Fernwood State Forest
Managed by Ohio Department of Natural Resources
2,612 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Roseohioresident · CC BY-SA 3.0BOutdoors
Outdoors in Cross Creek Township
Cross Creek Township has 2,594 acres of parks, 336 for every 1,000 residents
13% of Cross Creek Township’s land is conserved, about 2,625 acres. 0.1 miles of mapped trail cross Cross Creek Township. 33% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 56% of U.S. towns · #445 of 993 in Ohio. What drives it
Conserved land
13%
2,625 acres · of 31.3 sq mi of land
Trails
0.1 mi
0.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
2,594 ac
336 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
33%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
3
What kind of outdoors town is Cross Creek Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Cross Creek Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Cross Creek Township is ahead of 56% of U.S. towns, #445 of 993 in Ohio. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
B
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Cross Creek Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land13% of the land · typical OH town 3% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (0 mi) · OH 0.2 · U.S. 0.4DPark land336 acres of park per 1,000 residents (2,594 acres) · OH 15 · U.S. 13AParks close to home33% 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 56%
LessMore
Ohio towns of 2,500+ (993)Ahead of 55%
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Cross Creek Township. OpenStreetMap is mapped by volunteers and coverage varies from town to town, so a town with unmapped parks scores low on them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ 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
2,625 conserved acres
13% of Cross Creek Township’s land. Who manages Cross Creek Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources2,577 ac
Private owners47 ac
Town or city1 ac
State Conservation Area · 2,577 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 47 acLocal Park · 1 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fernwood State Forest State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 2,577 | Open |
| American Electric Power - Cardinal Plant Private Other or Unknown | Private owners | 47 | Open |
| Marshall Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
2 places to go in Cross Creek Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Cross Creek Township
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Trails & water
3 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
10Soccer
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Bantam Ridge SchoolBuilding · listed 1981
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Cross Creek Township: April and 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 | 11.0 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 37 | 41 | 50 | 63 | 72 | 80 | 84 | 83 | 76 | 64 | 52 | 41 |
| Rain (in) | 3.1 | 2.5 | 3.3 | 3.6 | 4.1 | 4.5 | 4.0 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 3.0 | 2.9 | 3.0 |
February is the driest month (2.5 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 4.5 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Cross Creek Township →
Next door
Cross Creek Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Steubenville7.8 miIsland Creek Township1.5 miWayne Township1.0 miWells Township0.4 miCross Creek Township0.1 miSteubenville Township0.1 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cross Creek Township | 13% | under 0.1 | 336 | 33% | B |
| Steubenville | 2% | 0.7 | 9 | 93% | B |
| Island Creek Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | 1 | 31% | D |
| Wayne Township | 1% | under 0.1 | 182 | 2% | C |
| Wells Township | 15% | under 0.1 | 41 | 41% | B− |
| Steubenville Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | 6 | 68% | C− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Cross Creek Township
How much of Cross Creek Township is conserved land?
13% 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 Cross Creek Township’s trails?
Fernwood State Forest doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Cross Creek Township?
7,645 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Cross Creek Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,594 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Cross Creek Township have?
Ahead of 56% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #445 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 Cross Creek 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 →