Thomas F. Riley Wilderness Park
Managed by Orange County
545 acres5.9 mi of trail
Wagon Wheel Canyon TrailOak Canyon TrailVista Ridge TrailMule Deer Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Don Ramey Logan · CC BY 4.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Coto de Caza
Coto de Caza has 22 miles of mapped trails, 2.8 for every square mile of land
19% of Coto de Caza’s land is conserved, about 932 acres. 97% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 765 acres are parks and preserves, 50 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 98% of U.S. towns · #60 of 847 in California. What drives it
Conserved land
19%
932 acres · of 7.8 sq mi of land
Trails
22 mi
2.8 per sq mi of land
Park land
765 ac
50 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
97%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.4 mi
1.4 mi lanes
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Coto de Caza?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Coto de Caza have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Coto de Caza is ahead of 98% of U.S. towns, #60 of 847 in California. 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 Coto de Caza’s overall grade.
Conserved land19% of the land · typical CA town 4% · U.S. 4%ATrails2.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (22 mi) · CA 0.9 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land50 acres of park per 1,000 residents (765 acres) · CA 5 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home97% of residents within a half mile of a park · CA 91% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 98%
LessMore
California towns of 2,500+ (847)Ahead of 93%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be 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 Thomas F. Riley Wilderness Park, with 5.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Ronald W. Caspers Wilderness Park
Managed by Orange County
102 acres0.9 mi of trail
West Ridge TrailWagon Wheel Riding and Hiking Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Cypress Point Park
Park
3 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
932 conserved acres
19% of Coto de Caza’s land. Who manages Coto de Caza’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County739 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits108 ac
Private owners69 ac
Regional Water Districts16 ac
Local Conservation Area · 739 acPrivate Conservation · 108 acPrivate Recreation or Education · 67 acLocal Recreation Area · 16 acLocal Park · 2 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thomas F. Riley Wilderness Park Local Conservation Area | County | 545 | Open |
| Ronald W. Caspers Wilderness Park Local Conservation Area | County | 194 | Open |
| Starr Ranch Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 108 | Restricted |
| Pajaro Park Private Recreation or Education | Private owners | 45 | Restricted |
| Wagon Wheel Sports Park Local Recreation Area | Regional Water Districts | 16 | Open |
| Coto Sports And Recreation Park Private Recreation or Education | Private owners | 14 | Restricted |
| HOA Community Park Private Recreation or Education | Private owners | 7 | Restricted |
| Coto De Caza Dog Park Local Park | Private owners | 2 | Open |
Things to do
16 places to go in Coto de Caza
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Coto de Caza
11 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Coto de Caza
1 dog park without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Scenic views in Coto de Caza
Horned Toad Vista PointIn Thomas F. Riley Wilderness Park
DirectionsSkink Vista PointIn Thomas F. Riley Wilderness Park
DirectionsPicnic areas in Coto de Caza
2 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Trails & water
15 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 6.3 miHorses · 10.4 miUnpaved · 7.6 mi
Westridge Trail1.3 mi
West Ridge Trail1.2 mi
Wagon Wheel Canyon Trail1.2 mi
Oak Canyon Trail1.0 mi
Vista Ridge Trail0.9 mi
Gun Club Spur Trail0.7 mi
Wagon Wheel Riding and Hiking Trail0.7 mi
Mule Deer Trail0.6 mi
La Canada Equestrian Trail0.5 mi
Pheasant Run Trail0.4 mi
5 more trails
Bell View Trail
0.4 miHorned Toad Trail
0.4 miSycamore Loop
0.3 miSouth Wagon Wheel Canyon Trail
0.2 miSonriente Trail
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
1.4 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.4 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
Courts & fields
13Tennis
11Baseball
8Equestrian
7Basketball
2Soccer
1Volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Coto de Caza: April to 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) | 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) | 67 | 67 | 69 | 72 | 74 | 79 | 85 | 87 | 85 | 79 | 73 | 67 |
| Rain (in) | 2.7 | 3.3 | 1.9 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 2.1 |
August is the driest month (under 0.1 in) and the warmest (highs of 87 °F). 3.3 inches fall in February, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 87 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Coto de Caza →
Next door
Coto de Caza 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coto de Caza | 19% | 2.8 | 50 | 97% | A+ |
| Rancho Mission Viejo | 2% | 1.6 | 7 | 95% | B+ |
| Rancho Santa Margarita | 30% | 3.2 | 53 | 99%+ | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Coto de Caza
Where can I hike in Coto de Caza?
The longest trail networks: Thomas F. Riley Wilderness Park, 5.9 miles; Ronald W. Caspers Wilderness Park, 0.9 miles; Cypress Point Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Coto de Caza is conserved land?
19% 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 Coto de Caza’s trails?
Thomas F. Riley Wilderness Park and Ronald W. Caspers Wilderness Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Coto de Caza?
1.4 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.4 of painted or protected lanes.
Is there public land near Coto de Caza?
60,619 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Coto de Caza or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 765 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Coto de Caza have?
Ahead of 98% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #60 of 847 in California. 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 Coto de Caza 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 →