Eagle Creek State Nature Preserve
Managed by Ohio Department of Natural Resources
547 acres2.9 mi of trail
ClubmossGoldenrodAccess
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailhead
Photo: Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States · CC BY-SA 2.0BOutdoors
Outdoors in Nelson Township
Nelson Township has 501 acres of parks, 161 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Eagle Creek State Nature Preserve (2.9 mi), Nelson-Kennedy Ledges State Park (1.7 mi). 5% of Nelson Township’s land is conserved, about 797 acres. 39% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 61% of U.S. towns · #380 of 993 in Ohio. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
797 acres · of 24.1 sq mi of land
Trails
5.1 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
501 ac
161 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
39%
of residents within ½ mile
What kind of outdoors town is Nelson Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Nelson Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Nelson Township is ahead of 61% of U.S. towns, #380 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 Nelson Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical OH town 3% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (5 mi) · OH 0.2 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land161 acres of park per 1,000 residents (501 acres) · OH 15 · U.S. 13AParks close to home39% 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 61%
LessMore
Ohio towns of 2,500+ (993)Ahead of 62%
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 Eagle Creek State Nature Preserve, with 2.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Nelson-Kennedy Ledges State Park
Managed by Ohio State Parks & Watercraft
65 acres1.7 mi of trail
Blue TrailWhite TrailYellow TrailRed Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailheadWebsite ↗
Who protects it
797 conserved acres
5% of Nelson Township’s land. Who manages Nelson Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources406 ac
Private owners268 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)124 ac
State Conservation Area · 236 acState Park · 170 acPrivate Recreation or Education · 139 acPrivate Park · 129 acConservation Easement · 124 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 124 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eagle Creek State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 236 | Open |
| Nelson-Kennedy Ledges State Park State Park | State natural resources | 170 | Open |
| Sugar Bush Golf Club Private Park | Private owners | 129 | Open |
| A & A Shooting & Hunting Club Private Recreation or Education | Private owners | 79 | Closed |
| Nelsons Ledges Quarry Park Private Recreation or Education | Private owners | 60 | Open |
Things to do
4 places to go in Nelson Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Waterfalls in Nelson Township
Cascade FallsIn Nelson-Kennedy Ledges State Park
DirectionsMinnehaha FallsIn Nelson-Kennedy Ledges State Park
DirectionsCampgrounds in Nelson Township
Kool Lakes Family Campground
DirectionsPlus 1 campground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
7 named trails
Named trails
Unpaved · 4.5 mi
Clubmoss1.1 mi
Blue Trail0.8 mi
Goldenrod0.7 mi
White Trail0.3 mi
Access0.3 mi
Yellow Trail0.2 mi
Red Trail0.2 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
1Baseball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Nelson Township: April, May, August and 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 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.1 | 14.9 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 34 | 37 | 46 | 60 | 70 | 78 | 82 | 81 | 74 | 62 | 49 | 39 |
| Rain (in) | 3.0 | 2.4 | 3.1 | 3.8 | 3.9 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 3.6 | 3.9 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
February is the driest month (2.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.3 inches fall in July, the wettest month. The climate in Nelson Township →
Next door
Nelson Township and its neighbors
Nelson Township has the second most mapped trails of the 6 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Hiram Township13 miNelson Township5.1 miParkman Township1.4 miGarrettsville1.0 miSouthington Township0.7 miWindham Township0.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nelson Township | 5% | 0.2 | 161 | 39% | B |
| Garrettsville | 3% | 0.4 | 17 | 84% | B |
| Hiram Township | 10% | 0.6 | 224 | 22% | B+ |
| Parkman Township | 7% | 0.1 | 121 | 33% | B− |
| Windham Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Southington Township | 2% | under 0.1 | 5 | 5% | D |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Nelson Township
Where can I hike in Nelson Township?
The longest trail networks: Eagle Creek State Nature Preserve, 2.9 miles; Nelson-Kennedy Ledges State Park, 1.7 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Nelson 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 Nelson Township’s trails?
Eagle Creek State Nature Preserve and Nelson-Kennedy Ledges State Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Nelson Township?
18,839 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Nelson Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 501 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Nelson Township have?
Ahead of 61% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #380 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 Nelson 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 →