Sandusky Hollow Nature Preserve
Park
95 acres1.8 mi of trail
Sandusky Hollow
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: User:OHWiki · CC BY-SA 2.5AOutdoors
Outdoors in Ashland
Ashland has 9.1 miles of mapped trails, 0.8 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Sandusky Hollow Nature Preserve (1.8 mi), Brookside Park (0.8 mi), Brookside West Park (0.6 mi). 9% of Ashland’s land is conserved, about 668 acres. 628 acres are parks and preserves, 33 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 86% of U.S. towns · #85 of 993 in Ohio. What drives it
Conserved land
9%
668 acres · of 11.4 sq mi of land
Trails
9.1 mi
0.8 per sq mi of land
Park land
628 ac
33 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
87%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Ashland?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Ashland have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Ashland is ahead of 86% of U.S. towns, #85 of 993 in Ohio. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Ashland’s overall grade.
Conserved land9% of the land · typical OH town 3% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (9 mi) · OH 0.2 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land33 acres of park per 1,000 residents (628 acres) · OH 15 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home87% of residents within a half mile of a park · OH 60% · U.S. 72%B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 86%
LessMore
Ohio towns of 2,500+ (993)Ahead of 92%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A− 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
The longest trail network is Sandusky Hollow Nature Preserve, with 1.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
All 12 parks & preserves
Sandusky Hollow Nature Preserve95 acres · 1.8 mi of trail
DirectionsBrookside Park30 acres · 0.8 mi of trail
DirectionsBrookside West Park53 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsAshland Community Soccer Stadium27 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsCahn Grove Park7 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsFreer Field82 acres
DirectionsAshland County Fairgrounds61 acres
Davis Road Park8 acres
DirectionsEmmons Field2 acres
Evergreen Park2 acres
Audubon Wetlands Preserve1 acres
Corner Park1 acres
Who protects it
668 conserved acres
9% of Ashland’s land. Who manages Ashland’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city468 ac
Private owners142 ac
County59 ac
Local Recreation Area · 186 acLocal Conservation Area · 145 acPrivate Park · 142 acLocal Park · 118 acLocal Other or Unknown · 58 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Country Club of Ashland Private Park | Private owners | 142 | Open |
| Brookside Municipal Golf Course Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 135 | Open |
| Sandusky Hollow Nature Preserve Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 99 | Open |
| Ashland County Fairgrounds Local Other or Unknown | County | 58 | Open |
| Brookside West Park Local Park | Town or city | 51 | Open |
| Jamison Creek Nature Preserve Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 46 | Open |
| Ringler Soccer Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 34 | Open |
| Brookside Park Local Park | Town or city | 33 | Open |
| Brookside Nature Walk State Recreation Area | Town or city | 19 | Open |
| Sarver Field / Donges Field Local Park | Town or city | 16 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
29 places to go in Ashland
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Ashland
2 public pools without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in Ashland
"Me Too" Inclusive PlaygroundIn Freer Field
DirectionsThe Tot LotIn Brookside Park
DirectionsPlus 20 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Dog parks in Ashland
Ashland Dog ParkIn Brookside West Park
DirectionsBrookside Dog ParkIn Brookside West Park
DirectionsBrookside West Dog ParkIn Brookside West Park
DirectionsPlus 2 dog parks without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 1.8 mi
Sandusky Hollow1.6 mi
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
17Baseball
17Tennis
10Soccer
7Tracks
6Basketball
5Football
3Pickleball
2Equestrian
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →6 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 4 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Center Street Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1976
About itAshland County CourthouseBuilding · listed 1979
About itMyers Block-Home Company BuildingBuilding · listed 1997
About itDowntown Ashland Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2013
About itAshland County Children's HomeDistrict · listed 2019
About itArthur Street SchoolBuilding · listed 2021
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Ashland: April, August 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 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.1 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 34 | 37 | 47 | 61 | 71 | 80 | 83 | 82 | 75 | 63 | 50 | 39 |
| Rain (in) | 2.8 | 2.3 | 2.9 | 3.7 | 4.0 | 4.4 | 3.7 | 3.3 | 3.3 | 3.1 | 2.7 | 2.7 |
February is the driest month (2.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.4 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Ashland →
Next door
Ashland and its neighbors
Ashland has the most mapped trails of the 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ashland | 9% | 0.8 | 33 | 87% | A |
| Montgomery Township | 1% | under 0.1 | 6 | 10% | D |
| Milton Township | 1% | 0.1 | 7 | 8% | D |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Ashland
Where can I hike in Ashland?
The longest trail networks: Sandusky Hollow Nature Preserve, 1.8 miles; Brookside Park, 0.8 miles; Brookside West Park, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Ashland is conserved land?
9% of its land, against a typical 3% for an Ohio town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Ashland’s trails?
Sandusky Hollow Nature Preserve and Brookside Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Ashland?
1,566 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Ashland or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 628 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Ashland have?
Ahead of 86% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #85 of 993 in Ohio. 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 Ashland 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 →