Photo: Michael Boyter · CC BY 2.07% of North Lakes’ land is conserved: 663 acres
2.5 miles of mapped trail cross North Lakes, 0.2 per square mile of land. 52% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 137 acres are parks and preserves, 13 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 50% of U.S. towns · #30 of 41 in Alaska. What drives it
How much outdoors does North Lakes have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, North Lakes is ahead of 50% of U.S. towns, #30 of 41 in Alaska. Conserved land holds the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
Alaska towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 15%; the U.S., 4%), so North Lakes’ 7% is ahead of 28% of Alaska towns, while its trails per square mile lead 22% of them.
Water is 10% of North Lakes’ area (2 of 17 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 6%.
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.
Pick a walk
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
663 conserved acres
7% of North Lakes’ land. Water is left out: North Lakes has 15.5 square miles of land and 1.7 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages North Lakes’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 9 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| State Land Disposals - Municipal Purposes State Other or Unknown | State natural resources | 633 | Unknown |
| Alcantra Athletic Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 103 | Open |
| Segalhorst Aquatic Education Park Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 11 | Open |
| Zephyr Drive Park Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| Cottonwood Shores Park Local Conservation Area | Private owners | 4 | Open |
| Niklason Lake Park Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Cornelius Lake Park Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Wasilla Lake Access Park (Palmdale Dr) Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Anchorage Field Office National Public Lands | Bureau of Land Management | 1 | Open |
10 places to go in North Lakes
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
2 boat launches without a name on the map.
2 named trails and 11 lakes & rivers
3.5 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.
The best walking months in North Lakes: 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) | 6.2 | 8.8 | 11.5 | 14.6 | 17.5 | 19.5 | 18.6 | 15.9 | 12.8 | 9.8 | 7.0 | 5.3 |
| High (°F) | 23 | 29 | 34 | 48 | 59 | 66 | 68 | 65 | 57 | 43 | 29 | 25 |
| Rain (in) | 0.8 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.7 | 1.2 | 1.9 | 2.5 | 2.3 | 1.4 | 0.8 | 1.0 |
April is the driest month (0.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 68 °F). 2.5 inches fall in August, the wettest month. The climate in North Lakes →
North Lakes 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Lakes | 7% | 0.2 | 13 | 52% | B− |
| South Lakes | under 1% | 0.1 | 6 | 15% | D |
| Fishhook | 55% | 0.6 | 1,529 | 4% | A− |
| Tanaina | 37% | 0.1 | 31 | 18% | B |
| Farm Loop | 4% | 0.2 | 16 | 5% | C+ |
| Wasilla | 3% | 0.1 | 32 | 60% | B− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in North Lakes
How much of North Lakes is conserved land?
7% 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 North Lakes’ trails?
Alcantra Recreation Facility doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in North Lakes?
3.5 miles of bike routes are on the map: 3.5 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near North Lakes?
29,911 acres of parks and open public land lie inside North Lakes or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 138 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does North Lakes have?
Ahead of 50% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #30 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 North Lakes 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 →