Garden Canyon Linear Park
Park
169 acres3.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Murray Springs Clovis Site · Photo: Ammodramus · CC0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Sierra Vista
Sierra Vista has 157 miles of mapped trails, 1.0 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Garden Canyon Linear Park (3.4 mi), San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area (0.9 mi), Tompkins Park (0.9 mi). 85% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 7% of Sierra Vista’s land is conserved, about 6,705 acres.
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns · #40 of 140 in Arizona. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
6,705 acres · of 152.4 sq mi of land
Trails
157 mi
1.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
774 ac
17 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
85%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
32 mi
3.0 mi lanes · 29 mi paths
Highest peak
8,379 ft
Huachuca Peak
What kind of outdoors town is Sierra Vista?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Sierra Vista have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Sierra Vista is ahead of 80% of U.S. towns, #40 of 140 in Arizona. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Sierra Vista’s overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical AZ town 14% · U.S. 4%B+Trails1.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (157 mi) · AZ 1.1 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land17 acres of park per 1,000 residents (774 acres) · AZ 8 · U.S. 13BParks close to home85% of residents within a half mile of a park · AZ 56% · U.S. 72%B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 80%
LessMore
Arizona towns of 2,500+ (140)Ahead of 72%
Arizona towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 14%; the U.S., 4%), so Sierra Vista’s 7% is ahead of 35% of Arizona towns, while its trails per square mile lead 49% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ 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 Garden Canyon Linear Park, with 3.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area
Managed by Bureau of Land Management
89 acres0.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Murray Springs Clovis Site Parking
Tompkins Park
Park
20 acres0.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Veterans' Memorial Park
Managed by City of Sierra Vista
36 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 18 parks & preserves
Garden Canyon Linear Park169 acres · 3.4 mi of trail
DirectionsSan Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area89 acres · 0.9 mi of trail · Bureau of Land Management
DirectionsTompkins Park20 acres · 0.9 mi of trail
Veterans' Memorial Park36 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · City of Sierra Vista
DirectionsLen Roberts Park12 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsCyr Center Park10 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsLower Garden Canyon Picnic Area13 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsNancy Hakes Park4 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Heritage Park79 acres
DirectionsNorth Parade Field16 acres
DirectionsBrown Parade Field12 acres
DirectionsWoodcutter's Linear Park9 acres
DirectionsMiller Peak Wilderness7 acres · United States Forest Service
Soldier Creek Park7 acres
DirectionsBella Vista Park1 acres
Upper Garden Canyon1 acres
DirectionsMiddle Garden Canyon Picnic Area1 acres
Country Club Park1 acres
Who protects it
6,705 conserved acres
7% of Sierra Vista’s land. Who manages Sierra Vista’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State Department of Land6,074 ac
Town or city473 ac
Private owners81 ac
U.S. Forest Service49 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits48 ac
Joint47 ac
Other state land23 ac
State Resource Management Area · 6,074 acLocal Park · 461 acLocal Recreation Area · 109 acNational Forest · 49 acUnknown Easement · 26 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 2 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 3 of 37 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| State Trust Land State Resource Management Area | State Department of Land | 6,074 | Restricted |
| Garden Canyon Linear Park Local Park | Town or city | 151 | Open |
| Sierra Vista Recreation Center Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 89 | Open |
| Mission Hills Linear Park Local Park | Private owners | 51 | Open |
| Coronado National Forest National Forest | U.S. Forest Service | 49 | Open |
| Veterans Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 36 | Open |
| South Garden Linear Park Local Park | Town or city | 24 | Open |
| Upper San Pedro Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 24 | Closed |
| Woodcutter's Canyon Linear Park State Park | Other state land | 23 | Open |
| Javalina Park Local Park | Town or city | 23 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
52 places to go in Sierra Vista
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Sierra Vista
Soldier Creek PlaygroundIn Soldier Creek Park
Directions34 playgrounds are on OpenStreetMap in all; the list shows named ones from the first 30.
Dog parks in Sierra Vista
2 dog parks without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Scenic views in Sierra Vista
2 scenic views without a name on the map.
Peaks in Sierra Vista
Huachuca Peak8,379 ft elevation
DirectionsLyle Peak7,831 ft elevation
DirectionsDemonstration Hill4,951 ft elevation
DirectionsScott's Peak
DirectionsSplit Rock
DirectionsSplit Rock Peak
DirectionsStar Hill
DirectionsPicnic areas in Sierra Vista
Plus 3 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Disc golf in Sierra Vista
Disc Golf
DirectionsTrails & water
9 named trails
Named trails
Open to bikes · 14.1 miHorses · 6.5 miUnpaved · 27.7 mi
Huachuca Canton Trail1.4 mi
Huachuca Peak Trail #1211.4 mi
Split Rock Canyon1.3 mi
Lower Huachuca Trail1.1 mi
Crest Trail #1030.3 mi
Fenced Military Reservation Boundary0.2 mi
Peterson Peak Trail #1190.2 mi
Drainageway Public0.1 mi
San Pedro Trail0.1 mi
Biking & sports
32 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
3.0 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
29 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
33Tennis
20Baseball
8Basketball
8Pickleball
3Soccer
3Football
2Volleyball
2Beach volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →4 places on the National Register, 2 of them National Historic Landmarks
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.
When to get out
The best walking months in Sierra Vista: 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) | 10.3 | 11.0 | 11.9 | 12.9 | 13.7 | 14.2 | 14.0 | 13.3 | 12.3 | 11.3 | 10.5 | 10.1 |
| High (°F) | 61 | 64 | 70 | 77 | 85 | 94 | 91 | 89 | 87 | 79 | 69 | 60 |
| Rain (in) | 0.9 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 3.5 | 3.3 | 1.9 | 0.7 | 0.5 | 1.0 |
May is the driest month (0.2 in) and June the warmest (highs of 94 °F). 3.5 inches fall in July, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 94 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Sierra Vista →
Next door
Sierra Vista and its neighbors
Sierra Vista has the most mapped trails of the 4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sierra Vista | 7% | 1.0 | 17 | 85% | A− |
| Sierra Vista Southeast | 39% | 0.9 | 6 | 19% | B |
| Huachuca City | 2% | 0.7 | 9 | 79% | B |
| Whetstone | 43% | 0.6 | 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 Sierra Vista
Where can I hike in Sierra Vista?
The longest trail networks: Garden Canyon Linear Park, 3.4 miles; San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area, 0.9 miles; Tompkins Park, 0.9 miles; Veterans' Memorial Park, 0.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Sierra Vista is conserved land?
7% of its land, against a typical 14% for an Arizona town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Sierra Vista’s trails?
Garden Canyon Linear Park and San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Sierra Vista?
32 miles of bike routes are on the map: 3.0 of painted or protected lanes and 29 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Sierra Vista?
146,838 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Sierra Vista or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 872 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Sierra Vista have?
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #40 of 140 in Arizona. 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 Sierra Vista 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 →