Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Photo: outofthought · CC BY-SA 3.0For a national park, Banff National Park is 65 km away. The 10 km around town hold one protected area. 2 beaches are mapped within 5 km, the nearest Bowmont Beach.
Each figure against the 2,611 Canadian towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500+ (not city hubs or reserves), with the town marked and the typical one’s line. There is no Outdoors grade for Canadian towns; the figures stand beside the country’s towns of 2,500+ without a letter.
CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC, 2026), OpenStreetMap (November 2026). Distances from the town’s outline.
The 40 Canadian towns nearest in population (12,112 to 12,605 residents), by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected. Hover for each one’s figures; click for its page.
Against towns its size, Royal Oak is weakest for public protected areas: 30 of 39 have more.
| Town | Protected within 10 km | In town | Areas | Routes | Beaches | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cantley QC | 21% | 1.2% | 32 | 0 | 3 |
| 2 | Elliot Lake ON | 18% | 7.2% | 10 | 0 | 4 |
| 3 | Orleans Village - Chateauneuf ON | 14% | 0% | 35 | 0 | 1 |
| 4 | Nelson BC | 14% | 0.1% | 10 | 2 | 8 |
| 5 | Summerland BC | 11% | 7.5% | 25 | 0 | 45 |
| 6 | Rideau Lakes ON | 10% | 14% | 77 | 6 | 12 |
| 7 | Bridlewood AB | 7.7% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 8 | Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine QC | 7.3% | 6.1% | 46 | 0 | 94 |
| 9 | Saltspring Island BC | 6.7% | 17% | 109 | 3 | 44 |
| 10 | Saint-Hippolyte QC | 4.2% | 6.9% | 21 | 2 | 5 |
| 11 | Humber Summit ON | 3.6% | 0% | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | Moncton NB | 3.4% | 1.4% | 27 | 0 | 1 |
| 13 | Milliken ON | 3.4% | 0% | 15 | 0 | 1 |
| 14 | Chaparral AB | 3.2% | 9.8% | 1 | 0 | 13 |
| 15 | Yonge-Eglinton ON | 2.6% | 0% | 14 | 2 | 1 |
| 16 | Grenet QC | 2.5% | 0% | 16 | 0 | 0 |
| 17 | Spring Valley ON | 2.4% | 8.4% | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | Saint-Sauveur QC | 2.3% | 0% | 21 | 0 | 7 |
| 19 | Woodbine Corridor ON | 2.3% | 0% | 13 | 3 | 34 |
| 20 | Bromont QC | 2.2% | 2% | 25 | 0 | 2 |
| 21 | Dovercourt Village ON | 2.1% | 0% | 11 | 3 | 13 |
| 22 | Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts QC | 1.8% | 1.6% | 15 | 1 | 8 |
| 23 | Bayview Woods-Steeles ON | 1.7% | 17% | 21 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | Forest Hill North ON | 1.5% | 0% | 14 | 2 | 1 |
| 25 | Royal Oak AB | 1.4% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 26 | Grey Highlands ON | 1.3% | 0.7% | 77 | 4 | 0 |
| 27 | Highland West ON | 1.3% | 0% | 19 | 0 | 0 |
| 28 | River Park South MB | 1.1% | 2.1% | 18 | 0 | 0 |
| 29 | Tyndall Park MB | 1.1% | 0% | 14 | 0 | 0 |
| 30 | Wellesley ON | 1% | 0% | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| 31 | Windsor Park MB | 0.8% | 0.2% | 19 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | Wetaskiwin County No. 10 AB | 0.7% | 1% | 52 | 0 | 3 |
| 33 | Blackfalds AB | 0.6% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 34 | Chalmers MB | 0.6% | 0% | 15 | 1 | 0 |
| 35 | Alderwood ON | 0.3% | 0% | 5 | 1 | 12 |
| 36 | Uptown ON | 0.3% | 0% | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 37 | Varsity AB | 0.3% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 2 |
| 38 | Norwich ON | 0.2% | 0% | 9 | 1 | 0 |
| 39 | Etobicoke West Mall ON | 0.2% | 0% | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| 40 | DT Hospital ON | 0.1% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 4 |
Green space, woods, protected areas and footpaths in and around the neighbourhood; tap a number for its park or wood.
12 Mile Coulee is the largest, at 115 ha; the rest follow by size, numbered as on the map.
Add 12 Mile Coulee to Arbour Lake Park and you have 94% of it.
Source: OpenStreetMap parks, gardens, commons and woods with a name, in the town or within 400 m, © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Sizes are the mapped outline’s.
Residents of each 2021 dissemination area, at a point inside it, within 400 m (about a 5-minute walk) of a park or playing field mapped on OpenStreetMap.
The typical Canadian town does better, at 83%. Around 2,200 residents are further than 400 m from a park.
Every protected and conserved area in CPCAD within 10 km of the town’s edge: parks, reserves, wildlife areas and conservation land.
The area is public.
Source: Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD) 2.9.0, Environment and Climate Change Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada.
National parks (Parks Canada) and provincial or territorial parks by direction and distance from the town’s edge: every one within 10 km, and the nearest of each within 100 km.
Nearer still is Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park, a provincial park 4.9 km away.
Source: CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC): areas and outlines, distances outline to outline; directions from the town’s centre point.
OpenStreetMap footpaths, paths, bridleways and steps, and tracks open on foot, in the town and 1 km around it; woods as mapped (landuse=forest, natural=wood).
Few places match it for paths: more than 67% of Canadian towns have fewer. For woods, 84% of Canadian towns have more.
Source: OpenStreetMap, © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Mapping varies by place: a dense figure can mean keen local mappers as much as many paths.
Named walking and hiking routes on OpenStreetMap with at least 300 m within 2 km of the town, longest first; national routes lead.
No named walking or hiking route is mapped near the neighbourhood; local paths may simply not be on OpenStreetMap as routes.
Source: OpenStreetMap (route relations hiking, foot and walking), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Trans Canada Trail sections as OSM maps them.
Environment and Climate Change Canada’s 1991–2020 normals from Calgary (Airport) (15 km), and daylight at the town’s latitude. Good months: 12½+ hours of daylight, highs of 15–30 °C, little rain.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 8.4 | 9.9 | 11.7 | 13.8 | 15.5 | 16.5 | 16.1 | 14.6 | 12.5 | 10.6 | 8.8 | 7.9 |
| High (°C) | -2 | 0 | 4 | 11 | 16 | 20 | 24 | 23 | 18 | 11 | 4 | 0 |
| Rain & snow (mm) | 10 | 12 | 18 | 30 | 61 | 113 | 66 | 54 | 37 | 17 | 16 | 13 |
Expect around 139 cm of snow over a winter. Expect 113 mm in June, the wettest month, and 10 mm in January. July is the warmest month, with highs around 24 °C; January the coldest, at -2 °C. The climate in Royal Oak →
Beaches on OpenStreetMap within 5 km of the town’s edge, nearest first, with directions.
For water quality, look to the local health unit: no open beach-testing data covers Canada.
Source: OpenStreetMap (natural=beach), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Viewpoints, peaks, waterfalls, picnic sites, nature reserves, playgrounds, dog parks, campsites and boat launches mapped within 2 km of the town.
Playgrounds lead the count with 109. Top Hill tops the hills nearby, 1,298 m.
Plus 3 viewpoints without a name on the map.
Plus 3 picnic sites without a name on the map.
Plus 103 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Source: OpenStreetMap (tourism, natural, waterway and leisure tags), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Gardens and arboretums within 15 km of the town’s edge, and the historic gardens, parks and estates in the town itself, nearest first.
Sources: OpenStreetMap (leisure=garden), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL, and Wikidata (CC0), as gathered in TownRatings’ Canadian attractions set; historic places from Parks Canada’s Directory of Federal Heritage Designations, the Canadian Register of Historic Places and Québec’s Répertoire du patrimoine culturel.
The nearest places, coloured by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected; tap one for its outdoors page.
| Town | Protected within 10 km | Areas | Routes | Beaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royal Oak | 1.4% | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Rocky Ridge 1.8 km | 2.5% | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Arbour Lake 1.9 km | 1.2% | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Tuscany 2.9 km | 2.8% | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Citadel 3.0 km | 0.9% | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Scenic Acres 3.0 km | 1.6% | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Rocky View County 3.2 km | 0.5% | 20 | 9 | 19 |
Tuscany has at least twice the protected share around it. Rocky View County has the most mapped walking routes nearby: 9.
On the normals, May and July to September: that is when days are long, highs reach 15 °C and rain is light.
It is Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park, a provincial park covering 1,337 ha.
The nearest is Banff National Park, 65 km away.
Within 10 km, 1.4% of the land lies in protected areas.
Try Bowmont Beach, 4.3 km from town, first of several.
The closest is Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park, at 4.9 km.
Protected areas: Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (CPCAD) 2.9.0, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 2026: every area within 10 km and the nearest national and provincial parks, measured outline to outline.
Walking routes and beaches: OpenStreetMap, November 2026: named hiking, foot and walking route relations within 2 km and beaches within 5 km.
Towns: Statistics Canada 2021 Census boundaries and populations; the comparison is the Canadian towns and neighbourhoods of 2,500+, not city hubs or reserves.
When to go: Environment and Climate Change Canada, Canadian Climate Normals 1991–2020, from the nearest station that publishes them.
Gardens: OpenStreetMap (leisure=garden) and Wikidata gardens within 15 km, as gathered in TownRatings’ Canadian attractions set; historic gardens and parks from Canada’s heritage registers (Parks Canada DFHD, the Canadian Register of Historic Places, Québec’s Répertoire du patrimoine culturel).
Green space, paths, woods, things to do: OpenStreetMap (Geofabrik’s Canada extract), November 2026: parks, gardens, playing fields, woods, footpaths, the coastline and things to do in and around each town.
Residents: Statistics Canada 2021 Census dissemination areas (population, boundaries), each at a point inside it.
Walking routes and beaches © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database Licence (ODbL).
Not on this page: trailheads and trail grades, and beach water quality. No open Canadian dataset gives these for every town yet.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).