Steelhead Beach Regional Park
Park
45 acres0.8 mi of trail
Osprey TrailWillow Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Stepheng3 at English Wikipedia · Public domainBOutdoors
Outdoors in Forestville
Forestville has 58 acres of parks, 16 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Steelhead Beach Regional Park (0.8 mi). 2.4 miles of mapped trail cross Forestville, 0.5 per square mile of land. 4% of Forestville’s land is conserved, about 141 acres.
Ahead of 60% of U.S. towns · #440 of 847 in California. What drives it
Conserved land
4%
141 acres · of 5.3 sq mi of land
Trails
2.4 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
58 ac
16 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
65%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.5 mi
0.5 mi paths
Highest peak
344 ft
Vine Hill
Lakes & rivers
1
1 beach · 1 boat launch
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Forestville have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Forestville is ahead of 60% of U.S. towns, #440 of 847 in California. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
B
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Forestville’s overall grade.
Conserved land4% of the land · typical CA town 4% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (2 mi) · CA 0.9 · U.S. 0.4BPark land16 acres of park per 1,000 residents (58 acres) · CA 5 · U.S. 13BParks close to home65% 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 60%
LessMore
California towns of 2,500+ (847)Ahead of 48%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be B. 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 Steelhead Beach Regional Park, with 0.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Forestville Youth Park
Park
7 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
141 conserved acres
4% of Forestville’s land. Who manages Forestville’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County75 ac
State fish & wildlife45 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits16 ac
Regional agency5 ac
Conservation Easement · 75 acState Recreation Area · 45 acOther Easement · 8 acPrivate Recreation or Education · 7 acRanch Easement · 4 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 88 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steelhead Beach Fishing Access State Recreation Area | State fish & wildlife | 45 | Open |
| Forestville Youth Park Private Recreation or Education | Land trusts & nonprofits | 7 | Open |
Things to do
4 places to go in Forestville
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Forestville
Steelhead BeachIn Steelhead Beach Regional Park
DirectionsBoat launches in Forestville
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Forestville
Vine Hill344 ft elevation
DirectionsPicnic areas in Forestville
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Trails & water
2 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Osprey Trail0.3 mi
Willow Trail0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.5 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.5 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
9Basketball
4Tennis
1Baseball
1Football
1Soccer
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Forestville: May 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) | 9.8 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.2 | 14.8 | 14.6 | 13.6 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.5 |
| High (°F) | 58 | 61 | 64 | 68 | 73 | 78 | 80 | 81 | 81 | 76 | 65 | 58 |
| Rain (in) | 8.1 | 7.9 | 5.4 | 2.7 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 1.9 | 4.2 | 8.5 |
July is the driest month (under 0.1 in) and August the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 8.5 inches fall in December, the wettest month. The climate in Forestville →
Questions about parks and trails in Forestville
Where can I hike in Forestville?
The longest trail networks: Steelhead Beach Regional Park, 0.8 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Forestville is conserved land?
4% 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 Forestville’s trails?
Steelhead Beach Regional Park and Forestville Youth Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Forestville?
0.5 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.5 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Forestville?
11,052 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Forestville or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 58 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Forestville have?
Ahead of 60% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #440 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 Forestville 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 →