Oak Ridge Prairie County Park
Park
406 acres2.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: JoeyBLS · Public domainB+Outdoors
Outdoors in St. John Township
7% of St. John Township’s land is conserved: 1,792 acres
The biggest trail networks: Oak Ridge Prairie County Park (2.6 mi), Central Park (1.5 mi), Hoosier Prairie State Nature Preserve (0.7 mi). 86% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 16 miles of mapped trail cross St. John Township, 0.4 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 70% of U.S. towns · #78 of 593 in Indiana. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
1,792 acres · of 39.3 sq mi of land
Trails
16 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,008 ac
14 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
86%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
17 mi
17 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
5
What kind of outdoors town is St. John Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does St. John Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, St. John Township is ahead of 70% of U.S. towns, #78 of 593 in Indiana. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; conserved land ranks highest, park acres per resident lowest.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of St. John Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical IN town 2% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (16 mi) · IN 0.1 · U.S. 0.4BPark land14 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,008 acres) · IN 10 · U.S. 13BParks close to home86% 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 70%
LessMore
Indiana towns of 2,500+ (593)Ahead of 87%
Few Indiana towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so St. John Township’s 7% is ahead of 88% of Indiana towns, while its trails per square mile lead 76% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be 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 Oak Ridge Prairie County Park, with 2.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Hoosier Prairie State Nature Preserve
Managed by Indiana Department of Natural Resources
303 acres0.7 mi of trail
Prairie Marsh TrailSavanna TrailAccessible Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Northgate Community Park
Park
23 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Pheasant Hills Park
Managed by Dyer Park District
11 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 31 parks & preserves
Oak Ridge Prairie County Park406 acres · 2.6 mi of trail
DirectionsCentral Park69 acres · 1.5 mi of trail
DirectionsHoosier Prairie State Nature Preserve303 acres · 0.7 mi of trail · Indiana Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsNorthgate Community Park23 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsPheasant Hills Park11 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Dyer Park District
DirectionsTeibel Nature Preserve85 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Civic Memorial Park11 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Town of Saint John
DirectionsHomestead Acres Park Number 17 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Town of Saint John
Ivan Gatlin Nature Preserve38 acres
Stephen Park18 acres
DirectionsPrairie West Park12 acres · Town of Saint John
DirectionsScherwood Greens Park10 acres
DirectionsPeter G. Redar Park9 acres
Plum Creek Park8 acres
Beidron Park6 acres
Eberly Park5 acres
James E. Larimer Park5 acres · Town of Saint John
Edgewood Estates Park4 acres · Town of Saint John
Heron Lake Park2 acres · Town of Saint John
Schillton Hills Park2 acres · Town of Saint John
Lantern View Park2 acres · Town of Saint John
Foxwood Park2 acres
Louis Estates Park2 acres · Town of Saint John
Elmer Miller Park2 acres · Dyer Park District
DirectionsAutumn Chase Park2 acres
Timber Lane Park1 acres · Town of Saint John
Elmridge Park1 acres
Lancer Park1 acres
Cottonwood Park1 acres
Norbert Grimmer Tot Lot Park1 acres
Schererville Skate Park1 acres
Who protects it
1,792 conserved acres
7% of St. John Township’s land. Who manages St. John Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city515 ac
Private owners481 ac
County374 ac
State natural resources371 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits49 ac
Regional agency2 ac
National Park Service1 ac
Local Park · 889 acPrivate Park · 481 acState Conservation Area · 373 acConservation Easement · 49 acNational Park · 1 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 49 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 2 of 70 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oak Ridge Prairie Co. Park Local Park | County | 336 | Open |
| Briar Ridge Country Club Private Park | Private owners | 291 | Open |
| Scherwood Country Club Private Park | Private owners | 173 | Open |
| Hoosier Prairie - Buckeye Pipeline Tract State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 144 | Restricted |
| Hoosier Prairie Nature Preserve State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 113 | Restricted |
| Hoosier Prairie - Martha Collins - Hart Tract State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 79 | Restricted |
| Central Park Local Park | Town or city | 71 | Open |
| Teibel Nature Preserve Local Park | Town or city | 57 | Open |
| Rohrman Park Local Park | Town or city | 54 | Open |
| Erie Lackawanna Trail Local Park | Town or city | 39 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
30 places to go in St. John Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in St. John Township
Chateau Woods Pool
DirectionsPlaygrounds in St. John Township
Autumn Chase Park PlaygroundIn Autumn Chase Park
DirectionsCottonwood Park PlaygroundIn Cottonwood Park
DirectionsPheasant Hills Park PlaygroundIn Pheasant Hills Park
DirectionsPlus 20 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in St. John Township
Perry Ferrini Dog Park
DirectionsPlus 1 dog park without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in St. John Township
Sled HillIn Oak Ridge Prairie County Park
DirectionsSledding HillIn Northgate Community Park
DirectionsPicnic areas in St. John Township
2 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Trails & water
3 named trails and 5 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Prairie Marsh Trail0.3 mi
Savanna Trail0.3 mi
Accessible Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
17 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
17 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
28Baseball
18Tennis
17Soccer
5Basketball
3Tracks
2Softball
2Football
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in St. John 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.
| 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 | 48 | 60 | 71 | 81 | 84 | 82 | 76 | 64 | 49 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 2.3 | 1.9 | 2.3 | 3.7 | 4.3 | 4.5 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 2.8 | 2.2 |
February is the driest month (1.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 4.5 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in St. John Township →
Next door
St. John Township and its neighbors
St. John Township has the second most mapped trails of the 8 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Calumet Township51 miSt. John Township16 miCrete Township10 miGriffith4.6 miSchererville2.7 miHanover Township0.6 miSt. John0.6 miWillowbrook0.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. John Township | 7% | 0.4 | 14 | 86% | B+ |
| Hanover Township | 1% | under 0.1 | 3 | 49% | C− |
| Calumet Township | 9% | 0.8 | 34 | 91% | A |
| Griffith | 15% | 0.6 | 37 | 95% | A |
| Schererville | 10% | 0.2 | 11 | 95% | B+ |
| St. John | 1% | under 0.1 | 4 | 65% | C− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in St. John Township
Where can I hike in St. John Township?
The longest trail networks: Oak Ridge Prairie County Park, 2.6 miles; Central Park, 1.5 miles; Hoosier Prairie State Nature Preserve, 0.7 miles; Northgate Community Park, 0.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of St. John Township is conserved land?
7% 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 St. John Township’s trails?
Oak Ridge Prairie County Park and Central Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in St. John Township?
17 miles of bike routes are on the map: 17 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near St. John Township?
13,801 acres of parks and open public land lie inside St. John Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,008 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does St. John Township have?
Ahead of 70% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #78 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 St. John 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 →