Jose Avenue Park
Managed by Santa Cruz, County of
6 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Live Oak
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park in Live Oak
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 3.6 miles of mapped trail cross Live Oak, 1.1 per square mile of land. 70 acres are parks and preserves, 4.2 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 69% of U.S. towns · #370 of 847 in California. What drives it
Conserved land
2%
48 acres · of 3.2 sq mi of land
Trails
3.6 mi
1.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
70 ac
4.2 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
13 mi
12 mi lanes · 0.4 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Live Oak?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Live Oak have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Live Oak is ahead of 69% of U.S. towns, #370 of 847 in California. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Live Oak’s overall grade.
Conserved land2% of the land · typical CA town 4% · U.S. 4%C+Trails1.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (4 mi) · CA 0.9 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land4.2 acres of park per 1,000 residents (70 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 69%
LessMore
California towns of 2,500+ (847)Ahead of 56%
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 Jose Avenue Park, with 0.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Arana Gulch
Managed by Santa Cruz, City of
14 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 10 parks & preserves
Jose Avenue Park6 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Santa Cruz, County of
DirectionsWinkle Farm Park7 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsBrommer Street Park9 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsCoffee Lane Park5 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsHestwood Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Santa Cruz, County of
Rodeo Creek Gulch15 acres
DirectionsArana Gulch14 acres · Santa Cruz, City of
DirectionsChanticleer County Park5 acres
DirectionsHighfield Greenbelt4 acres
Santa Cruz Gardens Park2 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
48 conserved acres
2% of Live Oak’s land. Who manages Live Oak’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County29 ac
Town or city14 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits6 ac
Local Park · 29 acLocal Other or Unknown · 14 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 4 acConservation Easement · 2 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arana Gulch Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 14 | Open |
| Brommer Park Local Park | County | 7 | Open |
| Winkle Farm Park Local Park | County | 7 | Open |
| Jose Avenue Park Local Park | County | 6 | Open |
| Chanticleer County Park Local Park | County | 5 | Open |
| Highfield Greenbelt Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 4 | Open |
| Coffee Lane Park Local Park | County | 3 | Open |
| Santa Cruz Gardens Park Local Park | County | 2 | Open |
| Hestwood Park Local Park | County | 1 | Open |
Things to do
31 places to go in Live Oak
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Live Oak
Brommer Street Park PlaygroundIn Brommer Street Park
DirectionsHestwood Park PlaygroundIn Hestwood Park
DirectionsJose Avenue Park PlaygroundIn Jose Avenue Park
DirectionsLeo's HavenIn Chanticleer County Park
DirectionsSanta Cruz Gardens Park PlaygroundIn Santa Cruz Gardens Park
DirectionsWinkle Farm Park PlaygroundIn Winkle Farm Park
DirectionsPlus 14 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Live Oak
2 dog parks without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Live Oak
1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Live Oak
2 peaks without a name on the map.
Picnic areas in Live Oak
5 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Community gardens in Live Oak
1 community garden without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 0.7 mi
Blue Trail0.4 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
13 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
12 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
0.4 mi
off-road bike paths
0.4 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
8Baseball
7Basketball
6Tennis
1Beach volleyball
1Skate park
1Soccer
1Pickleball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Live Oak: 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 | 14.7 | 14.5 | 13.6 | 12.4 | 11.2 | 10.1 | 9.6 |
| High (°F) | 61 | 61 | 63 | 65 | 67 | 70 | 70 | 71 | 72 | 70 | 65 | 60 |
| Rain (in) | 5.9 | 5.6 | 4.1 | 1.8 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 1.2 | 3.0 | 5.6 |
July is the driest month (under 0.1 in) and September the warmest (highs of 72 °F). 5.9 inches fall in January, the wettest month. The climate in Live Oak →
Next door
Live Oak 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Live Oak | 2% | 1.1 | 4 | 99%+ | B+ |
| Santa Cruz | 26% | 5.9 | 34 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Capitola | 12% | 1.4 | 13 | 99%+ | A |
| Soquel | 4% | 1.5 | 11 | 87% | A− |
| Twin Lakes | 24% | 4.2 | 24 | 99%+ | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Live Oak
Where can I hike in Live Oak?
The longest trail networks: Jose Avenue Park, 0.4 miles; Brommer Street Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Live Oak is conserved land?
2% 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 Live Oak’s trails?
Jose Avenue Park and Rodeo Creek Gulch don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Live Oak?
13 miles of bike routes are on the map: 12 of painted or protected lanes, 0.4 of off-road paths and 0.4 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Live Oak?
34,027 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Live Oak or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 70 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Live Oak have?
Ahead of 69% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #370 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 Live Oak 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 →