Boch Hollow State Nature Preserve
Managed by Ohio Department of Natural Resources
624 acres6.9 mi of trail
Buckeye TrailMeadow TrailNorth Trailhead
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailheadWebsite ↗
Photo: Nyttend · Public domainB−Outdoors
Outdoors in Marion Township
Marion Township has 645 acres of parks, 262 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Boch Hollow State Nature Preserve (6.9 mi), Rockbridge State Nature Preserve (0.5 mi). 7% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 13 miles of mapped trail cross Marion Township, 0.3 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 53% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
753 acres · of 37.0 sq mi of land
Trails
13 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
645 ac
262 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
7%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
6
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Marion Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Marion Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Marion Township is ahead of 53% 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 Marion Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical OH town 3% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (13 mi) · OH 0.2 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land262 acres of park per 1,000 residents (645 acres) · OH 15 · U.S. 13AParks close to home7% of residents within a half mile of a park · OH 60% · U.S. 72%D
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 53%
LessMore
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C 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 Boch Hollow State Nature Preserve, with 6.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Rockbridge State Nature Preserve
Managed by Ohio Division of Natural Resources
59 acres0.5 mi of trail
Rock Shelter Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Who protects it
753 conserved acres
3% of Marion Township’s land. Who manages Marion Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources690 ac
Private owners63 ac
State Conservation Area · 690 acPrivate Park · 39 acPrivate Recreation or Education · 24 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boch Hollow Dedicated Nature Preserve State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 620 | Open |
| Rockbridge Dedicated Nature Preserve State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 50 | Closed |
| Hide-A-Way Hills Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 39 | Open |
| Camp Akita Private Recreation or Education | Private owners | 24 | Open |
| Kessler Swamp Dedicated Nature Preserve State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 20 | Restricted |
Things to do
3 places to go in Marion Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Boat launches in Marion Township
Trip #1
DirectionsFishing spots in Marion Township
1 fishing spot without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Campgrounds in Marion Township
Camp AkitaFee · First Community Church of Columbus
DirectionsTrails & water
4 named trails and 6 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 6.7 mi
Buckeye Trail5.4 mi
Meadow Trail0.7 mi
Rock Shelter Trail0.5 mi
North Trailhead0.3 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
2Tennis
1Baseball
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 Marion 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 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 15.0 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 37 | 41 | 51 | 64 | 73 | 81 | 84 | 83 | 77 | 65 | 52 | 42 |
| Rain (in) | 3.1 | 2.7 | 3.7 | 4.0 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 3.5 | 3.1 | 3.0 | 3.1 | 3.3 |
February is the driest month (2.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 4.4 inches fall in July, the wettest month. The climate in Marion Township →
Next door
Marion Township and its neighbors
Marion Township has the second most mapped trails of the 6 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Monday Creek Township16 miMarion Township13 miBerne Township12 miGood Hope Township11 miFalls Township7.2 miRush Creek Township1.5 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marion Township | 3% | 0.3 | 262 | 7% | B− |
| Monday Creek Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Rush Creek Township | 1% | under 0.1 | 4 | 35% | D |
| Falls Township | 6% | 0.1 | 9 | 59% | C+ |
| Berne Township | 3% | 0.3 | 110 | 18% | B− |
| Good Hope Township | 25% | 0.4 | 596 | 24% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Marion Township
Where can I hike in Marion Township?
The longest trail networks: Boch Hollow State Nature Preserve, 6.9 miles; Rockbridge State Nature Preserve, 0.5 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Marion Township is conserved land?
3% 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 Marion Township’s trails?
Boch Hollow State Nature Preserve and Rockbridge State Nature Preserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Marion Township?
44,473 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Marion Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 645 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Marion Township have?
Ahead of 53% 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 Marion 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 →