Jefferson Lake State Park
Managed by Ohio Department of Natural Resources
793 acres9.7 mi of trail
Logan TrailCampground Horse TrailBeaver Dam TrailTrillium Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Photo: Nyttend · Public domainB−Outdoors
Outdoors in Salem Township
Salem Township has 797 acres of parks, 290 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Jefferson Lake State Park (9.7 mi), Quaker Ridge Arboretum & Nature Trails (2.2 mi). 5% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 12 miles of mapped trail cross Salem Township, 0.3 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 53% of U.S. towns · #489 of 993 in Ohio. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
825 acres · of 36.5 sq mi of land
Trails
12 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
797 ac
290 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
5%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
3
What kind of outdoors town is Salem Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Salem Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Salem Township is ahead of 53% of U.S. towns, #489 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 Salem 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 (12 mi) · OH 0.2 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land290 acres of park per 1,000 residents (797 acres) · OH 15 · U.S. 13AParks close to home5% 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
Ohio towns of 2,500+ (993)Ahead of 51%
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 Jefferson Lake State Park, with 9.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Quaker Ridge Arboretum & Nature Trails
Managed by Jefferson County Soil & Water Conservation District
98 acres2.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Who protects it
825 conserved acres
3% of Salem Township’s land. Who manages Salem Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources793 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)32 ac
State Park · 793 acConservation Easement · 32 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 32 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson Lake State Park State Park | State natural resources | 793 | Open |
Things to do
3 places to go in Salem Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Scenic views in Salem Township
Johnathan's OverlookIn Quaker Ridge Arboretum & Nature Trails
DirectionsCampgrounds in Salem Township
Horsemans CampIn Jefferson Lake State Park
DirectionsJefferson Lake CampgroundFee · In Jefferson Lake State Park · OH State Parks
DirectionsTrails & water
8 named trails and 3 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Horses · 8.1 mi
Logan Trail3.8 mi
Campground Horse Trail1.8 mi
Beaver Dam Trail1.3 mi
Trillium Trail1.3 mi
Lakeside Trail0.6 mi
Oak Grove Trail0.5 mi
Hillside Trail0.4 mi
Downhill Trail0.1 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
6Baseball
4Pickleball
3Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Salem 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) | 36 | 39 | 49 | 62 | 71 | 79 | 82 | 82 | 75 | 63 | 51 | 40 |
| Rain (in) | 3.1 | 2.5 | 3.3 | 3.7 | 4.1 | 4.5 | 4.1 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 3.0 | 2.9 | 3.1 |
February is the driest month (2.5 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.5 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Salem Township →
Next door
Salem Township and its neighbors
Salem Township has the most mapped trails of the 7 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Salem Township12 miKnox Township4.1 miRoss Township3.6 miIsland Creek Township1.5 miGerman Township1.2 miWayne Township1.0 miSpringfield Township0.4 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salem Township | 3% | 0.3 | 290 | 5% | B− |
| Ross Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Wayne Township | 1% | under 0.1 | 182 | 2% | C |
| Island Creek Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | 1 | 31% | D |
| German Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Springfield Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | 8 | 48% | D |
| Knox Township | under 1% | 0.1 | 7 | 59% | C− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Salem Township
Where can I hike in Salem Township?
The longest trail networks: Jefferson Lake State Park, 9.7 miles; Quaker Ridge Arboretum & Nature Trails, 2.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Salem 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 Salem Township’s trails?
Jefferson Lake State Park and Quaker Ridge Arboretum & Nature Trails don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Salem Township?
6,544 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Salem Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 797 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Salem Township have?
Ahead of 53% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #489 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 Salem 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 →