More than half of Ward Township’s land is conserved: 83%
83% of Ward Township’s land is conserved, about 20,081 acres. 5,694 acres are parks and preserves, 4,671 per 1,000 residents. 33 miles of mapped trail cross Ward Township, 0.9 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 91% of U.S. towns. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Ward Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Ward Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Ward Township is ahead of 91% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
20,081 conserved acres
83% of Ward Township’s land. Who manages Ward Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wayne National Forest National Forest | U.S. Forest Service | 14,468 | Open |
| Sunday Creek Coal Co Wildlife Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 3,313 | Open |
| Wallace H. O'Dowd Wildlife Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 2,337 | Open |
| Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
1 places to go in Ward Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
5 named trails and 5 lakes & rivers
1.4 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
August is the best month for walking in Ward 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 | 9.9 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 38 | 42 | 52 | 65 | 74 | 81 | 84 | 83 | 77 | 66 | 53 | 42 |
| Rain (in) | 3.1 | 2.8 | 3.8 | 4.0 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 3.0 | 3.1 | 3.3 |
February is the driest month (2.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 4.6 inches fall in July, the wettest month. The climate in Ward Township →
Ward Township and its neighbors
Ward Township has the most mapped trails of the 6 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ward Township | 83% | 0.9 | 4,671 | 39% | A |
| Green Township | 17% | 0.5 | 12 | 28% | B |
| York Township | 42% | 0.4 | 324 | 64% | A |
| Trimble Township | 41% | 0.9 | 1,428 | 61% | A |
| Coal Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Nelsonville | 21% | 0.2 | 7 | 72% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Ward Township
How much of Ward Township is conserved land?
83% 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.
Where can I bike in Ward Township?
1.4 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.4 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Ward Township?
98,278 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Ward Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 20,189 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Ward Township have?
Ahead of 91% 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 Ward Township neighbors.
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 →