Puente Hills Preserve
Managed by Puente Hills Habitat Preservation Authority
1,693 acres7.5 mi of trail
Bob Henderson Loop TrailArroyo San Miguel TrailRattlesnake Ridge TrailDeer Loop Trail+1
No dogs
Directionsto the trailheadWebsite ↗
Southern Pacific Railroad Depot, Whittier · Photo: Los Angeles · CC BY-SA 4.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Whittier
23% of Whittier’s land is conserved: 2,140 acres
16 miles of mapped trail cross Whittier, 1.1 per square mile of land. 94% of residents live within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Puente Hills Preserve (7.5 mi), Murphy Ranch Park (0.6 mi), Pío Pico State Historic Park (0.5 mi).
Ahead of 93% of U.S. towns · #147 of 847 in California. What drives it
Conserved land
23%
2,140 acres · of 14.8 sq mi of land
Trails
16 mi
1.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
2,007 ac
23 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
94%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
46 mi
20 mi lanes · 8.0 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Whittier?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Whittier have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Whittier is ahead of 93% of U.S. towns, #147 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 Whittier’s overall grade.
Conserved land23% of the land · typical CA town 4% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (16 mi) · CA 0.9 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land23 acres of park per 1,000 residents (2,007 acres) · CA 5 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home94% of residents within a half mile of a park · CA 91% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 93%
LessMore
California towns of 2,500+ (847)Ahead of 83%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be 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 Puente Hills Preserve, with 7.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Murphy Ranch Park
Managed by Whittier
19 acres0.6 mi of trail
Murphy Ranch Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Pío Pico State Historic Park
Managed by California Department of Parks and Recreation
6 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Lee & Erika Owens Park
Managed by City of Whittier
2 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Parnell Park
Managed by Whittier
11 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 20 parks & preserves
Puente Hills Preserve1,693 acres · 7.5 mi of trail · Puente Hills Habitat Preservation Authority
DirectionsMurphy Ranch Park19 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · Whittier
DirectionsPío Pico State Historic Park6 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · California Department of Parks and Recreation
DirectionsLee & Erika Owens Park2 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · City of Whittier
DirectionsParnell Park11 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Whittier
DirectionsPalm Park14 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsJohn Greenleaf Whittier Park3 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsLeffingwell Ranch Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsKennedy Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsLaurel Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Michigan Park10 acres · Whittier
DirectionsYork Field9 acres
DirectionsFounders Memorial Park6 acres
William Penn Park5 acres
Guirado Park4 acres · City of Whittier
DirectionsAnaconda Park2 acres · Whittier
Friends Park2 acres
DirectionsBroadway Park2 acres
Central Park1 acres
DirectionsMcNees Park1 acres · County of Los Angeles
Who protects it
2,140 conserved acres
23% of Whittier’s land. Who manages Whittier’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Regional agency1,597 ac
Town or city563 ac
State fish & wildlife22 ac
State parks6 ac
Local Other or Unknown · 870 acLocal Recreation Area · 793 acLocal Park · 497 acUnknown Easement · 22 acState Historic or Cultural Area · 6 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arroyo Pescadero Local Other or Unknown | Regional agency | 867 | Open |
| Hellman Park Local Park | Regional agency | 318 | Open |
| Arroyo San Miguel Open Space Local Recreation Area | Regional agency | 317 | Open |
| Worsham Canyon Open Space Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 295 | Open |
| Sycamore Canyon Open Space Local Recreation Area | Regional agency | 76 | Open |
| Whittier Narrows Recreation Area Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 36 | Open |
| Whittier Greenway Trail Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 35 | Open |
| La Serna High School Park Local Park | Town or city | 22 | Restricted |
| Murphy Ranch Park Local Park | Town or city | 19 | Open |
| Sierra Vista Adult School Park Local Park | Town or city | 16 | Restricted |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
25 places to go in Whittier
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Whittier
17 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Whittier
Dog Park
DirectionsWhittier Dog Club
DirectionsPicnic areas in Whittier
6 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Trails & water
13 named trails
Named trails
Open to bikes · 3.8 miHorses · 6.7 miUnpaved · 7.9 mi
Arroyo San Miguel Trail1.8 mi
Bob Henderson Loop Trail1.8 mi
Rattlesnake Ridge Trail1.1 mi
Deer Loop Trail0.7 mi
Murphy Ranch Trail0.6 mi
Peppergrass Trail0.5 mi
Sycamore Switchback Trail0.5 mi
Dark Canyon Trail0.4 mi
San Gabriel River Trail0.4 mi
Sycamore Canyon Trail0.1 mi
3 more trails
Mariposa Trail
0.1 miSchabarum-Skyline Trail
0.1 miTurnbull Canyon Trail
0.1 miBiking & sports
46 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
20 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
8.0 mi
off-road bike paths
18 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
San Gabriel River TrailBike route
0.4 miCourts & fields
47Tennis
21Golf
15Baseball
9Basketball
2Soccer
2Softball
2Football
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →6 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Jonathan Bailey HouseBuilding · listed 1977
About itStandard Oil BuildingBuilding · listed 1980
About itOrin Jordan HouseBuilding · listed 1980
About itNational Bank of Whittier BuildingBuilding · listed 1982
About itHoover HotelBuilding · listed 2002
About itSouthern Pacific Railroad Depot, WhittierBuilding · listed 2005
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Whittier: 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) | 10.1 | 10.9 | 11.9 | 13.0 | 13.9 | 14.4 | 14.2 | 13.4 | 12.3 | 11.3 | 10.3 | 9.9 |
| High (°F) | 69 | 69 | 71 | 74 | 76 | 81 | 86 | 88 | 87 | 81 | 74 | 68 |
| Rain (in) | 3.1 | 3.6 | 2.1 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 0.9 | 2.2 |
August is the driest month (under 0.1 in) and the warmest (highs of 88 °F). 3.6 inches fall in February, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 88 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Whittier →
Next door
Whittier and its neighbors
Whittier has the most mapped trails of the 7 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Whittier16 miHacienda Heights9.7 miLa Habra Heights8.4 miPico Rivera6.7 miSouth Whittier1.7 miSanta Fe Springs0.9 miWest Whittier-Los Nietos0.6 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whittier | 23% | 1.1 | 23 | 94% | A |
| West Whittier-Los Nietos | 4% | 0.2 | under 1 | 73% | C+ |
| La Habra Heights | 19% | 1.4 | 141 | 86% | A+ |
| South Whittier | 2% | 0.3 | 1 | 68% | C |
| Pico Rivera | 7% | 0.8 | 2 | 85% | B |
| Santa Fe Springs | 2% | 0.1 | 5 | 91% | C+ |
| Hacienda Heights | 8% | 0.9 | 11 | 81% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Whittier
Where can I hike in Whittier?
The longest trail networks: Puente Hills Preserve, 7.5 miles; Murphy Ranch Park, 0.6 miles; Pío Pico State Historic Park, 0.5 miles; Lee & Erika Owens Park, 0.5 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Whittier is conserved land?
23% 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 Whittier’s trails?
Puente Hills Preserve and Murphy Ranch Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Whittier?
46 miles of bike routes are on the map: 20 of painted or protected lanes, 8.0 of off-road paths and 18 of shoulders and shared lanes. Named routes: San Gabriel River Trail.
Is there public land near Whittier?
18,315 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Whittier or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,007 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Whittier have?
Ahead of 93% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #147 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 Whittier 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 →