Cedar Park
Park
88 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Land Design North · Public domainA−Outdoors
Outdoors in Palmer
Palmer has 6.7 miles of mapped trails, 1.3 for every square mile of land
234 acres are parks and preserves, 37 per 1,000 residents. 89% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 4% of Palmer’s land is conserved, about 121 acres.
Ahead of 85% of U.S. towns · #5 of 41 in Alaska. What drives it
Conserved land
4%
121 acres · of 5.1 sq mi of land
Trails
6.7 mi
1.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
234 ac
37 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
89%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
13 mi
5.1 mi lanes · 8.2 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Palmer?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Palmer have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Palmer is ahead of 85% of U.S. towns, #5 of 41 in Alaska. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, conserved land lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Palmer’s overall grade.
Conserved land4% of the land · typical AK town 15% · U.S. 4%B−Trails1.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (7 mi) · AK 0.5 · U.S. 0.4APark land37 acres of park per 1,000 residents (234 acres) · AK 15 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home89% 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 85%
LessMore
Alaska towns of 2,500+ (41)Ahead of 90%
Alaska towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 15%; the U.S., 4%), so Palmer’s 4% is ahead of 15% of Alaska towns, while its trails per square mile lead 80% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A− 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 Cedar Park, with 0.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
All 10 parks & preserves
Cedar Park88 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Matanuska River Park57 acres
DirectionsHistoric Train Depot Park5 acres
DirectionsA-Moosement Park4 acres
DirectionsHistoric Colonial Palmer Park2 acres
DirectionsGazebo Park2 acres
DirectionsBotanical Garden, Palmer Visitor Center2 acres
DirectionsMcKechnie Park1 acres
DirectionsBabb Arboretum1 acres
DirectionsWilson Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
121 conserved acres
4% of Palmer’s land. Who manages Palmer’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city119 ac
Other state land1 ac
Local Recreation Area · 94 acLocal Park · 24 acLocal Historic or Cultural Area · 1 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matanuska River Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 62 | Open |
| Sherrod Soccer \ Baseball Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 24 | Open |
| Babb Arboretum Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Busby / Soule Ball Fields & Herman Tennis Courts Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Alaskan Railroad Trail & Open Space Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| A-Moose-Ment Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Cope Industrial Way Ball Fields Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Palmer Town Square (Colony Square) Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Palmer Downtown Pavilion Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Palmer Community Center / Historic Train Depot Local Historic or Cultural Area | Town or city | 1 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
17 places to go in Palmer
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Palmer
A-Moosement Park PlaygroundIn A-Moosement Park
DirectionsPlus 13 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Picnic areas in Palmer
2 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Community gardens in Palmer
1 community garden without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
3 named trails
Named trails
Open to bikes · 0.6 miUnpaved · 4.5 mi
Palmer Rail-Trail1.6 mi
PHS Trails1.1 mi
Matanuska River Trail0.3 mi
Biking & sports
13 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
5.1 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
8.2 mi
off-road bike paths
0.1 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
9Baseball
7Tracks
3Equestrian
3Basketball
2Soccer
2Softball
1Running tracks
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →11 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.
Palmer DepotBuilding · listed 1978
About itRebarchek, Raymond, Colony FarmBuilding · listed 1978
About itCunningham-Hall Pt-6,Nc-692WObject · listed 1978
About itUnited Protestant ChurchBuilding · listed 1980
About itBailey Colony FarmDistrict · listed 1991
About itHyland HotelBuilding · listed 1991
About itPuhl HouseBuilding · listed 1991
About itMatanuska Colony Community CenterDistrict · listed 1991
About itPatten Colony FarmDistrict · listed 1991
About itCampbell HouseBuilding · listed 2013
About itHigh RidgeBuilding · listed 2021
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Palmer: 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.
| 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 | 5.4 |
| High (°F) | 23 | 29 | 34 | 46 | 58 | 64 | 66 | 63 | 55 | 42 | 28 | 24 |
| Rain (in) | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 0.8 | 1.4 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 2.9 | 1.8 | 1.2 | 1.5 |
April is the driest month (0.5 in) and July the warmest (highs of 66 °F). 3.0 inches fall in August, the wettest month. The climate in Palmer →
Next door
Palmer and its neighbors
Palmer has the 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Palmer | 4% | 1.3 | 37 | 89% | A− |
| Farm Loop | 4% | 0.2 | 16 | 5% | C+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Palmer
Where can I hike in Palmer?
The longest trail networks: Cedar Park, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Palmer is conserved land?
4% 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 Palmer’s trails?
Cedar Park and Matanuska River Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Palmer?
13 miles of bike routes are on the map: 5.1 of painted or protected lanes, 8.2 of off-road paths and 0.1 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Palmer?
42,768 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Palmer or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 234 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Palmer have?
Ahead of 85% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #5 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 Palmer 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 →