Strait Creek Prairie Bluffs Nature Preserve
Managed by The Nature Conservancy
45 acres0.4 mi of trail
Buckeye Trail
Dogs usually not allowed
Directionsto the trailheadWebsite ↗
Photo: Aesopposea · CC BY-SA 3.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Brushcreek Township
Brushcreek Township has 2,043 acres of parks, 1,597 for every 1,000 residents
7% of Brushcreek Township’s land is conserved, about 2,074 acres. 21% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 20 miles of mapped trail cross Brushcreek Township, 0.5 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 70% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
2,074 acres · of 43.3 sq mi of land
Trails
20 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
2,043 ac
1,597 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
21%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,329 ft
Long Lick Hill
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Brushcreek Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Brushcreek Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Brushcreek Township is ahead of 70% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Brushcreek Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical OH town 3% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (20 mi) · OH 0.2 · U.S. 0.4BPark land1,597 acres of park per 1,000 residents (2,043 acres) · OH 15 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home21% of residents within a half mile of a park · OH 60% · U.S. 72%C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 70%
LessMore
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
The longest trail network is Strait Creek Prairie Bluffs Nature Preserve, with 0.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Highlands Nature Sanctuary
Managed by Arc of Appalachia
105 acres
No dogs
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Who protects it
2,074 conserved acres
7% of Brushcreek Township’s land. Who manages Brushcreek Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Joint1,159 ac
State natural resources655 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits259 ac
State Historic or Cultural Area · 1,159 acState Conservation Area · 655 acPrivate Conservation · 259 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 5 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fort Hill State Memorial State Historic or Cultural Area | Joint | 1,159 | Open |
| Pike State Forest State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 655 | Open |
| Spruce Hill-Rocky Fork-Hope Springs-Rock Run-Kamama Prairie Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 115 | Open |
| Plum Run Prairie/Morgan's Fork Woods/Rocky Fork Creek Acquisitions Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 100 | Open |
| Strait Creek Prairie Bluffs Fee Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 44 | Unknown |
Things to do
20 places to go in Brushcreek Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Brushcreek Township
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Brushcreek Township
Long Lick Hill1,329 ft elevation
DirectionsWashburn Hill1,329 ft elevation
DirectionsMcCoppin Hill1,319 ft elevation
DirectionsBrown Hill1,309 ft elevation
DirectionsFort Hill1,286 ft elevation
DirectionsStultz Hill1,266 ft elevation
DirectionsEaston Hill1,263 ft elevation
DirectionsSlate Hill1,263 ft elevation
Directions11 more peaks
Irons Mountain1,260 ft elevation
DirectionsButler Hill1,243 ft elevation
DirectionsJarnigan Knob1,240 ft elevation
DirectionsReeds Hill1,234 ft elevation
DirectionsHeads Hill1,220 ft elevation
DirectionsSpargur Hill1,220 ft elevation
DirectionsBrushy Knob1,181 ft elevation
DirectionsRoundtop1,178 ft elevation
DirectionsWickerham Hill1,178 ft elevation
DirectionsMurren Hill1,148 ft elevation
DirectionsHigh Knob1,086 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
5 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 10.0 mi
Buckeye Trail3.3 mi
Gorge Trail3.1 mi
Fort Trail2.1 mi
Deer Trail1.1 mi
Connector0.1 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
3Basketball
1Beach volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
August is the best month for walking in Brushcreek 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) | 9.7 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 14.9 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 39 | 43 | 53 | 66 | 74 | 82 | 85 | 84 | 78 | 67 | 54 | 43 |
| Rain (in) | 3.2 | 3.1 | 4.0 | 4.4 | 4.9 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 3.4 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 3.5 |
November is the driest month (3.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 4.9 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Brushcreek Township →
Next door
Brushcreek Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Mifflin Township30 miPaint Township22 miBrushcreek Township20 miMarshall Township3.4 miPerry Township3.1 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brushcreek Township | 7% | 0.5 | 1,597 | 21% | B+ |
| Paint Township | 22% | 0.4 | 653 | 51% | A− |
| Marshall Township | 8% | 0.2 | 1,072 | 41% | B+ |
| Perry Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Mifflin Township | 14% | 0.6 | 2,811 | 49% | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Brushcreek Township
Where can I hike in Brushcreek Township?
The longest trail networks: Strait Creek Prairie Bluffs Nature Preserve, 0.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Brushcreek Township is conserved land?
7% 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 Brushcreek Township’s trails?
Strait Creek Prairie Bluffs Nature Preserve and Highlands Nature Sanctuary don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Brushcreek Township?
29,441 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Brushcreek Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,043 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Brushcreek Township have?
Ahead of 70% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Brushcreek 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 →