Prairie Oaks Metro Park
Park
612 acres1.7 mi of trail
Coneflower Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Nyttend · Public domainB+Outdoors
Outdoors in Jefferson Township
Jefferson Township has 1,063 acres of parks, 142 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Prairie Oaks Metro Park (1.7 mi). 6% of Jefferson Township’s land is conserved, about 1,601 acres. 6.0 miles of mapped trail cross Jefferson Township, 0.1 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 69% of U.S. towns · #270 of 993 in Ohio. What drives it
Conserved land
6%
1,601 acres · of 42.4 sq mi of land
Trails
6.0 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,063 ac
142 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
74%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
2.1 mi
2.0 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
4
What kind of outdoors town is Jefferson Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Jefferson Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Jefferson Township is ahead of 69% of U.S. towns, #270 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 Jefferson Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land6% of the land · typical OH town 3% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · OH 0.2 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land142 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,063 acres) · OH 15 · U.S. 13AParks close to home74% 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 69%
LessMore
Ohio towns of 2,500+ (993)Ahead of 73%
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 Prairie Oaks Metro Park, with 1.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park
Managed by Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks (Metro Parks)
123 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Converse Park
Park
19 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Garrette Park
Park
11 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Prairie Oaks Metro Park612 acres · 1.7 mi of trail
DirectionsConverse Park19 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park123 acres · Columbus and Franklin County Metro Parks (Metro Parks)
Garrette Park11 acres
Westwood Park6 acres
Who protects it
1,601 conserved acres
6% of Jefferson Township’s land. Who manages Jefferson Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Regional agency897 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)455 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits214 ac
State natural resources101 ac
Town or city37 ac
Local Park · 917 acConservation Easement · 236 acAgricultural Easement · 219 acPrivate Conservation · 122 acLocal Conservation Area · 92 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 450 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 3 of 17 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prairie Oaks Metropark Local Park | Regional agency | 815 | Open |
| Big Darby Creek Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 122 | Unknown |
| The Nature Conservancy Local Conservation Area | Land trusts & nonprofits | 92 | Open |
| Columbus Metropark Land Local Park | Regional agency | 83 | Open |
| Little Darby Scenic River State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 79 | Open |
| Jack "Rock" Mcdowell Athletic Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 17 | Open |
| Little Darby Scenic River - Mcdonald State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 8 | Open |
| Parker Tract Acquisition Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Big Darby Cr SR State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 7 | Restricted |
| Westwood Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
1 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
5 places to go in Jefferson Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Jefferson Township
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Picnic areas in Jefferson Township
2 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 4 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 1.2 mi
Coneflower Trail1.4 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
2.1 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.0 mi
off-road bike paths
0.1 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
13Baseball
9Tennis
3Soccer
2Basketball
2Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
August is the best month for walking in Jefferson 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) | 9.6 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.0 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 36 | 40 | 50 | 64 | 74 | 82 | 85 | 83 | 78 | 65 | 52 | 41 |
| Rain (in) | 2.7 | 2.2 | 3.3 | 3.9 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 2.7 | 2.7 | 2.9 |
February is the driest month (2.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 4.4 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Jefferson Township →
Next door
Jefferson Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Prairie Township10 miBrown Township7.5 miJefferson Township6.0 miLake Darby2.1 miCanaan Township1.3 miFairfield Township0.5 miWest Jefferson0.4 miDeer Creek Township0.2 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson Township | 6% | 0.1 | 142 | 74% | B+ |
| Brown Township | 6% | 0.4 | 230 | 26% | B |
| Lake Darby | 14% | 0.6 | 68 | 99%+ | A+ |
| West Jefferson | 2% | under 0.1 | 16 | 94% | B− |
| Prairie Township | 8% | 0.6 | 32 | 93% | A− |
| Deer Creek Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Canaan Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | 12 | 10% | D |
| Fairfield Township | 3% | under 0.1 | 81 | 24% | C+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Jefferson Township
Where can I hike in Jefferson Township?
The longest trail networks: Prairie Oaks Metro Park, 1.7 miles; Converse Park, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Jefferson Township is conserved land?
6% 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 Jefferson Township’s trails?
Prairie Oaks Metro Park and Battelle Darby Creek Metro Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Jefferson Township?
2.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.0 of off-road paths and 0.1 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Jefferson Township?
12,027 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Jefferson Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,063 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Jefferson Township have?
Ahead of 69% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #270 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 Jefferson 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 →