Halls Creek Woods State Nature Preserve
Managed by Ohio Department of Natural Resources
268 acres1.5 mi of trail
Knob Loop TrailPaw Paw Trail
No dogs
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Nyttend · Public domainBOutdoors
Outdoors in Salem Township
Salem Township has 473 acres of parks, 87 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Halls Creek Woods State Nature Preserve (1.5 mi). 1.9 miles of mapped trail cross Salem Township, 0.1 per square mile of land. 4% of Salem Township’s land is conserved, about 578 acres.
Ahead of 56% of U.S. towns · #440 of 993 in Ohio. What drives it
Conserved land
4%
578 acres · of 22.1 sq mi of land
Trails
1.9 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
473 ac
87 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
60%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
3.4 mi
3.4 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
4
2 boat launches
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 56% of U.S. towns, #440 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 Salem Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land4% of the land · typical OH town 3% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (2 mi) · OH 0.2 · U.S. 0.4CPark land87 acres of park per 1,000 residents (473 acres) · OH 15 · U.S. 13AParks close to home60% 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 56%
LessMore
Ohio towns of 2,500+ (993)Ahead of 56%
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 Halls Creek Woods State Nature Preserve, with 1.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Thornton Park
Managed by Village of Morrow
57 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Morrow Veterans Memorial Park
Managed by Warren County Parks
32 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Little Miami State Park
Managed by Ohio Department of Natural Resources
27 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
All 5 parks & preserves
Halls Creek Woods State Nature Preserve268 acres · 1.5 mi of trail · Ohio Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsThornton Park57 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Village of Morrow
Morrow Veterans Memorial Park32 acres · Warren County Parks
DirectionsLittle Miami State Park27 acres · Ohio Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsPhegley Park1 acres · Village of Morrow
DirectionsWho protects it
578 conserved acres
4% 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 resources255 ac
Private owners201 ac
Town or city62 ac
County34 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)26 ac
State Conservation Area · 255 acUnknown · 112 acLocal Park · 96 acPrivate Recreation or Education · 81 acConservation Easement · 26 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 26 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Halls Creek Dedicated Nature Preserve State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 255 | Closed |
| Warren Co. Conservation Unknown | Private owners | 112 | Closed |
| Thornton Park Local Park | Town or city | 58 | Open |
| Camp Wy-Ca-Key Private Recreation or Education | Private owners | 57 | Open |
| Wilders Warren County Parkland Local Park | County | 34 | Open |
| Dayton Girl Scout Camp Private Recreation or Education | Private owners | 24 | Open |
| Belwood Country Club Private Park | Private owners | 8 | Open |
| Westpoint Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Phegley Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Bishop Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
8 places to go in Salem Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Salem Township
5 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Salem Township
Halls Creek Scenic River Acccess
DirectionsPlus 1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Waterfalls in Salem Township
1 waterfall without a name on the map.
Trails & water
2 named trails and 4 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 1.5 mi
Knob Loop Trail1.1 mi
Paw Paw Trail0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
3.4 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
3.4 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
10Baseball
9Soccer
2Basketball
2Equestrian
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 Salem 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 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 14.9 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 38 | 43 | 52 | 65 | 75 | 83 | 86 | 85 | 79 | 67 | 53 | 43 |
| Rain (in) | 3.3 | 2.8 | 3.8 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.0 | 3.4 | 3.1 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 3.4 |
February is the driest month (2.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 86 °F). 4.8 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Salem Township →
Next door
Salem Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Hamilton Township5.3 miTurtlecreek Township4.2 miWashington Township3.0 miSalem Township1.9 miUnion Township0.9 miHarlan 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 | 4% | 0.1 | 87 | 60% | B |
| Harlan Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | 10 | 13% | D |
| Washington Township | 2% | 0.1 | 141 | 20% | C+ |
| Hamilton Township | 3% | 0.2 | 22 | 42% | C+ |
| Union Township | 1% | 0.1 | 13 | 72% | C |
| Turtlecreek Township | 3% | 0.1 | 46 | 17% | 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: Halls Creek Woods State Nature Preserve, 1.5 miles; Thornton Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Salem Township is conserved land?
4% 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?
Halls Creek Woods State Nature Preserve and Thornton Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Salem Township?
3.4 miles of bike routes are on the map: 3.4 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Salem Township?
14,788 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Salem Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 473 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Salem Township have?
Ahead of 56% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #440 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 →