Homer Airport Critical Habitat Area
Nature preserve
444 acres0.3 mi of trail
Calvin & Coyle Nature Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trail sign
Photo: Beeblebrox at en.wikipedia) · CC BY-SA 3.0BOutdoors
Outdoors in Homer
Homer has 10 miles of mapped trails, 0.7 for every square mile of land
8% of Homer’s land is conserved, about 669 acres. 49 acres are parks and preserves, 8.3 per 1,000 residents. 60% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 62% of U.S. towns · #18 of 41 in Alaska. What drives it
Conserved land
8%
669 acres · of 13.8 sq mi of land
Trails
10 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
49 ac
8.3 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
60%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
9.0 mi
1.4 mi lanes · 7.6 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
5
2 beaches · 2 boat launches
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Homer have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Homer is ahead of 62% of U.S. towns, #18 of 41 in Alaska. Trail miles hold the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
B
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Homer’s overall grade.
Conserved land8% of the land · typical AK town 15% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (10 mi) · AK 0.5 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land8.3 acres of park per 1,000 residents (49 acres) · AK 15 · U.S. 13C+Parks close to home60% of residents within a half mile of a park · AK 36% · U.S. 72%B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 62%
LessMore
Alaska towns of 2,500+ (41)Ahead of 58%
Alaska towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 15%; the U.S., 4%), so Homer’s 8% is ahead of 30% of Alaska towns, while its trails per square mile lead 68% of them.
Water is 45% of Homer’s area (11 of 25 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 4%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B− 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 Homer Airport Critical Habitat Area, with 0.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Karen A. Hornady Hillside Park
Park
27 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Benjamin O. Walters Sr. Memorial Park
Park
3 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 6 parks & preserves
Homer Airport Critical Habitat Area444 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsKaren A. Hornady Hillside Park27 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsBenjamin O. Walters Sr. Memorial Park3 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsEnd Of The Road Park2 acres
DirectionsBishops Beach Park1 acres · City of Homer
DirectionsBayview Park1 acres · City of Homer
DirectionsWho protects it
669 conserved acres
8% of Homer’s land. Water is left out: Homer has 13.8 square miles of land and 11.5 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Homer’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife296 ac
Bureau of Land Management263 ac
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service119 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits60 ac
State natural resources8 ac
State Conservation Area · 296 acConservation Easement · 263 acFederal Other or Unknown · 60 acNational Wildlife Refuge · 60 acUnknown Easement · 58 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 303 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 4 of 12 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homer Airport State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 296 | Restricted |
| Homer Visitor Center Administrative Site Federal Other or Unknown | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 119 | Restricted |
| State Land Disposals - Municipal Purposes State Other or Unknown | State natural resources | 8 | Unknown |
| Kachemak Bay Fee Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 3 | Closed |
Things to do
22 places to go in Homer
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Homer
Bishop's Beach
DirectionsPlus 1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Homer
Karen Hornaday PlaygroundIn Karen A. Hornady Hillside Park
DirectionsPlus 4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Homer
2 boat launches without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Homer
Baycrest Overlook
DirectionsBeluga Wetlands Overlook
DirectionsBeluga Wetlands OverlookIn Homer Airport Critical Habitat Area
DirectionsPlus 7 scenic views without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Homer
Karen Hornaday CampgroundFee · In Karen A. Hornady Hillside Park · City of Homer
DirectionsMariner Park
DirectionsPlus 1 campground without a name on the map.
Trails & water
12 named trails and 5 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.6 miUnpaved · 7.1 mi
Calvin & Coyle Nature Trail0.8 mi
Mud Bay Trail0.5 mi
Reber Trail0.4 mi
Paul Banks Trail0.2 mi
Poopdeck Platt Trail0.2 mi
East Fairview Avenue Bike Path0.2 mi
Beluga Slough Trail0.2 mi
Mud Bay Access Trail0.1 mi
Pine Terrace Circle0.1 mi
Calhoun Trail0.1 mi
2 more trails
Lee Drive Extension East
0.1 miWHE to Forest Glen
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
9.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.4 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
7.6 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
6Baseball
4Tracks
3Multi-sport
2Soccer
2Basketball
1Skate park
1Tennis
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 2 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Thorn-Stingley HouseBuilding · listed 2001
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Homer: June 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) | 6.8 | 9.1 | 11.6 | 14.4 | 17.0 | 18.7 | 18.0 | 15.5 | 12.7 | 10.0 | 7.4 | 6.0 |
| High (°F) | 32 | 35 | 37 | 46 | 54 | 59 | 63 | 63 | 57 | 47 | 38 | 34 |
| Rain (in) | 2.2 | 1.8 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 0.8 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 2.3 | 3.3 | 2.6 | 2.9 | 3.3 |
May is the driest month (0.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 63 °F). 3.3 inches fall in September, the wettest month. The climate in Homer →
Next door
Homer and its neighbors
Homer has the second most mapped trails of the 2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Homer | 8% | 0.7 | 8 | 60% | B |
| Diamond Ridge | 31% | 0.7 | 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 Homer
Where can I hike in Homer?
The longest trail networks: Homer Airport Critical Habitat Area, 0.3 miles; Karen A. Hornady Hillside Park, 0.2 miles; Benjamin O. Walters Sr. Memorial Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Homer is conserved land?
8% 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 Homer’s trails?
Homer Airport Critical Habitat Area and Karen A. Hornady Hillside Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Homer?
9.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.4 of painted or protected lanes and 7.6 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Homer?
34,250 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Homer or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 49 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Homer have?
Ahead of 62% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #18 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 Homer 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 →