Sodalis Nature Park
Park
279 acres4.7 mi of trail
Oak TraceBat HavenBeaver RidgeWhitetail Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Eric Wood · CC BY-SA 3.0BOutdoors
Outdoors in Plainfield
Plainfield has 872 acres of parks, 24 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Sodalis Nature Park (4.7 mi), Franklin Park (1 mi). 76% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 4% of Plainfield’s land is conserved, about 736 acres.
Ahead of 64% of U.S. towns · #103 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it
Conserved land
4%
736 acres · of 27.2 sq mi of land
Trails
7.7 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
872 ac
24 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
76%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
49 mi
49 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
4
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Plainfield have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Plainfield is ahead of 64% of U.S. towns, #103 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 Plainfield’s overall grade.
Conserved land4% of the land · typical IN town 2% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (8 mi) · IN 0.1 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land24 acres of park per 1,000 residents (872 acres) · IN 10 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home76% 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 64%
LessMore
Indiana towns of 2,500+ (593)Ahead of 83%
Few Indiana towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Plainfield’s 4% is ahead of 76% of Indiana towns, while its trails per square mile lead 68% 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 Sodalis Nature Park, with 4.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
All 17 parks & preserves
Sodalis Nature Park279 acres · 4.7 mi of trail
DirectionsFranklin Park20 acres · 1 mi of trail
DirectionsHummel Park184 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsTalon Stream Park15 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsBent Wood Community Park5 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Swinford Park23 acres
DirectionsFriendship Gardens14 acres
DirectionsAugusta Woods Nature Preserve8 acres
DirectionsAnderson Park6 acres
The Club at Bomar Estates5 acres
DirectionsFairfield Park3 acres
DirectionsWalnut Hill Park3 acres
DirectionsIndependence Park2 acres
DirectionsHawthorne Ridge Park1 acres
Bob Ward Park1 acres
Homestead Community Park1 acres
Cheltoham Court Commons1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
736 conserved acres
4% of Plainfield’s land. Who manages Plainfield’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city524 ac
County212 ac
Local Park · 415 acLocal Conservation Area · 212 acLocal Recreation Area · 109 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 16 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sodalis Nature Park Local Conservation Area | County | 212 | Open |
| Hummel Park (Twp. Park) Local Park | Town or city | 199 | Open |
| Al And Jan Barker Sports Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 86 | Open |
| Whitelick Creek Park Local Park | Town or city | 37 | Open |
| Red Pride Park Local Park | Town or city | 35 | Open |
| George Creek Park Local Park | Town or city | 33 | Open |
| Swinford Park Local Park | Town or city | 27 | Open |
| Richard A Carlucci Recreation And Aquatic Center Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 22 | Open |
| Franklin Park Local Park | Town or city | 18 | Open |
| Clark'S Creek Natatorium Local Park | Town or city | 18 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
39 places to go in Plainfield
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Plainfield
Bomar Estates PlaygroundIn The Club at Bomar Estates
DirectionsGlen Haven Playground
DirectionsGlen Haven West Playground
DirectionsPlus 23 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Plainfield
Plus 3 dog parks without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Plainfield
1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Picnic areas in Plainfield
5 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Disc golf in Plainfield
1 disc golf course without a name on the map.
Trails & water
4 named trails and 4 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 5.0 mi
Oak Trace1.2 mi
Bat Haven0.7 mi
Beaver Ridge0.6 mi
Whitetail Trail0.5 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
49 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
49 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
24Tennis
23Baseball
21Pickleball
11Basketball
7Soccer
5Football
3Beach volleyball
2Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →4 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 6 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
August is the best month for walking in Plainfield
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 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 15.0 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 35 | 40 | 51 | 64 | 73 | 82 | 85 | 84 | 78 | 65 | 52 | 40 |
| Rain (in) | 3.0 | 2.4 | 3.4 | 4.4 | 4.7 | 5.0 | 4.3 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 2.9 |
February is the driest month (2.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 5.0 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Plainfield →
Next door
Plainfield and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Indianapolis167 miWayne Township20 miWashington Township14 miAvon8.2 miPlainfield7.7 miGuilford Township7.6 miLiberty Township1.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plainfield | 4% | 0.3 | 24 | 76% | B |
| Avon | 2% | 0.4 | 26 | 70% | B |
| Guilford Township | 3% | 0.2 | 25 | 70% | B |
| Liberty Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | 3 | 29% | D |
| Washington Township | 1% | 0.4 | 11 | 58% | C+ |
| Indianapolis | 6% | 0.5 | 15 | 61% | B |
| Wayne Township | 4% | 0.4 | 8 | 68% | B− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Plainfield
Where can I hike in Plainfield?
The longest trail networks: Sodalis Nature Park, 4.7 miles; Franklin Park, 1 miles; Hummel Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Plainfield is conserved land?
4% 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 Plainfield’s trails?
Sodalis Nature Park and Franklin Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Plainfield?
49 miles of bike routes are on the map: 49 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Plainfield?
9,908 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Plainfield or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 872 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Plainfield have?
Ahead of 64% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #103 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 Plainfield 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 →