E G West Park
Park
2 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Midway Stage Station · Photo: Ammodramus · Public domainA−Outdoors
Outdoors in Gothenburg
Gothenburg has 98 acres of parks, 28 for every 1,000 residents
93% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 7% of Gothenburg’s land is conserved, about 169 acres. 1.4 miles of mapped trail cross Gothenburg, 0.4 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 79% of U.S. towns · #10 of 57 in Nebraska. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
169 acres · of 3.6 sq mi of land
Trails
1.4 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
98 ac
28 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
93%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Gothenburg?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Gothenburg have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Gothenburg is ahead of 79% of U.S. towns, #10 of 57 in Nebraska. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of residents near a park ranks highest, trail miles lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Gothenburg’s overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical NE town 4% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (1 mi) · NE 0.3 · U.S. 0.4BPark land28 acres of park per 1,000 residents (98 acres) · NE 15 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home93% of residents within a half mile of a park · NE 90% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 79%
LessMore
Nebraska towns of 2,500+ (57)Ahead of 84%
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
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
169 conserved acres
7% of Gothenburg’s land. Who manages Gothenburg’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city96 ac
Regional agency74 ac
Local Recreation Area · 83 acConservation Easement · 74 acLocal Park · 12 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 74 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Helen Recreation Area Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 60 | Open |
| Legion Ball Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 23 | Open |
| Lafayette Park Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| E G West Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Ehmen Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
Things to do
20 places to go in Gothenburg
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Gothenburg
3 public pools without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in Gothenburg
7 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Picnic areas in Gothenburg
10 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Trails & water
2 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
5Baseball
3Tennis
3Basketball
2Football
1Soccer
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The best walking months in Gothenburg: 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 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.4 | 15.1 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 39 | 42 | 54 | 63 | 72 | 83 | 88 | 86 | 79 | 65 | 52 | 40 |
| Rain (in) | 0.4 | 0.6 | 1.2 | 2.5 | 3.8 | 3.4 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 1.8 | 1.8 | 0.8 | 0.5 |
January is the driest month (0.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 88 °F). 3.8 inches fall in May, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 88 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Gothenburg →
Questions about parks and trails in Gothenburg
How much of Gothenburg is conserved land?
7% of its land, against a typical 4% for a Nebraska town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Gothenburg’s trails?
E G West Park doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Gothenburg?
443 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Gothenburg or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 98 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Gothenburg have?
Ahead of 79% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #10 of 57 in Nebraska. 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 Gothenburg 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 →