Gardena Willows Wetland Preserve
Nature preserve
14 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Jengod · CC BY-SA 4.0C+Outdoors
Outdoors in Gardena
Gardena has 39 acres of parks, 0.7 for every 1,000 residents
93% of residents live within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Gardena Willows Wetland Preserve (0.6 mi). 1% of Gardena’s land is conserved, about 51 acres.
Ahead of 36% of U.S. towns · #650 of 847 in California. What drives it
Conserved land
1%
51 acres · of 5.8 sq mi of land
Trails
1.2 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
39 ac
0.7 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
93%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.3 mi
0.3 mi lanes · 1.0 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Gardena?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Gardena have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Gardena is ahead of 36% of U.S. towns, #650 of 847 in California. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
C+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Gardena’s overall grade.
Conserved land1% of the land · typical CA town 4% · U.S. 4%CTrails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (1 mi) · CA 0.9 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land0.7 acres of park per 1,000 residents (39 acres) · CA 5 · U.S. 13DParks close to home93% 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 36%
LessMore
California towns of 2,500+ (847)Ahead of 23%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to 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 Gardena Willows Wetland Preserve, with 0.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Arthur Lee Johnson Memorial Park
Park
7 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Mas Fukai Park
Park
5 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 8 parks & preserves
Gardena Willows Wetland Preserve14 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsRowley Memorial Park18 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsArthur Lee Johnson Memorial Park7 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsMas Fukai Park5 acres
Freeman Park2 acres
Thornburg Park2 acres
Vincent Bell Memorial Park2 acres
DirectionsGardena Civic Center1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
51 conserved acres
1% of Gardena’s land. Who manages Gardena’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city50 ac
Local Park · 36 acLocal Conservation Area · 14 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rowley Park Local Park | Town or city | 18 | Open |
| Gardena Willows Wetland Preserve Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 14 | Restricted |
| Arthur Lee Johnson Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Mas Fukai Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Thornburg Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Freeman Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Bell Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Ken Nakaoka Community Center Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
8 places to go in Gardena
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Gardena
Primm Memorial
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Gardena
7 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Trails & water
1 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
1.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.3 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
1.0 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
12Tennis
11Basketball
8Baseball
2Skate park
1Football
1Soccer
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Gardena: 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) | 10.1 | 10.9 | 11.9 | 13.0 | 13.9 | 14.4 | 14.2 | 13.4 | 12.3 | 11.3 | 10.3 | 9.9 |
| High (°F) | 68 | 68 | 69 | 72 | 73 | 76 | 80 | 82 | 81 | 78 | 73 | 67 |
| Rain (in) | 2.8 | 3.2 | 1.8 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 0.8 | 2.1 |
August is the driest month (under 0.1 in) and the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 3.2 inches fall in February, the wettest month. The climate in Gardena →
Next door
Gardena 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gardena | 1% | 0.2 | 1 | 93% | C+ |
| Los Angeles | 15% | 1.5 | 9 | 83% | A− |
| Torrance | 3% | 0.5 | 3 | 97% | B |
| Alondra Park | 29% | 0.9 | 26 | 99%+ | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Gardena
Where can I hike in Gardena?
The longest trail networks: Gardena Willows Wetland Preserve, 0.6 miles; Rowley Memorial Park, 0.4 miles; Arthur Lee Johnson Memorial Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Gardena is conserved land?
1% 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 Gardena’s trails?
Gardena Willows Wetland Preserve and Rowley Memorial Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Gardena?
1.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.3 of painted or protected lanes and 1.0 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Gardena?
8,093 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Gardena or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 39 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Gardena have?
Ahead of 36% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #650 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 Gardena 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 →