Spillway Cycle Area
Park
32 acres1.6 mi of trail
Spillway cycle areaNovice riding area
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Blue Township
Blue Township has 945 acres of parks, 183 for every 1,000 residents
16% of Blue Township’s land is conserved, about 4,465 acres. The biggest trail networks: Spillway Cycle Area (1.6 mi), Tuttle Creek State Park (1.5 mi), Tuttle Creek State Park - Cedar Ridge (1.2 mi). 23% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 68% of U.S. towns · #36 of 151 in Kansas. What drives it
Conserved land
16%
4,465 acres · of 43.3 sq mi of land
Trails
11 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
945 ac
183 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
23%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.4 mi
1.4 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
4
1 beach · 3 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Blue Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Blue Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Blue Township is ahead of 68% of U.S. towns, #36 of 151 in Kansas. 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 Blue Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land16% of the land · typical KS town 2% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (11 mi) · KS 0.2 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land183 acres of park per 1,000 residents (945 acres) · KS 13 · U.S. 13AParks close to home23% of residents within a half mile of a park · KS 76% · U.S. 72%C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 68%
LessMore
Kansas towns of 2,500+ (151)Ahead of 77%
Few Kansas towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Blue Township’s 16% is ahead of 98% of Kansas towns, while its trails per square mile lead 50% of them.
Water is 11% of Blue Township’s area (5 of 49 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 14%.
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 Spillway Cycle Area, with 1.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Tuttle Creek State Park
Managed by Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks
394 acres1.5 mi of trail
Spillway cycle areaCanyon TrailEagle Pass Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Tuttle Creek State Park - Cedar Ridge
Managed by Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks
208 acres1.2 mi of trail
Cedar Ridge Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Pottawatomie State Fishing Lake Number Two
Managed by Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks
243 acres0.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Tuttle Creek Recreation Area
Managed by United States Army Corps of Engineers
4,224 acres0.4 mi of trail
Spillway cycle areaCanyon Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 8 parks & preserves
Spillway Cycle Area32 acres · 1.6 mi of trail
DirectionsTuttle Creek State Park394 acres · 1.5 mi of trail · Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks
DirectionsTuttle Creek State Park - Cedar Ridge208 acres · 1.2 mi of trail · Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks
DirectionsPottawatomie State Fishing Lake Number Two243 acres · 0.7 mi of trail · Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks
DirectionsTuttle Creek Recreation Area4,224 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · United States Army Corps of Engineers
DirectionsRocky Ford State Fishing Area14 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsTuttle Creek Outlet Park1 acres
Green Valley Community Center Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
4,465 conserved acres
16% of Blue Township’s land. Water is left out: Blue Township has 43.3 square miles of land and 5.4 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Blue Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Army Corps of Engineers4,170 ac
Other state land631 ac
Town or city5 ac
Recreation Management Area · 4,170 acState Park · 376 acState Recreation Area · 255 acLocal Park · 5 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuttle Creek Recreation Area Recreation Management Area | Army Corps of Engineers | 4,170 | Open |
| Tuttle Creek State Parks State Park | Other state land | 376 | Open |
| Pottawatomie State Fishing Lake State Recreation Area | Other state land | 255 | Open |
| Battery Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
Things to do
20 places to go in Blue Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Blue Township
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Blue Township
9 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Blue Township
3 boat launches without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Blue Township
Flood of 1993 MarkerIn Tuttle Creek State Park
DirectionsPlus 2 scenic views without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Blue Township
Cedar Ridge CampgroundIn Tuttle Creek State Park - Cedar Ridge
DirectionsRiver Pond CampgroundIn Tuttle Creek State Park
DirectionsPlus 1 campground without a name on the map.
Disc golf in Blue Township
Tuttle Creek State Park Disc Golf CourseIn Tuttle Creek State Park
DirectionsTrails & water
6 named trails and 4 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 3.5 mi
Spillway cycle area2.3 mi
Cedar Ridge Trail0.7 mi
Canyon Trail0.4 mi
Eagle Pass Trail0.2 mi
Manhattan River Trails0.1 mi
Novice riding area0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
1.4 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.4 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
3Basketball
1Tennis
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The walking year in Blue 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 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 39 | 44 | 56 | 66 | 75 | 85 | 90 | 88 | 80 | 68 | 54 | 42 |
| Rain (in) | 0.7 | 1.1 | 2.1 | 3.4 | 5.1 | 5.1 | 4.5 | 4.2 | 3.1 | 2.5 | 1.5 | 1.3 |
January is the driest month (0.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 90 °F). 5.1 inches fall in June, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 90 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Blue Township →
Next door
Blue Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Manhattan43 miGreen Township17 miManhattan Township16 miBlue Township11 miGrant Township4.3 miSt. George Township2.2 miZeandale Township2.1 miPottawatomie Township0.9 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Township | 16% | 0.2 | 183 | 23% | B+ |
| Manhattan Township | 5% | 0.5 | 440 | 38% | B+ |
| Manhattan | 4% | 2.1 | 14 | 91% | A− |
| Grant Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Zeandale Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| St. George Township | under 1% | 0.1 | 1 | 20% | D |
| Pottawatomie Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Green Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Blue Township
Where can I hike in Blue Township?
The longest trail networks: Spillway Cycle Area, 1.6 miles; Tuttle Creek State Park, 1.5 miles; Tuttle Creek State Park - Cedar Ridge, 1.2 miles; Pottawatomie State Fishing Lake Number Two, 0.7 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Blue Township is conserved land?
16% of its land, against a typical 2% for a Kansas town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Blue Township’s trails?
Spillway Cycle Area and Tuttle Creek State Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Blue Township?
1.4 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.4 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Blue Township?
7,786 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Blue Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,715 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Blue Township have?
Ahead of 68% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #36 of 151 in Kansas. 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 Blue 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 →