Photo: Evking22 · CC BY-SA 4.0Chester Township has 103 acres of parks, 15 for every 1,000 residents
1.3 miles of mapped trail cross Chester Township. 69% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 27% of U.S. towns · #355 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Chester Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Chester Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Chester Township is ahead of 27% of U.S. towns, #355 of 593 in Indiana. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
Few Indiana towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Chester Township’s under 1% is ahead of 19% of Indiana towns, while its trails per square mile lead 21% of them.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Warvel Park, with 0.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Herbert L. Taylor Nature Preserve
All 8 parks & preserves
62 conserved acres
under 1% of Chester Township’s land. Who manages Chester Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 41 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warvel Park Local Park | Town or city | 10 | Open |
| Town Life Center Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Frantz Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Maple Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Liberty Mills Public Access Site State Recreation Area | State fish & wildlife | 1 | Open |
7 places to go in Chester Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
2 boat launches without a name on the map.
1 lakes & rivers
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
September is the best month for walking in Chester 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) | 9.5 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.1 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 33 | 37 | 48 | 61 | 72 | 81 | 84 | 82 | 76 | 64 | 49 | 38 |
| Rain (in) | 2.5 | 2.0 | 2.5 | 3.8 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 4.2 | 4.0 | 3.1 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 2.4 |
February is the driest month (2.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 4.7 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Chester Township →
Chester Township 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chester Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | 15 | 69% | C |
| Pleasant Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | under 1 | 12% | D |
| Jackson Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | 2 | 10% | D |
| North Manchester | 1% | 0.2 | 12 | 87% | C+ |
| Lagro Township | 9% | 0.3 | 1,415 | 20% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Chester Township
Where can I hike in Chester Township?
The longest trail networks: Warvel Park, 0.2 miles; Ruppel Sports Complex, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Chester Township is conserved land?
under 1% 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 Chester Township’s trails?
Warvel Park and Flory-Gemmer Marsh Preserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Chester Township?
6,133 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Chester Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 103 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Chester Township have?
Ahead of 27% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #355 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 Chester Township neighbors.
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 →