Chaplin Nature Center
Managed by Witchita Audubon Society
187 acres4.4 mi of trail
River TrailBluff TrailPrairie TrailLost Prairie Trail+1
Dogs usually not allowed
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
COutdoors
Outdoors in Bolton Township
6% of Bolton Township’s land is conserved: 1,943 acres
The biggest trail networks: Chaplin Nature Center (4.4 mi). 4 acres are parks and preserves, 3.6 per 1,000 residents. 10 miles of mapped trail cross Bolton Township, 0.2 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 26% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
6%
1,943 acres · of 52.2 sq mi of land
Trails
10 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
4 ac
3.6 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
6%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
2
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Bolton Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Bolton Township is ahead of 26% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
C
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Bolton Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land6% of the land · typical KS town 2% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (10 mi) · KS 0.2 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land3.6 acres of park per 1,000 residents (4 acres) · KS 13 · U.S. 13CParks close to home6% of residents within a half mile of a park · KS 76% · U.S. 72%D
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 26%
LessMore
Few Kansas towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Bolton Township’s 6% is ahead of 89% of Kansas towns, while its trails per square mile lead 46% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from D to C+. 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 Chaplin Nature Center, with 4.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Kaw Wildlife Area
Nature preserve
1,320 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
1,943 conserved acres
6% of Bolton Township’s land. Who manages Bolton Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife1,742 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits201 ac
State Conservation Area · 1,742 acPrivate Recreation or Education · 201 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kaw Wildlife Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 1,742 | Restricted |
| Chaplin Nature Center Private Recreation or Education | Land trusts & nonprofits | 201 | Closed |
Trails & water
7 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 0.5 mi
River Trail0.9 mi
Prairie Trail0.7 mi
Bluff Trail0.6 mi
Lost Prairie Trail0.3 mi
Spring Creek Trail0.3 mi
Sandbar Trail0.2 mi
Wildlife Homes Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
When to get out
The walking year in Bolton 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) | 9.9 | 10.8 | 11.9 | 13.1 | 14.1 | 14.7 | 14.5 | 13.6 | 12.4 | 11.2 | 10.1 | 9.6 |
| High (°F) | 46 | 51 | 61 | 70 | 78 | 88 | 93 | 91 | 84 | 72 | 59 | 48 |
| Rain (in) | 1.0 | 1.4 | 2.7 | 3.6 | 5.5 | 5.2 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 2.9 | 3.4 | 1.9 | 1.5 |
January is the driest month (1.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 93 °F). 5.5 inches fall in May, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 93 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Bolton Township →
Next door
Bolton Township and its neighbors
Bolton Township has the second most mapped trails of the 5 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Creswell Township26 miBolton Township10 miArkansas City9.8 miBeaver Township6.0 miSilverdale Township5.6 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bolton Township | 6% | 0.2 | 4 | 6% | C |
| Creswell Township | 7% | 0.7 | 1 | 2% | C |
| Arkansas City | 6% | 1.0 | 52 | 91% | A |
| Silverdale Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Beaver 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 Bolton Township
Where can I hike in Bolton Township?
The longest trail networks: Chaplin Nature Center, 4.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Bolton Township is conserved land?
6% 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 Bolton Township’s trails?
Chaplin Nature Center and Kaw Wildlife Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Bolton Township?
833 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Bolton Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 4 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Bolton Township have?
Ahead of 26% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Bolton 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 →