Creamer's Field Migratory Waterfowl Refuge
Nature preserve
1,417 acres21.5 mi of trail
Jeff Studdert Sleddog TrailsBoreal Forest TrailFarm Road TrailRat Ponds Ski Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Oddfellows House · Photo: Durkeeco · CC BY-SA 3.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Farmers Loop
Farmers Loop has 51 miles of mapped trails, 2.4 for every square mile of land
19% of Farmers Loop’s land is conserved, about 2,655 acres. 523 acres are parks and preserves, 106 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: Creamer's Field Migratory Waterfowl Refuge (21.5 mi), Goldstream Public Use Area (3.8 mi).
Ahead of 79% of U.S. towns · #10 of 41 in Alaska. What drives it
Conserved land
19%
2,655 acres · of 21.8 sq mi of land
Trails
51 mi
2.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
523 ac
106 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
under 1%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
5.3 mi
0.1 mi lanes · 5.2 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
7
What kind of outdoors town is Farmers Loop?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Farmers Loop have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Farmers Loop is ahead of 79% of U.S. towns, #10 of 41 in Alaska. Trail miles hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Farmers Loop’s overall grade.
Conserved land19% of the land · typical AK town 15% · U.S. 4%ATrails2.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (51 mi) · AK 0.5 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land106 acres of park per 1,000 residents (523 acres) · AK 15 · U.S. 13AParks close to home0% of residents within a half mile of a park · AK 36% · U.S. 72%D−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 79%
LessMore
Alaska towns of 2,500+ (41)Ahead of 78%
Alaska towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 15%; the U.S., 4%), so Farmers Loop’s 19% is ahead of 57% of Alaska towns, while its trails per square mile lead 95% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B 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 Creamer's Field Migratory Waterfowl Refuge, with 21.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Goldstream Public Use Area
Managed by Alaska Department of Natural Resources
1,001 acres3.8 mi of trail
Winter Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
2,655 conserved acres
19% of Farmers Loop’s land. Who manages Farmers Loop’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife1,405 ac
State natural resources1,234 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)16 ac
State Conservation Area · 1,405 acState Other or Unknown · 713 acState Recreation Area · 521 acConservation Easement · 16 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 16 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 2 of 5 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Creamer's Field State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 1,405 | Restricted |
| State Land Disposals - Municipal Purposes State Other or Unknown | State natural resources | 601 | Unknown |
| Goldstream Public Use Area State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 521 | Open |
| State Land Disposals - Other Than Municipal State Other or Unknown | State natural resources | 112 | Unknown |
Things to do
1 places to go in Farmers Loop
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Scenic views in Farmers Loop
Observation TowerIn Creamer's Field Migratory Waterfowl Refuge
DirectionsTrails & water
10 named trails and 7 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 1.1 mi
Jeff Studdert Sleddog Trails21.4 mi
Skyline Ridge Trail1.3 mi
After Hours Trail1.1 mi
Secret Trail0.9 mi
Boreal Forest Trail0.8 mi
Skyline - Goldstream Connector0.7 mi
Farm Road Trail0.4 mi
Rat Ponds Ski Trail0.3 mi
Winter Trail0.3 mi
Seasonal Wetland Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
5.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.1 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
5.2 mi
off-road bike paths
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Farmers Loop: May to 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) | 5.0 | 8.3 | 11.5 | 15.0 | 18.6 | 21.8 | 20.2 | 16.5 | 12.9 | 9.5 | 6.0 | 3.7 |
| High (°F) | 2 | 12 | 24 | 44 | 60 | 70 | 71 | 65 | 54 | 33 | 12 | 5 |
| Rain (in) | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 1.9 | 2.5 | 2.4 | 1.6 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 0.6 |
April is the driest month (0.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 71 °F). 2.5 inches fall in July, the wettest month. The climate in Farmers Loop →
Next door
Farmers Loop and its neighbors
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Farmers Loop | 19% | 2.4 | 106 | under 1% | A− |
| Goldstream | 62% | 1.6 | 26 | 1% | A− |
| College | 3% | 5.2 | 19 | 71% | A− |
| Fox | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Steele Creek | 36% | 0.5 | under 1 | under 1% | C+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Farmers Loop
Where can I hike in Farmers Loop?
The longest trail networks: Creamer's Field Migratory Waterfowl Refuge, 21.5 miles; Goldstream Public Use Area, 3.8 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Farmers Loop is conserved land?
19% of its land, against a typical 15% for an Alaska town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Farmers Loop’s trails?
Creamer's Field Migratory Waterfowl Refuge and Goldstream Public Use Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Farmers Loop?
5.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.1 of painted or protected lanes and 5.2 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Farmers Loop?
10,662 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Farmers Loop or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 535 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Farmers Loop have?
Ahead of 79% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #10 of 41 in Alaska. 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 Farmers Loop 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 →