Orlis Cox Sports Complex
Park
54 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Ian Ballinger · CC BY-SA 4.0BOutdoors
Outdoors in Ottawa
Ottawa has 5.6 miles of mapped trails, 0.5 for every square mile of land
83% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 2% of Ottawa’s land is conserved, about 124 acres. 165 acres are parks and preserves, 13 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 58% of U.S. towns · #55 of 151 in Kansas. What drives it
Conserved land
2%
124 acres · of 10.7 sq mi of land
Trails
5.6 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
165 ac
13 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
83%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
11 mi
0.4 mi lanes · 11 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Ottawa?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Ottawa have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Ottawa is ahead of 58% of U.S. towns, #55 of 151 in Kansas. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.
B
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Ottawa’s overall grade.
Conserved land2% of the land · typical KS town 2% · U.S. 4%C+Trails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · KS 0.2 · U.S. 0.4BPark land13 acres of park per 1,000 residents (165 acres) · KS 13 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home83% of residents within a half mile of a park · KS 76% · U.S. 72%B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 58%
LessMore
Kansas towns of 2,500+ (151)Ahead of 64%
Few Kansas towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Ottawa’s 2% is ahead of 47% of Kansas towns, while its trails per square mile lead 71% 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 Orlis Cox Sports Complex, with 0.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
All 8 parks & preserves
Orlis Cox Sports Complex54 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
Heritage Park6 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsForest Park56 acres · City of Ottawa
DirectionsKanza Park28 acres · City of Ottawa
DirectionsFreedom Park8 acres · City of Ottawa
DirectionsCity Park7 acres · City of Ottawa
DirectionsGoppert Teen Park3 acres · City of Ottawa
Goppert Kids Park1 acres · City of Ottawa
DirectionsWho protects it
124 conserved acres
2% of Ottawa’s land. Who manages Ottawa’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city123 ac
Local Park · 92 acLocal Recreation Area · 32 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forest Park & North Locust Street Local Park | Town or city | 52 | Open |
| Oalis Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 32 | Open |
| Kanza Park Local Park | Town or city | 28 | Open |
| City Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Heritage Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Freedom Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
14 places to go in Ottawa
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Ottawa
12 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Ottawa
Bark ParkIn Forest Park
DirectionsPlus 1 dog park without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
1 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
11 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.4 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
11 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
15Baseball
8Tennis
6Pickleball
4Basketball
4Football
2Soccer
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →10 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 2 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Dietrich CabinBuilding · listed 1972
About itFranklin County CourthouseBuilding · listed 1972
About itDowntown Ottawa Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1972
About itOld Santa Fe Railroad DepotBuilding · listed 1973
About itJames H. Ransom HouseBuilding · listed 1974
About itOttawa LibraryBuilding · listed 1980
About itTauy Jones HallBuilding · listed 1982
About itOttawa High School and Junior High SchoolBuilding · listed 2000
About itHistoric Ottawa Central Business DistrictDistrict · listed 2008
About itLyman Reid HouseBuilding · listed 2017
About itWhen to get out
April is the best month for walking in Ottawa
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 | 14.8 | 14.6 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.5 |
| High (°F) | 40 | 46 | 57 | 67 | 76 | 85 | 90 | 88 | 80 | 69 | 55 | 44 |
| Rain (in) | 1.1 | 1.5 | 2.3 | 3.9 | 5.6 | 5.4 | 4.0 | 4.4 | 4.0 | 3.2 | 2.2 | 1.6 |
January is the driest month (1.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 90 °F). 5.6 inches fall in May, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 90 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Ottawa →
Next door
Ottawa and its neighbors
Ottawa has the most mapped trails of the 4 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ottawa | 2% | 0.5 | 13 | 83% | B |
| Ottawa Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Harrison Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Lincoln 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 Ottawa
Where can I hike in Ottawa?
The longest trail networks: Orlis Cox Sports Complex, 0.4 miles; Heritage Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Ottawa is conserved land?
2% 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 Ottawa’s trails?
Orlis Cox Sports Complex and Heritage Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Ottawa?
11 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.4 of painted or protected lanes and 11 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Ottawa?
302 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Ottawa or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 165 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Ottawa have?
Ahead of 58% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #55 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 Ottawa 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 →