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–Not graded
Outdoors in Gustavus

More than half of Gustavus’ land is conserved: 74%

74% of Gustavus’ land is conserved, about 16,462 acres. 3,989 acres are parks and preserves, 6,716 per 1,000 residents. 9.6 miles of mapped trail cross Gustavus, 0.3 per square mile of land.

Conserved land
74%
16,462 acres · of 34.9 sq mi of land
Trails
9.6 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
3,989 ac
6,716 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
15%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
2
16 boat launches
The map

Conserved land, trails & bike routes

Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.

1234
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk

Pick a walk

Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.

Glacier Bay Wilderness

Nature preserve
1,053 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet

Tongass National Forest

Managed by United States Forest Service
101 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet

Pleasant/Lemusurier/Inian Islands Wilderness

Nature preserve
101 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗

Gustavus Beach Park

Managed by City of Gustavus
48 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 6 parks & preserves
Glacier Bay Wilderness1,053 acres
Tongass National Forest101 acres · United States Forest Service
Pleasant/Lemusurier/Inian Islands Wilderness101 acres
Gustavus Beach Park48 acres · City of Gustavus
Directions
Fox Field Park9 acres
Directions
Salmon River Park2 acres · City of Gustavus
Who protects it

16,462 conserved acres

74% of Gustavus’ land. Water is left out: Gustavus has 34.9 square miles of land and 20.6 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Gustavus’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.

National Park Service7,378 ac
State natural resources6,711 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits4,325 ac
U.S. Forest Service15 ac
National Park · 7,378 acState Conservation Area · 3,647 acState Other or Unknown · 3,064 acPrivate Conservation · 2,582 acConservation Easement · 1,743 ac
Good to know

Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 4 of 7 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.

The biggest protected parcels
Parcel (PAD-US)Managed byAcresPublic access
Glacier Bay National Park
National Park
National Park Service7,378Open
Dude Creek Critical Habitat Area
State Conservation Area
State natural resources3,647Restricted
Gustavus Flats Fee
Private Conservation
Land trusts & nonprofits2,582Unknown
State Patented
State Other or Unknown
State natural resources2,338Unknown
State Land Disposals - Other Than Municipal
State Other or Unknown
State natural resources726Unknown
Tongass National Forest
National Forest
U.S. Forest Service15Open
Things to do

19 places to go in Gustavus

Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.

Campgrounds in Gustavus
Bartlett Cove Campground
Directions
Trails & water

6 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers

Named trails
Unpaved · 1.0 mi
Nagoonberry Nature Trail1.2 mi
Bartlett Lake Trail1.1 mi
Point Gustavus1.1 mi
Forest Loop0.7 mi
Tlingit Trail0.6 mi
Bartlett River Trail0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Airport PondpondGood River
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
1Softball

Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.

When to get out

The best walking months in Gustavus: June and July

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.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)7.09.211.614.316.818.317.615.412.710.17.76.4
High (°F)333740495762636356483935
Rain (in)4.93.63.52.82.82.54.25.77.68.36.36.5

June is the driest month (2.5 in) and July the warmest (highs of 63 °F). 8.3 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Gustavus →

Questions about parks and trails in Gustavus

Are dogs allowed on Gustavus’ trails?

Glacier Bay Wilderness and Tongass National Forest don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.

Is there public land near Gustavus?

71,837 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Gustavus or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 3,989 of them inside the city line.

Trail talk

Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Gustavus neighbors.

Town Square →
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 →