Jack London State Historic Park
Managed by California Department of Parks and Recreation
593 acres6.7 mi of trail
Mountain TrailSonoma Ridge TrailQuarry TrailVineyard Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: CVB · CC BY-SA 4.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Glen Ellen
Glen Ellen has 6.9 miles of mapped trails, 3.3 for every square mile of land
45% of Glen Ellen’s land is conserved, about 597 acres. 418 acres are parks and preserves, 388 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: Jack London State Historic Park (6.7 mi).
Among the top 1% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
45%
597 acres · of 2.1 sq mi of land
Trails
6.9 mi
3.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
418 ac
388 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
83%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Glen Ellen?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
A trail town3.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 98% of U.S. towns.Land that stays wild45% of the land is conserved; a typical California town, 4%.Room to roam388 acres of park per 1,000 residents; the typical U.S. town has 13.History along the way3 places on the National Register.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Glen Ellen have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Glen Ellen is among the top 1% of U.S. towns. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Glen Ellen’s overall grade.
Conserved land45% of the land · typical CA town 4% · U.S. 4%A+Trails3.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (7 mi) · CA 0.9 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land388 acres of park per 1,000 residents (418 acres) · CA 5 · U.S. 13AParks close to home83% of residents within a half mile of a park · CA 91% · U.S. 72%B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Among the top 1%
LessMore
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 Jack London State Historic Park, with 6.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
597 conserved acres
45% of Glen Ellen’s land. Who manages Glen Ellen’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State parks595 ac
County5 ac
State Historic or Cultural Area · 419 acConservation Easement · 177 acLocal Park · 5 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 173 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jack London State Historic Park State Historic or Cultural Area | State parks | 419 | Open |
| Sonoma Valley Regional Park Local Park | County | 5 | Open |
Things to do
1 places to go in Glen Ellen
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Picnic areas in Glen Ellen
1 picnic area without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
10 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 4.4 miHorses · 3.7 miUnpaved · 6.0 mi
Mountain Trail2.0 mi
Sonoma Ridge Trail0.5 mi
Quarry Trail0.5 mi
Vineyard Trail0.5 mi
New Fallen Bridge Trail0.4 mi
Lake Trail0.4 mi
Old Fallen Bridge Trail0.3 mi
Upper Fallen Bridge Trail0.3 mi
Upper Lake Trail0.2 mi
Lake Spur0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
1Tennis
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 places on the National Register, one a National Historic Landmark
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Glen Ellen: 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) | 9.8 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.1 | 14.2 | 14.8 | 14.6 | 13.6 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.5 |
| High (°F) | 55 | 58 | 61 | 65 | 71 | 78 | 82 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 62 | 55 |
| Rain (in) | 7.6 | 7.4 | 5.4 | 2.5 | 1.5 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 2.0 | 4.2 | 8.4 |
July is the driest month (under 0.1 in) and August the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 8.4 inches fall in December, the wettest month. The climate in Glen Ellen →
Questions about parks and trails in Glen Ellen
Where can I hike in Glen Ellen?
The longest trail networks: Jack London State Historic Park, 6.7 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Glen Ellen is conserved land?
45% 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 Glen Ellen’s trails?
Jack London State Historic Park and Sonoma Valley Regional Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Glen Ellen?
19,045 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Glen Ellen or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 418 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Glen Ellen have?
Among the top 1% 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 Glen Ellen 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 →