Northview Church Open Space
Park
52 acres2.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Tom Britt · CC BY 2.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Clay Township
Clay Township has 28 miles of mapped trails, 0.6 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Northview Church Open Space (2.6 mi), Central Park (1.6 mi), River Heritage Park (0.9 mi). 5% of Clay Township’s land is conserved, about 1,617 acres. 75% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 66% of U.S. towns · #93 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
1,617 acres · of 49.1 sq mi of land
Trails
28 mi
0.6 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,303 ac
13 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
75%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
222 mi
4.0 mi lanes · 218 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
30
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Clay Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Clay Township is ahead of 66% of U.S. towns, #93 of 593 in Indiana. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, park acres per resident lowest.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Clay Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical IN town 2% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.6 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (28 mi) · IN 0.1 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land13 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,303 acres) · IN 10 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home75% of residents within a half mile of a park · IN 51% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 66%
LessMore
Indiana towns of 2,500+ (593)Ahead of 84%
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Clay Township ranks #294 on Outdoors.
Few Indiana towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Clay Township’s 5% is ahead of 81% of Indiana towns, while its trails per square mile lead 84% of them.
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 Northview Church Open Space, with 2.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
The Flowing Well
Managed by Carmel Clay Parks and Recreation
20 acres0.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Barker's Canopy Nature Preserve
Park
10 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Prairie Meadow Park
Park
7 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 67 parks & preserves
Northview Church Open Space52 acres · 2.6 mi of trail
DirectionsCentral Park159 acres · 1.6 mi of trail
DirectionsRiver Heritage Park44 acres · 0.9 mi of trail
DirectionsThe Flowing Well20 acres · 0.9 mi of trail · Carmel Clay Parks and Recreation
DirectionsWest Park76 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
DirectionsBarker's Canopy Nature Preserve10 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
DirectionsPrairie Meadow Park7 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
Coxhall Gardens114 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsLawrence W. Inlow Park14 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Carmel Clay Parks and Recreation
DirectionsMeadowlark Park18 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsMark Badger Park29 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsKawachinagano Japanese Garden6 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsHoosier Hero Common3 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsFounders Park37 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Carmel Clay Parks and Recreation
Carey Grove Park5 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Victoria Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Clay Terrace Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsPershing Green1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsMonon Boulevard Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsHazel Landing Park96 acres
DirectionsPrather Park64 acres
DirectionsThomas Marcuccilli Nature Park58 acres · Carmel Clay Parks & Recreation
DirectionsClaybourne Fields36 acres
DirectionsHarrison Park32 acres
DirectionsBear Creek Park29 acres
Parks at Spring Mill20 acres · Parks at Spring Mill Homeowners Association
DirectionsGray Road Park19 acres
DirectionsCherry Tree Park13 acres
DirectionsThe Groves at West Park11 acres
DirectionsPleasant Grove Park10 acres
Provost Park9 acres
DirectionsMark Herrmann Athletic Facility8 acres
DirectionsLenape Trace Park6 acres
DirectionsGoldwater Park6 acres
DirectionsWebster Park6 acres
DirectionsAmerican Legion Park5 acres
DirectionsGreyhound Park3 acres
DirectionsReading Tree Park3 acres
Carmel Clay Veterans Memorial Freedom Park3 acres
DirectionsPrayer Path3 acres · Zionsville Presbyterian Church
White River Greenway3 acres
University Green2 acres
DirectionsRonald Reagan Green2 acres
DirectionsHidden Park2 acres
DirectionsRohrer Road Monon Entrance2 acres
DirectionsMarshall Common2 acres
Jennings Green2 acres
DirectionsFairingdon Common2 acres
Fishers White River Park1 acres
Leighton Green1 acres
Directions96th Street Monon Trailhead South1 acres · Carmel Parks
DirectionsDeerstyne Green1 acres
DirectionsBlisland Commons1 acres
Fairbanks Park1 acres
Carter Green1 acres
DirectionsTruman Green1 acres
DirectionsRoosevelt Green1 acres
Broughton Green1 acres
Milford Green1 acres
Gadsen Park1 acres
Chapel Square1 acres
DirectionsHalifax Park1 acres
DirectionsAdams Green1 acres
Academy Green1 acres
DirectionsGreat Oaks Common1 acres
DirectionsHerman Wells Park1 acres
Halsey Green1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
1,617 conserved acres
5% of Clay Township’s land. Who manages Clay Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Private owners1,066 ac
Town or city527 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits22 ac
State natural resources15 ac
Private Park · 1,066 acLocal Park · 527 acPrivate Conservation · 22 acConservation Easement · 15 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plum Creek Country Club Private Park | Private owners | 207 | Open |
| Prairie View Golf Club Private Park | Private owners | 195 | Open |
| Central Park Local Park | Town or city | 158 | Open |
| Crooked Stick Golf Club Private Park | Private owners | 150 | Open |
| Brookside Golf Club Private Park | Private owners | 131 | Open |
| Twin Lakes Golf Club Private Park | Private owners | 127 | Open |
| Woodland Country Club Private Park | Private owners | 111 | Open |
| Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 98 | Open |
| Carmelot Park Local Park | Town or city | 65 | Open |
| West Park Local Park | Town or city | 65 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
125 places to go in Clay Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Clay Township
Park Lane Apartments Pool
DirectionsPlum Creek Country Club-Pool
DirectionsPlus 1 public pool without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Clay Township
Founders CornerIn University Green
Directions112 playgrounds are on OpenStreetMap in all; the list shows named ones from the first 30.
Dog parks in Clay Township
7 dog parks without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Picnic areas in Clay Township
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Disc golf in Clay Township
Hole 1 of Disc Golf CourseIn Northview Church Open Space
DirectionsCommunity gardens in Clay Township
1 community garden without a name on the map.
Trails & water
30 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Beveridge PondBromley PondChurchill PondpondDogwood PondpondDruid PondpondElgin PondpondFaringdon PondHarelston PondpondHendricks PondpondHidden PondpondHorbeck PondpondHourglass LakelakeIce PondpondKew PondpondLake UllswaterreservoirLake WindemerereservoirLake WoodlandreservoirLimehouse PondpondLodden PondpondMarshall PondpondMcnutt PondpondMill PondpondQuack PondpondQuayle PondpondShricker PondpondTaggart PondpondTree Shadow PondpondWilson PondpondWoodland Addition LakereservoirWilliams Creek
Biking & sports
222 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
4.0 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
218 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
134Tennis
40Basketball
39Baseball
33Soccer
31Pickleball
7Beach volleyball
7Multi-sport
5Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
August is the best month for walking in Clay 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) | 9.6 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.0 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 35 | 39 | 50 | 63 | 73 | 81 | 84 | 83 | 77 | 65 | 51 | 39 |
| Rain (in) | 2.8 | 2.4 | 3.2 | 4.2 | 4.6 | 5.1 | 4.1 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 2.8 |
February is the driest month (2.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 5.1 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Clay Township →
Next door
Clay Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Indianapolis167 miWestfield Washington Township29 miClay Township28 miCarmel27 miFishers25 miWashington Township25 miZionsville20 miDelaware Township11 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clay Township | 5% | 0.6 | 13 | 75% | B+ |
| Carmel | 5% | 0.6 | 13 | 75% | B+ |
| Delaware Township | 6% | 0.7 | 14 | 77% | B+ |
| Fishers | 6% | 0.7 | 8 | 61% | B |
| Zionsville | 2% | 0.3 | 15 | 58% | B− |
| Westfield Washington Township | 2% | 0.5 | 19 | 62% | B |
| Washington Township | 5% | 0.5 | 8 | 57% | B− |
| Indianapolis | 6% | 0.5 | 15 | 61% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Clay Township
Where can I hike in Clay Township?
The longest trail networks: Northview Church Open Space, 2.6 miles; Central Park, 1.6 miles; River Heritage Park, 0.9 miles; The Flowing Well, 0.9 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Clay Township is conserved land?
5% 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 Clay Township’s trails?
Northview Church Open Space and Central Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Clay Township?
222 miles of bike routes are on the map: 4.0 of painted or protected lanes and 218 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Clay Township?
16,337 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Clay Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,303 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Clay Township have?
Ahead of 66% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #93 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 Clay 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 →