1
Swan Creek Greenway
Park
183 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
DirectionsTo the trailhead
Outdoors · Athens
Athens, AL parks, trails & bike paths
There are about 5.0 miles of mapped trails.
Conserved land, trails, parks and bike routes in Athens, measured from OpenStreetMap and USGS data.
At a glance
Athens outdoors
Conserved land
0.5%
142 of 26,886 acres
Trails
5.0 mi
0.1 mi per sq mi
Parks & preserves
9
5 conserved acres per 1,000 residents
Bike routes
3.8 mi
0.0 mi lanes · 2.7 mi off-road paths
Conserved land is a share of the whole town area. Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number or a place below to zoom in© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Parks & preserves with trails
Ranked by mapped trail miles. Directions go to the nearest marked trailhead or public parking.
2
Athens Sportsplex
Managed by City of Athens Parks & Recreation Dept.
96 acres
Dog rules not recorded
3
Jimmy Gill Park
Park
14 acres
Dog rules not recorded
DirectionsTo the parking lot
4
Athens Swan Creek Park
Park
11 acres0.2 mi of trail
Golden Eagle Trail
Dog rules not recorded
All 9 parks & preserves
Athens Swan Creek Park11 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Swan Creek Greenway183 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Lincoln-Bridgeforth Park3 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · City of Athens Parks & Recreation Dept.
Athens Sportsplex96 acres · City of Athens Parks & Recreation Dept.
Jimmy Gill Park14 acres
Fifth Avenue Park8 acres · City of Athens Parks and Recreation Department
Athens-Limestone Fitness Park8 acres
Big Spring Park4 acres · City of Athens Parks & Recreation Dept.
Athens Lions Club Carnival Grounds1 acres
Things to do
Beaches, playgrounds, falls & more
Pick a kind of place for the list, directions, or pins on the map above.
Playgrounds in Athens
Showing 1–10 of 42 playgrounds
All Kids ParkIn Athens Sportsplex
Unnamed playground
Unnamed playground
Unnamed playground
Unnamed playground
Unnamed playground in Lincoln-Bridgeforth Park
Unnamed playground
Unnamed playground
Unnamed playground
Unnamed playground
Trails
Named trails
Open to bikes 1.2 miUnpaved 2.3 mi
- Golden Eagle Trail1.0 mi
Water
Lakes & rivers
Braly LakelakeHatfield LakereservoirLake IdalakeMontgomery LakepondLake IdaPiney CreekRound Island CreekSwan CreekTown Creek
Tap a name for directions.
Who protects the land
142 conserved acres
Who manages it, from PAD-US. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn't always mean open to visitors. Public access isn't recorded for 1 of 8 parcels. The places listed above are parks and preserves people visit.
Biking & sports
Bike routes, courts & fields
- Painted or protected bike lanes0.0 mi
- Off-road bike paths2.7 mi
- Shoulders & shared lanes1.1 mi
Courts & fields
- Tennis24
- Baseball19
- Basketball10
- Soccer9
- Football4
- Pickleball2
- Tracks2
Counts include school and college facilities, which aren't always open to the public.
Public lands
The biggest protected places in Athens
From USGS PAD-US: who manages each one and whether visitors are welcome.
Local Recreation Area 96 acLocal Park 40 acFederal Other or Unknown 6 ac
| Place | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Athens SportsplexLocal Recreation Area | Town or city | 96 | Open |
| Athens-Limestone ParkLocal Park | Town or city | 14 | Open |
| Fifth Ave ParkLocal Park | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| Wheeler Reservoir Retained LandFederal Other or Unknown | Tennessee Valley Authority | 6 | Access unknown |
| Jimmy Gill ParkLocal Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Athens Limestone Fitness ParkLocal Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Big Spring ParkLocal Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Trinity ParkLocal Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
History
Historic places to visit
Showing 1–10 of 17 places
Athens State College Historic DistrictDistrict
HelicopterMonument
Trinity School CisternRuins
Swan Creek Greenway TrailIn Swan Creek Greenway
Andrews CemeteryCemetery
Apostolic Christian Church CemeteryCemetery
Athens City CemeteryCemetery
Cambridge Church CemeteryCemetery
Evans CemeteryCemetery
Hine-Hobbs Street CemeteryCemetery
Nearby
Athens and its neighbors
Towns whose outdoors data has been built so far.
| Town | Conserved | Trails | Parks & preserves |
|---|---|---|---|
| Athens | 0.5% | 5.0 mi | 9 |
| Huntsville | 6.2% | 168.4 mi | 84 |
Trail talk
Conditions & tips from neighbors
No recent posts about Athens's trails yet. Muddy, icy, a bridge out, where to park: a quick post helps the next person.
Sources: trails, parks, preserves, courts and bike lanes © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), map data as of 2026-09-28. Conserved land: USGS Gap Analysis Project, Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US). Measured against the Census town boundary.
How we measure
"Trails" are OpenStreetMap paths, bridleways, public tracks and unpaved footways, plus footways inside a park or preserve or on a named trail route. Sidewalks are left out. Areas are counted on a 37.7-meter grid, so overlapping parcels count once. "Conserved" includes conservation easements, which protect land from development but are usually private property. Trailheads are the nearest marked trailhead, public parking lot or information board within about 150 meters of a preserve. Dog rules come from OpenStreetMap when someone has tagged them; otherwise we show what's typical for the land manager, or say the rules aren't recorded.