Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary
Managed by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
61 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: No machine-readable author provided. Scooterboss assumed (based on copyright claims). · CC BY-SA 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Avila Beach
Avila Beach has 18 miles of mapped trails, 3.0 for every square mile of land
46 acres are parks and preserves, 36 per 1,000 residents. 78% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 2% of Avila Beach’s land is conserved, about 72 acres.
Ahead of 79% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
2%
72 acres · of 6.1 sq mi of land
Trails
18 mi
3.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
46 ac
36 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
78%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
6.2 mi
4.1 mi lanes · 2.0 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Avila Beach?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Avila Beach have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Avila Beach is ahead of 79% of U.S. towns. Trail miles hold the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Avila Beach’s overall grade.
Conserved land2% of the land · typical CA town 4% · U.S. 4%C+Trails3.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (18 mi) · CA 0.9 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land36 acres of park per 1,000 residents (46 acres) · CA 5 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home78% of residents within a half mile of a park · CA 91% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 79%
LessMore
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
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Avila Beach Community Park
Park
1 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Who protects it
72 conserved acres
2% of Avila Beach’s land. Who manages Avila Beach’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County43 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits19 ac
Regional agency7 ac
Town or city3 ac
Local Other or Unknown · 27 acLocal Park · 23 acConservation Easement · 19 acLocal Recreation Area · 3 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 19 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cave Landing Local Other or Unknown | County | 27 | Open |
| Canyon Creek Park Local Park | County | 13 | Open |
| Avila Beach Local Park | Regional agency | 7 | Open |
| Bluff Coastal Trail Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Avila Park Local Park | County | 1 | Open |
| Ontario Road Staging Area Park Local Park | County | 1 | Open |
Things to do
10 places to go in Avila Beach
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Avila Beach
Avila Beach
DirectionsAvila State Beach
DirectionsPirates CoveIn Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary
DirectionsPublic pools in Avila Beach
Natural Hot Spring
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Avila Beach
Avila Bay Club Playground
DirectionsPlus 3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Picnic areas in Avila Beach
1 picnic area without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Campgrounds in Avila Beach
Avila Koa CampgroundFee
DirectionsTrails & water
4 named trails
Named trails
Unpaved · 7.0 mi
Ontario Ridge Trail1.9 mi
Sycamore Crest Trail0.7 mi
Avila Beach Pier0.3 mi
McCarthy Bypass Trail0.2 mi
Biking & sports
6.2 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
4.1 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
2.0 mi
off-road bike paths
0.1 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
6Tennis
4Basketball
3Beach volleyball
2Pickleball
1Golf
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Avila Beach: April 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) | 10.0 | 10.9 | 11.9 | 13.0 | 14.0 | 14.5 | 14.3 | 13.5 | 12.3 | 11.2 | 10.3 | 9.8 |
| High (°F) | 62 | 62 | 63 | 64 | 64 | 66 | 67 | 68 | 69 | 69 | 66 | 62 |
| Rain (in) | 4.0 | 3.7 | 3.0 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.7 | 1.6 | 2.9 |
July is the driest month (under 0.1 in) and September the warmest (highs of 69 °F). 4.0 inches fall in January, the wettest month. The climate in Avila Beach →
Next door
Avila Beach and its neighbors
Avila Beach 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avila Beach | 2% | 3.0 | 36 | 78% | A− |
| Pismo Beach | 12% | 2.3 | 33 | 99%+ | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Avila Beach
Where can I hike in Avila Beach?
The longest trail networks: Avila Beach Community Park, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Avila Beach is conserved land?
2% of its land, against a typical 4% for a California town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Avila Beach’s trails?
Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary and Avila Beach Community Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Avila Beach?
6.2 miles of bike routes are on the map: 4.1 of painted or protected lanes, 2.0 of off-road paths and 0.1 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Avila Beach?
21,964 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Avila Beach or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 46 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Avila Beach have?
Ahead of 79% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Avila Beach 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 →