Salinas Valley Fair Grounds
Managed by Salinas Valley Fair Inc.
25 acres0.5 mi of trail
The Midway
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Overflow Parking
Photo: Binksternet · Public domainA−Outdoors
Outdoors in King City
King City has 13 miles of mapped trails, 3.5 for every square mile of land
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Salinas Valley Fair Grounds (0.5 mi). 6% of King City’s land is conserved, about 151 acres.
Ahead of 84% of U.S. towns · #239 of 847 in California. What drives it
Conserved land
6%
151 acres · of 3.8 sq mi of land
Trails
13 mi
3.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
85 ac
6.3 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
7.3 mi
2.7 mi lanes · 1.2 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is King City?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does King City have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, King City is ahead of 84% of U.S. towns, #239 of 847 in California. Trail miles hold the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of King City’s overall grade.
Conserved land6% of the land · typical CA town 4% · U.S. 4%B+Trails3.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (13 mi) · CA 0.9 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land6.3 acres of park per 1,000 residents (85 acres) · CA 5 · U.S. 13CParks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · CA 91% · U.S. 72%A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 84%
LessMore
California towns of 2,500+ (847)Ahead of 72%
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 Salinas Valley Fair Grounds, with 0.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
King City Linear Park
Managed by Ctiy of King
8 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 11 parks & preserves
Salinas Valley Fair Grounds25 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · Salinas Valley Fair Inc.
DirectionsSan Antonio Park9 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsCity of King Park6 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsCreek Bridge Baseball Park4 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Aera Soccer Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsKing City Linear Park8 acres · Ctiy of King
DirectionsRailroad Park4 acres
DirectionsMills Ranch Central Park4 acres
San Lorenzo County Park3 acres · Monterey County Parks
San Lorenzo Recreational Area3 acres
DirectionsForden Park2 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
151 conserved acres
6% of King City’s land. Who manages King City’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city92 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits47 ac
Regional agency12 ac
County1 ac
Local Recreation Area · 60 acUnknown Easement · 47 acLocal Park · 34 acLocal Historic or Cultural Area · 12 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 45 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| King City Golf Course Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 54 | Restricted |
| King City Park Local Park | Town or city | 20 | Open |
| King City Cemetery Local Historic or Cultural Area | Regional agency | 12 | Open |
| San Antonio Park Local Park | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| CreekBridge Baseball Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| CreekBridge Soccer Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Forden Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| San Lorenzo Park Local Park | County | 1 | Open |
Things to do
46 places to go in King City
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in King City
21 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Trails & water
2 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Old U.S. 1010.6 mi
The Midway0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
7.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.7 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
1.2 mi
off-road bike paths
3.4 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
30Basketball
7Baseball
7Tracks
6Soccer
6Tennis
2Football
1Skate park
1Softball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 9 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
King City Joint Union High School AuditoriumBuilding · listed 1991
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in King City: 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) | 9.9 | 10.8 | 11.9 | 13.1 | 14.1 | 14.6 | 14.4 | 13.5 | 12.4 | 11.2 | 10.2 | 9.7 |
| High (°F) | 62 | 65 | 69 | 72 | 77 | 82 | 85 | 85 | 85 | 79 | 69 | 62 |
| Rain (in) | 2.7 | 2.8 | 2.2 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 2.3 |
July is the driest month (under 0.1 in) and August the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 2.8 inches fall in February, the wettest month. The climate in King City →
Questions about parks and trails in King City
Where can I hike in King City?
The longest trail networks: Salinas Valley Fair Grounds, 0.5 miles; San Antonio Park, 0.4 miles; City of King Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of King City is conserved land?
6% 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 King City’s trails?
Salinas Valley Fair Grounds and San Antonio Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in King City?
7.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.7 of painted or protected lanes, 1.2 of off-road paths and 3.4 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near King City?
6,561 acres of parks and open public land lie inside King City or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 85 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does King City have?
Ahead of 84% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #239 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 King City 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 →