Mountain Tea State Forest
Nature preserve
1,001 acres4.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Hamblen Township
Hamblen Township has 780 acres of parks, 174 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Mountain Tea State Forest (4.8 mi), Hitz-Rhodehamel Woods (3.2 mi), Youngman Woods (1.8 mi). 2% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 6% of Hamblen Township’s land is conserved, about 2,637 acres.
Ahead of 54% of U.S. towns · #169 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it
Conserved land
6%
2,637 acres · of 64.0 sq mi of land
Trails
16 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
780 ac
174 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
2%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,027 ft
Bearwallow Hill
Lakes & rivers
21
1 beach · 1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Hamblen Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Hamblen Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Hamblen Township is ahead of 54% of U.S. towns, #169 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 Hamblen Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land6% of the land · typical IN town 2% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (16 mi) · IN 0.1 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land174 acres of park per 1,000 residents (780 acres) · IN 10 · U.S. 13AParks close to home2% of residents within a half mile of a park · IN 51% · U.S. 72%D
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 54%
LessMore
Indiana towns of 2,500+ (593)Ahead of 72%
Few Indiana towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Hamblen Township’s 6% is ahead of 85% of Indiana towns, while its trails per square mile lead 66% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ 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 Mountain Tea State Forest, with 4.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Hitz-Rhodehamel Woods
Nature preserve
370 acres3.2 mi of trail
Hitz-Rhodehamel Loop
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Youngman Woods
Nature preserve
328 acres1.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Yellowwood State Forest
Managed by Indiana Department of Natural Resources
32 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
2,637 conserved acres
6% of Hamblen Township’s land. Who manages Hamblen Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources1,661 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits810 ac
Not recorded285 ac
State Conservation Area · 1,223 acPrivate Conservation · 810 acForest Stewardship Easement · 724 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 604 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whipporwill Woods Nature Preserve State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 892 | Restricted |
| Brown County Hills - Hitz-Rhodehamel Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 379 | Open |
| Yellowwood State Forest State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 330 | Open |
| Brown County Hills - Bear Wallow Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 192 | Restricted |
| Brown County Hills Fee Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 131 | Closed |
| Brown County Hills - Bch Forest Bank Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 108 | Closed |
Things to do
7 places to go in Hamblen Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Hamblen Township
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Hamblen Township
1 playground without a name on the map.
Boat launches in Hamblen Township
1 boat launch without a name on the map.
Peaks in Hamblen Township
Bearwallow Hill1,027 ft elevation
DirectionsKnob Hill942 ft elevation
DirectionsRenner Hill932 ft elevation
DirectionsZion Hill817 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail and 21 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 1.2 mi
Hitz-Rhodehamel Loop2.6 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Bittersweet LakereservoirBoyd LakereservoirCordry LakereservoirCrain LakereservoirCrestview LakereservoirFowler LakereservoirGreen LakereservoirHeile LakereservoirHidden Valley LakereservoirKimmins LakereservoirKreuger LakereservoirLeaky LakelakeLittle Fox LakereservoirLong LakelakeNicewander LakereservoirSmith LakereservoirSteiger LakelakeSweetwater LakereservoirTousley LakelakeWaymires LakereservoirWoodland Lakereservoir
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
1Tennis
1Basketball
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 Hamblen 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 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 37 | 41 | 52 | 64 | 74 | 82 | 84 | 84 | 78 | 66 | 52 | 41 |
| Rain (in) | 3.4 | 2.8 | 3.8 | 4.8 | 5.2 | 4.9 | 4.5 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 3.6 | 3.7 | 3.5 |
February is the driest month (2.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 5.2 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Hamblen Township →
Next door
Hamblen Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Washington Township138 miJackson Township21 miHamblen Township16 miNineveh Township6.7 miHensley Township6.3 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hamblen Township | 6% | 0.3 | 174 | 2% | B− |
| Jackson Township | 20% | 0.3 | 1,884 | 45% | A− |
| Washington Township | 51% | 1.4 | 4,155 | 26% | A |
| Nineveh Township | 13% | 0.2 | 208 | 7% | B |
| Hensley Township | 1% | 0.2 | under 1 | under 1% | D |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Hamblen Township
Where can I hike in Hamblen Township?
The longest trail networks: Mountain Tea State Forest, 4.8 miles; Hitz-Rhodehamel Woods, 3.2 miles; Youngman Woods, 1.8 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Hamblen Township is conserved land?
6% 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 Hamblen Township’s trails?
Mountain Tea State Forest and Hitz-Rhodehamel Woods don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Hamblen Township?
55,529 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Hamblen Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 780 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Hamblen Township have?
Ahead of 54% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #169 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 Hamblen 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 →