Ten Oaks · Photo: Jeffery Steading · CC BY-SA 3.0Jacksonville has 99 acres of parks, 6.9 for every 1,000 residents
0.2 miles of mapped trail cross Jacksonville. 4% of Jacksonville’s land is conserved, about 279 acres. 59% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 31% of U.S. towns · #74 of 187 in Alabama. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Jacksonville?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Jacksonville have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Jacksonville is ahead of 31% of U.S. towns, #74 of 187 in Alabama. Conserved land holds the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
Few Alabama towns conserve much land (a typical one, 1%; the U.S., 4%), so Jacksonville’s 4% is ahead of 84% of Alabama towns, while its trails per square mile lead 17% of them.
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.
Talladega National Forest
Chief Ladiga Landing
279 conserved acres
4% of Jacksonville’s land. Who manages Jacksonville’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 206 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Henry Farm Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 39 | Open |
| Jacksonville Community Center Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 19 | Open |
| Talladega National Forest National Forest | U.S. Forest Service | 8 | Open |
| Jacksonville City Park Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Open |
1 places to go in Jacksonville
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
5.4 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.
8 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 5 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
The best walking months in Jacksonville: April and May
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) | 10.1 | 10.9 | 11.9 | 13.0 | 13.9 | 14.4 | 14.2 | 13.4 | 12.3 | 11.3 | 10.4 | 9.9 |
| High (°F) | 54 | 58 | 66 | 75 | 81 | 87 | 90 | 89 | 85 | 75 | 65 | 56 |
| Rain (in) | 5.1 | 5.1 | 5.4 | 4.6 | 4.2 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 3.9 | 3.6 | 3.3 | 4.4 | 4.9 |
October is the driest month (3.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 90 °F). 5.4 inches fall in March, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 90 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Jacksonville →
Questions about parks and trails in Jacksonville
How much of Jacksonville is conserved land?
4% of its land, against a typical 1% for an Alabama town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Jacksonville’s trails?
Germania Springs Park and Talladega National Forest don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Jacksonville?
5.4 miles of bike routes are on the map: 5.4 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Jacksonville?
52,306 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Jacksonville or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 107 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Jacksonville have?
Ahead of 31% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #74 of 187 in Alabama. 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 Jacksonville 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 →