Bald Mountain Recreation Area
Managed by Bureau of Land Management
1,479 acres7.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Janesville
Janesville has 1,747 acres of parks, 728 for every 1,000 residents
26% of Janesville’s land is conserved, about 5,611 acres. The biggest trail networks: Bald Mountain Recreation Area (7.7 mi). 11% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 69% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
26%
5,611 acres · of 33.8 sq mi of land
Trails
7.8 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,747 ac
728 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
11%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
4,413 ft
Jim Peterson Hill
What kind of outdoors town is Janesville?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Janesville have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Janesville is ahead of 69% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Janesville’s overall grade.
Conserved land26% of the land · typical CA town 4% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (8 mi) · CA 0.9 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land728 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,747 acres) · CA 5 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home11% of residents within a half mile of a park · CA 91% · U.S. 72%C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 69%
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
The longest trail network is Bald Mountain Recreation Area, with 7.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Bass Hill Wildlife Area
Managed by California Department of Fish and Wildlife
1,745 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Who protects it
5,611 conserved acres
26% of Janesville’s land. Who manages Janesville’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
U.S. Forest Service2,382 ac
State fish & wildlife1,747 ac
Bureau of Land Management1,477 ac
County5 ac
National Forest · 2,382 acState Conservation Area · 1,747 acNational Public Lands · 1,477 acLocal Park · 5 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plumas National Forest National Forest | U.S. Forest Service | 2,382 | Open |
| Bass Hill Wildlife Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 1,747 | Open |
| Eagle Lake Field Office National Public Lands | Bureau of Land Management | 1,477 | Open |
| Janesville Park Local Park | County | 5 | Open |
Things to do
1 places to go in Janesville
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Peaks in Janesville
Jim Peterson Hill4,413 ft elevation
DirectionsBiking & 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
1Soccer
1Baseball
1Tennis
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Janesville: April to June
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) | 9.6 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.0 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 44 | 49 | 56 | 62 | 72 | 82 | 91 | 89 | 82 | 69 | 53 | 43 |
| Rain (in) | 2.0 | 1.8 | 1.5 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 2.3 |
August is the driest month (0.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 91 °F). 2.3 inches fall in December, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 91 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Janesville →
Questions about parks and trails in Janesville
Where can I hike in Janesville?
The longest trail networks: Bald Mountain Recreation Area, 7.7 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Janesville is conserved land?
26% 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 Janesville’s trails?
Bald Mountain Recreation Area and Bass Hill Wildlife Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Janesville?
168,589 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Janesville or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 5,627 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Janesville have?
Ahead of 69% 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 Janesville 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 →