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C−Outdoors
Outdoors in Jefferson Township

Jefferson Township has 102 acres of parks, 9.3 for every 1,000 residents

7% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 3.0 miles of mapped trail cross Jefferson Township, 0.1 per square mile of land. 2% of Jefferson Township’s land is conserved, about 444 acres.

Ahead of 21% of U.S. towns · #408 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it

Conserved land
2%
444 acres · of 35.2 sq mi of land
Trails
3.0 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
102 ac
9.3 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
7%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
2.1 mi
2.1 mi paths
Highest peak
942 ft
Mt. Pumpkin
Lakes & rivers
3
Outdoors grade

How much outdoors does Jefferson Township have?

On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Jefferson Township is ahead of 21% of U.S. towns, #408 of 593 in Indiana. All four inputs are below most U.S. towns; park acres per resident come closest.

C−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Jefferson Township’s overall grade.
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 21%
LessMore
Indiana towns of 2,500+ (593)Ahead of 31%

Few Indiana towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Jefferson Township’s 2% is ahead of 55% of Indiana towns, while its trails per square mile lead 40% of them.

NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Jefferson Township. OpenStreetMap is mapped by volunteers and coverage varies from town to town, so a town with unmapped parks scores low on them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C. 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
Who protects it

444 conserved acres

2% of Jefferson Township’s land. Who manages Jefferson Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.

Private owners254 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits190 ac
Private Park · 254 acState Conservation Area · 101 acAgricultural Easement · 89 ac
Good to know

Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 89 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.

The biggest protected parcels
Parcel (PAD-US)Managed byAcresPublic access
Elcona Country Club
Private Park
Private owners207Open
Conley Wildlife Refuge
State Conservation Area
Land trusts & nonprofits101Open
Maplecrest Country Club
Private Park
Private owners47Open
Things to do

5 places to go in Jefferson Township

Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.

Peaks in Jefferson Township
Mt. Pumpkin942 ft elevation
Directions
Trails & water

3 lakes & rivers

Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports

2.1 miles of bike routes

Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.

2.1 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
1Beach volleyball
1Tennis

Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.

History along the way

1 place on the National Register

The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).

History →
Elcona Country ClubDistrict · listed 2026
About it
When to get out

The best walking months in Jefferson Township: April and September

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.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)9.510.511.813.314.515.214.913.812.411.09.89.2
High (°F)323547607180838175624837
Rain (in)2.42.12.23.64.24.13.93.93.33.42.82.4

February is the driest month (2.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.2 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Jefferson Township →

Next door

Jefferson Township and its neighbors

Tap a town to see its outdoors.

TownConserved
of land
Trail mi
per sq mi
Park acres
per 1,000
Near a park
½ mile
Outdoors
Jefferson Township2%0.197%C−
Concord Township3%0.31264%B−
Goshen6%0.81567%B+
Middlebury Township2%0.1723%C−
Elkhart Township4%0.51760%B
Washington Township2%0.11430%C

The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.

Questions about parks and trails in Jefferson Township

How much of Jefferson Township is conserved land?

2% 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.

Where can I bike in Jefferson Township?

2.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.1 of off-road paths.

Is there public land near Jefferson Township?

2,997 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Jefferson Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 102 of them inside the town line.

How much outdoors does Jefferson Township have?

Ahead of 21% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #408 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 Jefferson Township neighbors.

Town Square →
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 →