Orchard Hills Park
Park
192 acres2.4 mi of trail
McIntosh TrailWhite Pine TrailPine Warbler Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Jf1123581321 · CC BY-SA 3.0BOutdoors
Outdoors in Chester Township
Chester Township has 458 acres of parks, 46 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Orchard Hills Park (2.4 mi), Sunnybrook Preserve (1.3 mi), Bessie Benner Metzenbaum Park (0.6 mi). 5% of Chester Township’s land is conserved, about 812 acres. 6.3 miles of mapped trail cross Chester Township, 0.3 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 60% of U.S. towns · #386 of 993 in Ohio. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
812 acres · of 23.4 sq mi of land
Trails
6.3 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
458 ac
46 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
46%
of residents within ½ mile
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Chester Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Chester Township is ahead of 60% of U.S. towns, #386 of 993 in Ohio. 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 Chester Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical OH town 3% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · OH 0.2 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land46 acres of park per 1,000 residents (458 acres) · OH 15 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home46% 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 60%
LessMore
Ohio towns of 2,500+ (993)Ahead of 61%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B− 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 Orchard Hills Park, with 2.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Sunnybrook Preserve
Managed by Geauga Park District
305 acres1.3 mi of trail
Woodland TrailJumping Mouse Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Bessie Benner Metzenbaum Park
Nature preserve
66 acres0.6 mi of trail
Summit TrailGriswold Creek Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 6 parks & preserves
Orchard Hills Park192 acres · 2.4 mi of trail
DirectionsSunnybrook Preserve305 acres · 1.3 mi of trail · Geauga Park District
Bessie Benner Metzenbaum Park66 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsChesterland City Park7 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsChester Recycle Park6 acres
DirectionsFarmpark2 acres · Lake Metroparks
Who protects it
812 conserved acres
5% of Chester Township’s land. Who manages Chester Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits724 ac
County376 ac
Regional agency109 ac
Private owners72 ac
Town or city4 ac
Unknown Easement · 614 acLocal Conservation Area · 284 acLocal Park · 167 acPrivate Conservation · 110 acPrivate Park · 72 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 211 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orchard Hills Preserve Local Conservation Area | County | 212 | Open |
| Mayer Preserve Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 110 | Open |
| Geauga Bowman's Club Private Park | Private owners | 72 | Open |
| Sunnybrook Preserve Local Conservation Area | Regional agency | 71 | Open |
| Ruh Property Local Park | County | 70 | Open |
| Bessie Benner Metzenbaum Park Local Park | County | 65 | Open |
| Unknown Local Other or Unknown | Regional agency | 37 | Open |
| Heymeyer Property Local Park | County | 27 | Open |
| Chesterland City Park Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Lake County Farm Park Local Park | County | 2 | Open |
1 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
28 places to go in Chester Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Chester Township
2 public pools without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in Chester Township
20 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Fishing spots in Chester Township
3 fishing spots without a name on the map.
Waterfalls in Chester Township
2 waterfalls without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Chester Township
1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
7 named trails
Named trails
Unpaved · 2.8 mi
McIntosh Trail1.4 mi
Woodland Trail0.8 mi
Summit Trail0.5 mi
Jumping Mouse Trail0.5 mi
White Pine Trail0.3 mi
Pine Warbler Trail0.2 mi
Griswold Creek Trail0.1 mi
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
30Tennis
16Baseball
16Soccer
6Basketball
5Tracks
4Pickleball
3Football
1Multi-sport
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 7 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Chester Township: May to 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 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 33 | 36 | 45 | 58 | 69 | 77 | 81 | 80 | 73 | 61 | 49 | 38 |
| Rain (in) | 3.2 | 2.4 | 3.1 | 3.8 | 3.9 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 3.8 | 4.2 | 4.0 | 3.7 | 3.4 |
February is the driest month (2.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.3 inches fall in July, the wettest month. The climate in Chester Township →
Next door
Chester Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Kirtland21 miRussell Township11 miChester Township6.3 miMunson Township2.8 miGates Mills2.5 miChesterland2.4 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chester Township | 5% | 0.3 | 46 | 46% | B |
| Russell Township | 17% | 0.6 | 164 | 49% | A− |
| Munson Township | 15% | 0.1 | 140 | 31% | B |
| Chesterland | 1% | 0.2 | 14 | 34% | C |
| Gates Mills | 17% | 0.3 | 92 | 55% | A− |
| Kirtland | 20% | 1.2 | 192 | 28% | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Chester Township
Where can I hike in Chester Township?
The longest trail networks: Orchard Hills Park, 2.4 miles; Sunnybrook Preserve, 1.3 miles; Bessie Benner Metzenbaum Park, 0.6 miles; Chesterland City Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Chester Township is conserved land?
5% 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 Chester Township’s trails?
Orchard Hills Park and Sunnybrook Preserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Chester Township?
25,857 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Chester Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 458 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Chester Township have?
Ahead of 60% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #386 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 Chester 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 →