Oak Ridge Prairie County Park
Park
442 acres2.9 mi of trail
Lake Perimeter Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Dennisyerger84 · CC BY-SA 3.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Merrillville
Merrillville has 1,470 acres of parks, 40 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Oak Ridge Prairie County Park (2.9 mi). 8% of Merrillville’s land is conserved, about 1,608 acres. 6.0 miles of mapped trail cross Merrillville, 0.2 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 68% of U.S. towns · #86 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it
Conserved land
8%
1,608 acres · of 33.2 sq mi of land
Trails
6.0 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,470 ac
40 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
73%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
13 mi
2.9 mi lanes · 9.7 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
3
1 beach
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Merrillville have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Merrillville is ahead of 68% of U.S. towns, #86 of 593 in Indiana. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Merrillville’s overall grade.
Conserved land8% of the land · typical IN town 2% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · IN 0.1 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land40 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,470 acres) · IN 10 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home73% 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 68%
LessMore
Indiana towns of 2,500+ (593)Ahead of 86%
Few Indiana towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Merrillville’s 8% is ahead of 89% of Indiana towns, while its trails per square mile lead 57% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B 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 Oak Ridge Prairie County Park, with 2.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Deep River County Park
Park
159 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Hidden Lake Park
Park
103 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Hobart Marsh — Bailey tract
Nature preserve
53 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Oak Ridge Prairie County Park442 acres · 2.9 mi of trail
DirectionsDeep River County Park159 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
Hidden Lake Park103 acres
Hobart Marsh — Bailey tract53 acres
Chase Street Conservation Area12 acres
Who protects it
1,608 conserved acres
8% of Merrillville’s land. Who manages Merrillville’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County1,077 ac
Town or city234 ac
Private owners229 ac
Joint47 ac
Regional agency21 ac
Local Park · 1,134 acPrivate Park · 206 acState Recreation Area · 123 acLocal Recreation Area · 98 acConservation Easement · 47 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 46 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deep River Waterpark Local Park | County | 419 | Open |
| Oak Ridge Prairie Co. Park Local Park | County | 384 | Open |
| Deep River County Park Local Park | County | 152 | Open |
| Turkey Creek Golf Course State Recreation Area | County | 123 | Open |
| Innsbrook Country Club Private Park | Private owners | 121 | Open |
| Hidden Lake Park Local Park | Town or city | 95 | Open |
| Broadmoor Country Club Private Park | Private owners | 86 | Open |
| Pruzin Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 68 | Open |
| Merrillville Youth and Recreation Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 30 | Open |
| Heroes Park Local Park | Private owners | 23 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
12 places to go in Merrillville
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Merrillville
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Public pools in Merrillville
Paddles PlayZone
DirectionsRip Tide Wave Pool
DirectionsThe KRAKEN Racer
DirectionsThe STORM Tube Ride
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Merrillville
6 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Picnic areas in Merrillville
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 3 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Lake Perimeter Trail0.5 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
13 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.9 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
9.7 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
27Tennis
16Baseball
4Softball
3Football
2Soccer
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The best walking months in Merrillville: 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.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.5 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 32 | 36 | 47 | 60 | 71 | 80 | 83 | 82 | 76 | 64 | 49 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 2.2 | 1.9 | 2.3 | 3.6 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 2.7 | 2.2 |
February is the driest month (1.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.3 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Merrillville →
Next door
Merrillville and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Calumet Township51 miUnion Township9.6 miRoss Township9.5 miCenter Township9.0 miHobart8.8 miCrown Point6.3 miMerrillville6.0 miWinfield0.9 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Merrillville | 8% | 0.2 | 40 | 73% | B+ |
| Ross Township | 8% | 0.2 | 45 | 72% | B+ |
| Crown Point | 4% | 0.3 | 3 | 71% | C+ |
| Hobart | 6% | 0.3 | 28 | 76% | B+ |
| Union Township | 1% | 0.3 | 2 | 12% | C− |
| Center Township | 4% | 0.2 | 29 | 63% | B |
| Calumet Township | 9% | 0.8 | 34 | 91% | A |
| Winfield | under 1% | 0.1 | 2 | 55% | C− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Merrillville
Where can I hike in Merrillville?
The longest trail networks: Oak Ridge Prairie County Park, 2.9 miles; Deep River County Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Merrillville is conserved land?
8% 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 Merrillville’s trails?
Oak Ridge Prairie County Park and Deep River County Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Merrillville?
13 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.9 of painted or protected lanes and 9.7 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Merrillville?
14,570 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Merrillville or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,470 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Merrillville have?
Ahead of 68% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #86 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 Merrillville 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 →