Dictionary Hill County Preserve
Managed by San Diego County Parks & Recreation
169 acres1.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailhead
A−Outdoors
Outdoors in La Presa
18% of La Presa’s land is conserved: 624 acres
5.1 miles of mapped trail cross La Presa, 0.9 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Dictionary Hill County Preserve (1.2 mi). 80% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 85% of U.S. towns · #236 of 847 in California. What drives it
Conserved land
18%
624 acres · of 5.5 sq mi of land
Trails
5.1 mi
0.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
577 ac
17 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
80%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
7.3 mi
7.0 mi lanes · 0.3 mi paths
Highest peak
1,066 ft
Dictionary Hill
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is La Presa?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does La Presa have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, La Presa is ahead of 85% of U.S. towns, #236 of 847 in California. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; conserved land ranks highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of La Presa’s overall grade.
Conserved land18% of the land · typical CA town 4% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (5 mi) · CA 0.9 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land17 acres of park per 1,000 residents (577 acres) · CA 5 · U.S. 13BParks close to home80% 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 85%
LessMore
California towns of 2,500+ (847)Ahead of 72%
Water is 9% of La Presa’s area (1 of 6 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 16%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A− 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 Dictionary Hill County Preserve, with 1.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Sweetwater Lane County Park
Park
10 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Spring Valley County Park
Park
6 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Who protects it
624 conserved acres
18% of La Presa’s land. Water is left out: La Presa has 5.5 square miles of land and 0.5 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages La Presa’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Regional agency510 ac
County60 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government30 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits23 ac
Local Recreation Area · 510 acLocal Park · 60 acUnknown Easement · 30 acOther Easement · 23 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 55 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sweetwater Reservoir Local Recreation Area | Regional agency | 510 | Open |
| Sweetwater Summit Regional Park Local Park | County | 43 | Open |
| Sweetwater Lane County Park Local Park | County | 9 | Open |
| Spring Valley County Park Local Park | County | 6 | Open |
| Ildica Street Park Local Park | County | 1 | Open |
Things to do
5 places to go in La Presa
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in La Presa
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Peaks in La Presa
Dictionary Hill1,066 ft elevation · In Dictionary Hill County Preserve
DirectionsTrails & water
2 lakes & rivers
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.
7.0 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
0.3 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
11Tennis
10Basketball
8Baseball
2Football
2Soccer
1Softball
1Multi-sport
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in La Presa: 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) | 10.2 | 11.0 | 11.9 | 12.9 | 13.8 | 14.3 | 14.1 | 13.3 | 12.3 | 11.3 | 10.4 | 10.0 |
| High (°F) | 69 | 68 | 70 | 72 | 73 | 77 | 82 | 85 | 84 | 79 | 74 | 68 |
| Rain (in) | 2.2 | 2.5 | 1.9 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 1.9 |
July is the driest month (under 0.1 in) and August the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 2.5 inches fall in February, the wettest month. The climate in La Presa →
Next door
La Presa 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| La Presa | 18% | 0.9 | 17 | 80% | A− |
| Spring Valley | 29% | 1.3 | 6 | 83% | A− |
| San Diego | 26% | 2.2 | 28 | 97% | A+ |
| Bonita | 14% | 1.4 | 30 | 99% | A+ |
| Lemon Grove | 1% | 0.4 | 1 | 93% | C+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in La Presa
Where can I hike in La Presa?
The longest trail networks: Dictionary Hill County Preserve, 1.2 miles; Sweetwater Lane County Park, 0.4 miles; Spring Valley County Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of La Presa is conserved land?
18% 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 La Presa’s trails?
Dictionary Hill County Preserve and Sweetwater Lane County Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in La Presa?
7.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 7.0 of painted or protected lanes and 0.3 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near La Presa?
43,750 acres of parks and open public land lie inside La Presa or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 577 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does La Presa have?
Ahead of 85% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #236 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 La Presa 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 →