Darby Plains/Wet Prairie Restoration Area
Nature preserve
569 acres3.1 mi of trail
Teal TrailDarby Creek Greenway TrailHarrier Loop
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Prairie Township
Prairie Township has 555 acres of parks, 32 for every 1,000 residents
93% of residents live within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Darby Plains/Wet Prairie Restoration Area (3.1 mi). 8% of Prairie Township’s land is conserved, about 954 acres.
Ahead of 84% of U.S. towns · #109 of 993 in Ohio. What drives it
Conserved land
8%
954 acres · of 18.3 sq mi of land
Trails
10 mi
0.6 per sq mi of land
Park land
555 ac
32 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
93%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
14 mi
3.3 mi lanes · 2.7 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Prairie Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Prairie Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Prairie Township is ahead of 84% of U.S. towns, #109 of 993 in Ohio. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of residents near a park ranks highest, trail miles lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Prairie Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land8% of the land · typical OH town 3% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.6 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (10 mi) · OH 0.2 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land32 acres of park per 1,000 residents (555 acres) · OH 15 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home93% of residents within a half mile of a park · OH 60% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 84%
LessMore
Ohio towns of 2,500+ (993)Ahead of 89%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A− 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 Darby Plains/Wet Prairie Restoration Area, with 3.1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Lakota Park
Park
3 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
954 conserved acres
8% of Prairie Township’s land. Who manages Prairie Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city490 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)199 ac
Regional Water Districts158 ac
Private owners101 ac
Not recorded5 ac
Local Conservation Area · 367 acConservation Easement · 300 acLocal Park · 186 acPrivate Park · 101 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 300 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Davis And Sons Property Acquisition Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 206 | Open |
| Galloway Road Parkland Coh Local Park | Town or city | 122 | Open |
| Darby Creek Conservation Tnc Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 103 | Open |
| Thorn Apple Country Club Private Park | Private owners | 101 | Open |
| Alton Area Riparian Buffer Local Conservation Area | Regional Water Districts | 58 | Open |
| Alkire Road Park Local Park | Town or city | 25 | Open |
| Unknown Park Local Park | Town or city | 10 | Open |
| Clover Parkland Local Park | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| Hellbranch Confluence Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Carl Frye Park Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
2 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
12 places to go in Prairie Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Prairie Township
Lincoln Village Park
DirectionsPlus 10 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Scenic views in Prairie Township
1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
4 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 6.6 mi
Darby Creek Greenway Trail3.0 mi
Teal Trail1.6 mi
Darby Dan Training Loop1.1 mi
Harrier Loop0.6 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
14 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
3.3 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
2.7 mi
off-road bike paths
7.8 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Darby Creek TrailBike route
3 miCourts & fields
9Tennis
6Baseball
2Soccer
2Football
2Basketball
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 Prairie 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 | 51 | 64 | 74 | 82 | 85 | 84 | 78 | 65 | 52 | 41 |
| Rain (in) | 2.6 | 2.3 | 3.3 | 3.9 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 3.4 | 3.1 | 2.8 | 2.7 | 2.9 |
February is the driest month (2.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 4.4 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Prairie Township →
Next door
Prairie Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Columbus138 miPleasant Township29 miPrairie Township10 miBrown Township7.5 miJefferson Township6.0 miLake Darby2.1 miWest Jefferson0.4 miLincoln Village0.2 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prairie Township | 8% | 0.6 | 32 | 93% | A− |
| Columbus | 9% | 0.6 | 13 | 94% | A− |
| Jefferson Township | 6% | 0.1 | 142 | 74% | B+ |
| Lake Darby | 14% | 0.6 | 68 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Lincoln Village | 1% | 0.1 | 1 | 97% | C |
| West Jefferson | 2% | under 0.1 | 16 | 94% | B− |
| Brown Township | 6% | 0.4 | 230 | 26% | B |
| Pleasant Township | 16% | 0.7 | 637 | 44% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Prairie Township
Where can I hike in Prairie Township?
The longest trail networks: Darby Plains/Wet Prairie Restoration Area, 3.1 miles; Lakota Park, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Prairie Township is conserved land?
8% 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 Prairie Township’s trails?
Darby Plains/Wet Prairie Restoration Area and Lakota Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Prairie Township?
14 miles of bike routes are on the map: 3.3 of painted or protected lanes, 2.7 of off-road paths and 7.8 of shoulders and shared lanes. Named routes: Darby Creek Trail.
Is there public land near Prairie Township?
16,420 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Prairie Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 656 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Prairie Township have?
Ahead of 84% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #109 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 Prairie 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 →