Krueger Lake
Park
96 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Lemuel Allen Farm · Photo: Nyttend · Public domainB+Outdoors
Outdoors in Madison Township
Madison Township has 1,540 acres of parks, 86 for every 1,000 residents
6% of Madison Township’s land is conserved, about 2,085 acres. 44% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 19 miles of mapped trail cross Madison Township, 0.3 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 65% of U.S. towns · #96 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it
Conserved land
6%
2,085 acres · of 57.4 sq mi of land
Trails
19 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,540 ac
86 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
44%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.1 mi
0.1 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
6
2 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Madison Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Madison Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Madison Township is ahead of 65% of U.S. towns, #96 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 Madison Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land6% of the land · typical IN town 2% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (19 mi) · IN 0.1 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land86 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,540 acres) · IN 10 · U.S. 13AParks close to home44% 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 65%
LessMore
Indiana towns of 2,500+ (593)Ahead of 84%
Few Indiana towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Madison Township’s 6% is ahead of 82% of Indiana towns, while its trails per square mile lead 71% 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 Krueger Lake, with 0.1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Lanier Mansion State Historic Site
Park
9 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Crystal Beach Swimming Pool
Park
2 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 6 parks & preserves
Krueger Lake96 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Bicentennial Park3 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsLanier Mansion State Historic Site9 acres
Crystal Beach Swimming Pool2 acres
Kiwanis Park1 acres
Hargan Matthews Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
2,085 conserved acres
6% of Madison Township’s land. Who manages Madison Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State parks1,402 ac
Private owners585 ac
County61 ac
Joint13 ac
Other state land13 ac
Town or city13 ac
State conservation8 ac
State Park · 1,143 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 585 acState Conservation Area · 319 acConservation Easement · 26 acLocal Recreation Area · 8 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 13 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clifty Falls State Park State Park | State parks | 1,143 | Open |
| American Electric Power - Clifty Creek Private Other or Unknown | Private owners | 585 | Open |
| Clifty Canyon Nature Preserve State Conservation Area | State parks | 258 | Open |
| Jefferson County Jefferson Proving Ground Western Woods State Conservation Area | County | 61 | Restricted |
| James Fd Lanier Memorial State Historic or Cultural Area | State conservation | 8 | Open |
| John Paul Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Clifty Falls State Park Swimming Pool State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 4 | Open |
| Bicentennial Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Crystal Beach Swimming Pool Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Madison Riverfront Dog Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
22 places to go in Madison Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Madison Township
7 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Madison Township
2 boat launches without a name on the map.
Waterfalls in Madison Township
Clifty Falls
DirectionsHoffman Falls
DirectionsLittle Clifty Falls
DirectionsTunnel Falls
DirectionsWallace Falls
DirectionsPicnic areas in Madison Township
Baby Beech Picnic Area
DirectionsTrail 8 Picnic Area
DirectionsCampgrounds in Madison Township
Youth Tent Area
DirectionsPlus 1 campground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
13 named trails and 6 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 2.2 mi
Trail 82.5 mi
Trail 22.0 mi
Trail 51.4 mi
Trail 71.2 mi
Heritage Trail1.1 mi
Trail 91.1 mi
Trail 11.1 mi
Trail 30.6 mi
Trail 100.5 mi
Trail 60.5 mi
3 more trails
Trail 4
0.5 miPaved Walking Loop
0.3 miBrough's Tunnel
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.1 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.1 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
12Baseball
10Tennis
3Soccer
3Football
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →7 places on the National Register, 3 of them National Historic Landmarks
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
August is the best month for walking in Madison 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 | 66 | 75 | 83 | 86 | 85 | 79 | 68 | 54 | 44 |
| Rain (in) | 3.5 | 3.2 | 4.3 | 5.1 | 5.5 | 5.1 | 4.6 | 3.9 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 3.6 | 4.0 |
February is the driest month (3.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 86 °F). 5.5 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Madison Township →
Next door
Madison Township and its neighbors
Madison Township has the second most mapped trails of the 7 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Monroe Township24 miMadison Township19 miShelby Township5.5 miHanover Township2.9 miMadison1.4 miMilton Township0.0 miSmyrna Township0.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Madison Township | 6% | 0.3 | 86 | 44% | B+ |
| Madison | 11% | 0.2 | 4 | 61% | C+ |
| Monroe Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Milton Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Hanover Township | 3% | 0.2 | 26 | 53% | B− |
| Smyrna Township | 3% | under 0.1 | 380 | 14% | C+ |
| Shelby Township | under 1% | 0.1 | 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 Madison Township
Where can I hike in Madison Township?
The longest trail networks: Krueger Lake, 0.1 miles; Bicentennial Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Madison 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 Madison Township’s trails?
Krueger Lake and Lanier Mansion State Historic Site don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Madison Township?
0.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.1 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Madison Township?
3,379 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Madison Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,545 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Madison Township have?
Ahead of 65% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #96 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 Madison 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 →