Elwood Wildlife Area
Managed by Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks
1,722 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Washington Township
6% of Washington Township’s land is conserved: 1,285 acres
5.7 miles of mapped trail cross Washington Township, 0.2 per square mile of land. 30 acres are parks and preserves, 10 per 1,000 residents. 63% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 49% of U.S. towns · #76 of 151 in Kansas. What drives it
Conserved land
6%
1,285 acres · of 32.9 sq mi of land
Trails
5.7 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
30 ac
10 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
63%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
1
2 boat launches
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Washington Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Washington Township is ahead of 49% of U.S. towns, #76 of 151 in Kansas. Conserved land holds the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Washington Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land6% of the land · typical KS town 2% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · KS 0.2 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land10 acres of park per 1,000 residents (30 acres) · KS 13 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home63% 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 49%
LessMore
Kansas towns of 2,500+ (151)Ahead of 50%
Few Kansas towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Washington Township’s 6% is ahead of 91% of Kansas towns, while its trails per square mile lead 44% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ 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 Elwood Wildlife Area, with 0.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
1,285 conserved acres
6% of Washington Township’s land. Who manages Washington Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State parks1,065 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)192 ac
Town or city28 ac
State Other or Unknown · 1,065 acConservation Easement · 192 acLocal Park · 21 acLocal Recreation Area · 7 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 192 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elwood Bottoms State Other or Unknown | State parks | 1,065 | Open |
| Unknown Park Local Park | Town or city | 21 | Open |
| Wathena City Swimming Pool Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 7 | Open |
Things to do
6 places to go in Washington Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Washington Township
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Washington Township
2 boat launches without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
4Baseball
3Basketball
1Football
1Beach volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
April is the best month for walking in Washington 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) | 9.6 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.0 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 37 | 43 | 55 | 66 | 76 | 84 | 88 | 87 | 80 | 67 | 53 | 41 |
| Rain (in) | 0.9 | 1.2 | 2.1 | 3.6 | 4.9 | 4.6 | 5.1 | 3.9 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 1.9 | 1.5 |
January is the driest month (0.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 88 °F). 5.1 inches fall in July, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 88 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Washington Township →
Next door
Washington Township and its neighbors
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington Township | 6% | 0.2 | 10 | 63% | B− |
| Burr Oak Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Center Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | 2 | 52% | D |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Washington Township
Where can I hike in Washington Township?
The longest trail networks: Elwood Wildlife Area, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Washington 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 Washington Township’s trails?
Elwood Wildlife Area and City Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Washington Township?
2,884 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Washington Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,094 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Washington Township have?
Ahead of 49% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #76 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 Washington 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 →