Photo: JERRYE & ROY KLOTZ, M.D. · CC BY-SA 4.09% of Ocean Township’s land is conserved: 617 acres
7.7 miles of mapped trail cross Ocean Township, 0.7 per square mile of land. 81% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 567 acres are parks and preserves, 20 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns · #276 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Ocean Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Ocean Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Ocean Township is ahead of 80% of U.S. towns, #276 of 468 in New Jersey. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; conserved land ranks highest, park acres per resident lowest.
New Jersey towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 11%; the U.S., 4%), so Ocean Township’s 9% is ahead of 42% of New Jersey towns, while its trails per square mile lead 51% of them.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Joe Palaia Park, with 0.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
617 conserved acres
9% of Ocean Township’s land. Who manages Ocean Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 1 acre is a conservation easement, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 2 of 29 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joe Palaia Park Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 242 | Open |
| Weltz Park Local Other or Unknown | County | 127 | Open |
| Whale Pond Brook Preserve State Conservation Area | Other state land | 88 | Open |
| Colonial Terrace Golf Course Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 53 | Open |
| Ocean Township Wooded Lot Local Resource Management Area | Town or city | 29 | Open |
| Oakhurst First Aid annd Firemens Memorial Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 17 | Open |
| Ocean Community Pool and Tennis Facility Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 13 | Open |
| unknown Local Park | Not recorded | 13 | Open |
| Ocean Township Athletic Facility Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 12 | Open |
| Wanamassa Firemens Memorial Fields Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 10 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
10 places to go in Ocean Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Plus 7 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
4 named trails
3.6 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
The best walking months in Ocean Township: April to August
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 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 42 | 44 | 50 | 61 | 70 | 80 | 85 | 83 | 77 | 66 | 56 | 46 |
| Rain (in) | 3.6 | 3.0 | 4.4 | 3.8 | 3.9 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 4.6 | 4.0 | 4.1 | 3.4 | 4.3 |
February is the driest month (3.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 4.6 inches fall in August, the wettest month. The climate in Ocean Township →
Ocean 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ocean Township | 9% | 0.7 | 20 | 81% | A− |
| Eatontown | 2% | 1.7 | 17 | 98% | A− |
| Asbury Park | 1% | 0.5 | 7 | 99%+ | B |
| Neptune Township | 2% | 1.0 | 22 | 99% | A− |
| Tinton Falls | 4% | 0.2 | 38 | 95% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Ocean Township
Where can I hike in Ocean Township?
The longest trail networks: Joe Palaia Park, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Ocean Township is conserved land?
9% of its land, against a typical 11% for a New Jersey town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Ocean Township’s trails?
Joe Palaia Park doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Ocean Township?
3.6 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.9 of painted or protected lanes and 2.8 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Ocean Township?
22,281 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Ocean Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 567 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Ocean Township have?
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #276 of 468 in New Jersey. 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 Ocean Township neighbors.
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 →