San Diego National Wildlife Refuge
Managed by United States Fish and Wildlife Service
711 acres4.8 mi of trail
El Tae Singletrack
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailheadWebsite ↗
Bancroft, Hubert H., Ranchhouse · Photo: Flickr user Allan Ferguson · CC BY 2.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Spring Valley
29% of Spring Valley’s land is conserved: 1,336 acres
9.7 miles of mapped trail cross Spring Valley, 1.3 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: San Diego National Wildlife Refuge (4.8 mi), Lamar County Park (0.7 mi). 83% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 82% of U.S. towns · #273 of 847 in California. What drives it
Conserved land
29%
1,336 acres · of 7.3 sq mi of land
Trails
9.7 mi
1.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
203 ac
6.3 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
83%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
9.1 mi
9.1 mi lanes
Highest peak
622 ft
Hartzel Hill
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Spring Valley?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Spring Valley have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Spring Valley is ahead of 82% of U.S. towns, #273 of 847 in California. Conserved land holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Spring Valley’s overall grade.
Conserved land29% of the land · typical CA town 4% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (10 mi) · CA 0.9 · U.S. 0.4APark land6.3 acres of park per 1,000 residents (203 acres) · CA 5 · U.S. 13C+Parks 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)Ahead of 82%
LessMore
California towns of 2,500+ (847)Ahead of 68%
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 San Diego National Wildlife Refuge, with 4.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Del Parque County Park
Park
4 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 7 parks & preserves
San Diego National Wildlife Refuge711 acres · 4.8 mi of trail · United States Fish and Wildlife Service
DirectionsLamar County Park9 acres · 0.7 mi of trail
DirectionsDel Parque County Park4 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
Hatfield Park7 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsDictionary Hill County Preserve3 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · San Diego County Parks & Recreation
Bancroft County Park1 acres
Goodland Acres Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
1,336 conserved acres
29% of Spring Valley’s land. Who manages Spring Valley’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service1,533 ac
Private owners170 ac
Regional agency167 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government136 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits70 ac
County24 ac
National Wildlife Refuge · 1,533 acUnknown Easement · 208 acLocal Recreation Area · 167 acRanch Easement · 97 acOther Easement · 70 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 379 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego National Wildlife Refuge National Wildlife Refuge | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 1,533 | Restricted |
| Sweetwater Reservoir Local Recreation Area | Regional agency | 167 | Open |
| Lamar Park Local Park | County | 10 | Open |
| Del Parque Park Local Park | County | 9 | Open |
| Bancroft Park Local Park | County | 5 | Open |
| Goodland Acres Park Local Park | County | 1 | Open |
Things to do
6 places to go in Spring Valley
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Spring Valley
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Spring Valley
1 dog park without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Spring Valley
Hartzel Hill622 ft elevation
DirectionsPicnic areas in Spring Valley
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.8 miHorses · 1.8 miUnpaved · 6.3 mi
El Tae Singletrack1.8 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
9.1 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
9.1 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
0.1 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
20Tennis
13Basketball
6Baseball
4Pickleball
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register, one a National Historic Landmark
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The best walking months in Spring Valley: April to July
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 | 73 | 74 | 79 | 84 | 86 | 85 | 80 | 74 | 68 |
| Rain (in) | 2.4 | 2.6 | 2.0 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 1.1 | 1.9 |
August is the driest month (under 0.1 in) and the warmest (highs of 86 °F). 2.6 inches fall in February, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 86 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Spring Valley →
Next door
Spring Valley and its neighbors
Spring Valley has the most mapped trails of the 6 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Spring Valley9.7 miLa Presa5.1 miRancho San Diego4.4 miLa Mesa2.4 miLemon Grove1.5 miCasa de Oro-Mount Helix1.1 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring Valley | 29% | 1.3 | 6 | 83% | A− |
| La Presa | 18% | 0.9 | 17 | 80% | A− |
| Casa de Oro-Mount Helix | 1% | 0.2 | 1 | 64% | C− |
| Lemon Grove | 1% | 0.4 | 1 | 93% | C+ |
| Rancho San Diego | 14% | 0.5 | 7 | 84% | B+ |
| La Mesa | 3% | 0.3 | 2 | 96% | B− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Spring Valley
Where can I hike in Spring Valley?
The longest trail networks: San Diego National Wildlife Refuge, 4.8 miles; Lamar County Park, 0.7 miles; Del Parque County Park, 0.3 miles; Hatfield Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Spring Valley is conserved land?
29% 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 Spring Valley’s trails?
San Diego National Wildlife Refuge and Lamar County Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Spring Valley?
9.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 9.1 of painted or protected lanes and 0.1 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Spring Valley?
45,267 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Spring Valley or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 203 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Spring Valley have?
Ahead of 82% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #273 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 Spring Valley 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 →