charlestown State Park CampgroundIn Charlestown State Park
DirectionsTrails & water
8 named trails and 3 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Trail 42.6 mi
Trail 62.3 mi
Trail 12.3 mi
Trail 31.5 mi
Trail 51.4 mi
Trail 21.2 mi
Trail 70.5 mi
Portersville Bridge0.1 mi
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
6Baseball
1Football
1Tracks
1Skate park
1Softball
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →5 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Bottorff-McCulloch FarmBuilding · listed 1995
About itWhen to get out
The walking year in Charlestown 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) | 9.8 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.2 | 14.8 | 14.6 | 13.6 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.5 |
| High (°F) | 41 | 46 | 56 | 68 | 77 | 85 | 87 | 86 | 81 | 69 | 56 | 45 |
| Rain (in) | 3.5 | 3.3 | 4.5 | 5.1 | 5.4 | 4.9 | 4.5 | 3.8 | 3.6 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 4.1 |
February is the driest month (3.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 87 °F). 5.4 inches fall in May, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 87 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Charlestown Township →
Next door
Charlestown Township and its neighbors
Charlestown Township has the second most mapped trails of the 8 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Monroe Township37 miCharlestown Township25 miJeffersonville23 miUtica Township13 miCharlestown4.4 miSilver Creek Township2.1 miOregon Township1.3 miUnion Township0.4 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charlestown Township | 10% | 0.4 | 269 | 38% | B+ |
| Utica Township | 10% | 0.6 | 168 | 44% | A− |
| Silver Creek Township | 1% | 0.1 | 4 | 18% | D |
| Oregon Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | 1 | 1% | D− |
| Charlestown | 16% | 0.4 | 143 | 66% | A− |
| Union Township | 1% | under 0.1 | 3 | 16% | D |
| Jeffersonville | 6% | 0.7 | 28 | 81% | A− |
| Monroe Township | 24% | 0.7 | 23 | 1% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Charlestown Township
Where can I hike in Charlestown Township?
The longest trail networks: Charlestown State Park, 14.9 miles; Nine Penny Branch Nature Preserve, 1.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Charlestown Township is conserved land?
10% of its land, against a typical 2% for an Indiana town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Charlestown Township’s trails?
Charlestown State Park and Nine Penny Branch Nature Preserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Charlestown Township?
30,574 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Charlestown Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 4,267 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Charlestown Township have?
Ahead of 73% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #67 of 593 in Indiana. 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 Charlestown 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 →