Hardy Lake State Recreation Area
Park
2,133 acres4.3 mi of trail
Outward Bound TrailIsland TrailCemetery TrailHoneysuckle Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
BOutdoors
Outdoors in Johnson Township
Johnson Township has 2,209 acres of parks, 953 for every 1,000 residents
11% of Johnson Township’s land is conserved, about 2,195 acres. The biggest trail networks: Hardy Lake State Recreation Area (4.3 mi). 14% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 62% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
11%
2,195 acres · of 30.2 sq mi of land
Trails
5.2 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
2,209 ac
953 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
14%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
4
1 beach · 4 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Johnson Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Johnson Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Johnson Township is ahead of 62% of U.S. towns. 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 Johnson Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land11% of the land · typical IN town 2% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (5 mi) · IN 0.1 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land953 acres of park per 1,000 residents (2,209 acres) · IN 10 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home14% 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 62%
LessMore
Few Indiana towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Johnson Township’s 11% is ahead of 93% of Indiana towns, while its trails per square mile lead 55% 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 Hardy Lake State Recreation Area, with 4.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
2,195 conserved acres
11% of Johnson Township’s land. Who manages Johnson Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State parks2,195 ac
State Recreation Area · 2,195 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hardy Lake LWCF State Recreation Area | State parks | 2,195 | Open |
Things to do
9 places to go in Johnson Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Johnson Township
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Boat launches in Johnson Township
Alpha RampIn Hardy Lake State Recreation Area
DirectionsSunnyside RampIn Hardy Lake State Recreation Area
DirectionsWooster RampIn Hardy Lake State Recreation Area
DirectionsPlus 1 boat launch without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Johnson Township
Overlook AreaIn Hardy Lake State Recreation Area
DirectionsPicnic areas in Johnson Township
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Johnson Township
Shale BluffIn Hardy Lake State Recreation Area
DirectionsWoosterIn Hardy Lake State Recreation Area
DirectionsTrails & water
5 named trails and 4 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Outward Bound Trail1.5 mi
Island Trail1.1 mi
Cemetery Trail0.7 mi
Honeysuckle Trail0.5 mi
Lakeside Trail0.4 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
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 Johnson 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 | 14.6 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.5 |
| High (°F) | 40 | 45 | 55 | 67 | 76 | 84 | 86 | 86 | 80 | 68 | 55 | 44 |
| Rain (in) | 3.3 | 3.0 | 4.2 | 5.0 | 5.3 | 4.8 | 4.3 | 3.8 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 3.6 | 3.9 |
February is the driest month (3.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 86 °F). 5.3 inches fall in May, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 86 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Johnson Township →
Next door
Johnson Township and its neighbors
Johnson Township has the most mapped trails of the 5 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Johnson Township5.2 miLexington Township4.4 miVienna Township3.1 miMarion Township2.5 miGraham Township0.2 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Johnson Township | 11% | 0.2 | 953 | 14% | B |
| Marion Township | 2% | 0.1 | 31 | 1% | C |
| Graham Township | 1% | under 0.1 | 188 | 14% | C |
| Lexington Township | under 1% | 0.1 | under 1 | under 1% | D− |
| Vienna Township | 3% | 0.1 | 7 | 51% | C |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Johnson Township
Where can I hike in Johnson Township?
The longest trail networks: Hardy Lake State Recreation Area, 4.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Johnson Township is conserved land?
11% 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 Johnson Township’s trails?
Hardy Lake State Recreation Area doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Johnson Township?
14,068 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Johnson Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,209 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Johnson Township have?
Ahead of 62% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Johnson 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 →