First pick
Nose Hill Park
Park or garden
1,114 ha140.5 km of path
31 h 15 minto walk all 140.5 km of path
3.1 km southfrom the centre
South Fence TrailSeat Trail
Directionsto a point inside
Photo: Qyd · CC BY 2.5–Not graded
Outdoors in Sandstone Valley · parks, protected land & trails
The nearest provincial park, Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park, is 14 km from Sandstone Valley
The protected share within 10 km is 0%, where a typical Canadian town has 2.3%. 74 km separate the town from Banff National Park, its nearest national park.
Protected land
0%
of the land within 10 km
Typical Canadian town: 2.3%
Protected areas
0
within 10 km, 0 public
Typical Canadian town: 14
Nearest national park
74 km
Banff National Park
Nearest provincial park
14 km
Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park
Against other towns
Sandstone Valley against other Canadian towns
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. This page carries no grade, because Canada’s grading doesn’t cover the outdoors; the comparisons are the point.
Protected within 10 km0%Share of the land and water within 10 km of the town’s edge in a protected or conserved area
Protected in town0%Share of the town’s own area in a protected or conserved area
Public protected areas0Areas within 10 km held by a government or an Indigenous nation
Walking routes0Named OpenStreetMap walking and hiking routes with 300 m+ within 2 km
CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC, 2026), OpenStreetMap (November 2026). Distances from the town’s outline.
Towns its size
Sandstone Valley has the 2nd least protected land nearby of 40 towns its size
The 40 Canadian towns nearest in population (5,706 to 5,930 residents), by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected. Hover for each one’s figures; click for its page.
Protected within 10 km
Sandstone Valley0%
Towns its size2%
Towns in Alberta0.4%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
Public protected areas
Sandstone Valley0
Towns its size5
Towns in Alberta2
Typical Canadian town4
Walking routes
Sandstone Valley0
Towns its size0
Towns in Alberta0
Typical Canadian town0
Where Sandstone Valley trails its peers is public protected areas; 36 of 39 have more.
Every town in the comparison
| Town | Protected within 10 km | In town | Areas | Routes | Beaches | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Electoral Area B, Peace River BC | 18% | 17% | 71 | 0 | 655 |
| 2 | Electoral Area A, Bulkley-Nechako BC | 15% | 14% | 9 | 0 | 17 |
| 3 | Dunrobin ON | 14% | 0.1% | 50 | 1 | 15 |
| 4 | Osoyoos BC | 14% | 0.8% | 22 | 0 | 9 |
| 5 | Mile 108 Recreational Ranch BC | 12% | 12% | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Iris ON | 12% | 0% | 26 | 4 | 6 |
| 7 | New Edinburgh ON | 11% | 0.1% | 37 | 4 | 3 |
| 8 | East Ferris ON | 10% | 1.8% | 3 | 0 | 8 |
| 9 | Seguin ON | 10% | 1.2% | 20 | 0 | 10 |
| 10 | Verchères QC | 8.9% | 1.7% | 44 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | Sainte-Martine QC | 8.8% | 0% | 22 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | Kirkendall North ON | 7.2% | 0% | 23 | 2 | 3 |
| 13 | Emerald Woods - Sawmill Creek ON | 6.9% | 21% | 16 | 0 | 1 |
| 14 | Spallumcheen BC | 6% | 0% | 4 | 0 | 3 |
| 15 | Vieux-Québec—Cap-Blanc—Colline parlementaire QC | 5% | 0% | 18 | 1 | 5 |
| 16 | Rosedale Village ON | 4.5% | 0% | 7 | 1 | 1 |
| 17 | Braeside AB | 4% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 5 |
| 18 | Waterloo QC | 3.4% | 0% | 23 | 0 | 2 |
| 19 | Sherwood/McCarthy SK | 2.7% | 0% | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | County Court ON | 2% | 0% | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| 21 | Duncan BC | 1.9% | 0% | 31 | 2 | 1 |
| 22 | River Bend ON | 1.8% | 13% | 14 | 2 | 0 |
| 23 | Central Frederick ON | 1.7% | 0% | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | Forest Hill ON | 1.7% | 0% | 21 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | Buena Vista SK | 1.7% | 1.6% | 17 | 0 | 2 |
| 26 | Nutana Urban Centre SK | 1.7% | 0% | 17 | 0 | 1 |
| 27 | Broadway-Assiniboine MB | 1.5% | 0% | 23 | 4 | 0 |
| 28 | Minto MB | 1.4% | 0% | 23 | 1 | 0 |
| 29 | Val-David QC | 1.3% | 8.3% | 11 | 0 | 5 |
| 30 | Confederation Park SK | 1.2% | 0% | 14 | 0 | 1 |
| 31 | University SK | 1.2% | 0% | 14 | 1 | 3 |
| 32 | Parkview AB | 1.2% | 0% | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| 33 | Heritage Park MB | 1% | 0% | 9 | 1 | 37 |
| 34 | Westwood MB | 1% | 0% | 10 | 1 | 37 |
| 35 | Elsinore AB | 0.2% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 36 | Remington Park ON | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 37 | Casselman AB | 0.1% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 38 | Redcliff AB | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 39 | Sandstone Valley AB | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | Boyle Street AB | 0% | 0% | 0 | 2 | 1 |
The map
Parks, woods and paths around Sandstone Valley
Green space, woods, protected areas and footpaths in and around the neighbourhood; tap a number for its park or wood.
Green: OpenStreetMap parks, gardens, playing fields and woods. Hatched: CPCAD protected areas.© OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL); CPCAD (OGL-Canada)
Places to walk
3 parks and woods to walk in, in or near Sandstone Valley
The biggest is Nose Hill Park, 1,114 ha. Biggest first, numbered as on the map.
Sandstone Park
Park or garden
3.4 ha0.3 km of path
Centralin the middle of Sandstone Valley
Directionsto a point inside
Berwick Park
Park or garden · 200 m outside town
3.5 ha
1.0 km south-eastfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
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.
Close to home
Every resident of Sandstone Valley lives near a park
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.
Within 400 m (100%)Further (0%)
Sandstone Valley100%
Towns in Alberta100%
Typical Canadian town83%
A typical Canadian town reaches only 83%.
Protected areas
No protected area lies within 10 km of Sandstone Valley
Every protected and conserved area in CPCAD within 10 km of the town’s edge: parks, reserves, wildlife areas and conservation land.
Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park, 14 km away, is the closest provincial park.
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 & provincial parks
The nearest big park: Banff National Park, 74 km away
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.
National parkProvincial park
Provincial park
Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park
14 km west13 km²since 2008
National park
Banff National Park
74 km west6,641 km²since 1885
A provincial park is closer: Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park, at 14 km.
Source: CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC): areas and outlines, distances outline to outline; directions from the town’s centre point.
Footpaths and woods
Sandstone Valley and its edge hold 50 km of footpath
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).
Footpaths
50 km
in and around the town (10.3 km²)
Woodland
1.6%
about 0.2 km² of mapped woods
Footpaths · km per km²
Sandstone ValleyTowns in AlbertaTypical Canadian town
Footpaths4.9
036 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
Sandstone ValleyTowns in AlbertaTypical Canadian town
Woodland1.6%
0%50%100%
For woods, 77% of Canadian towns have more. Few places match it for paths: more than 91% of Canadian towns have fewer.
Source: OpenStreetMap, © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Mapping varies by place: a dense figure can mean keen local mappers as much as many paths.
Walking routes
No mapped walking route near Sandstone Valley
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 route shows within 2 km of the neighbourhood; volunteers map trails unevenly from one region to the next.
Source: OpenStreetMap (route relations hiking, foot and walking), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Trans Canada Trail sections as OSM maps them.
When to get out
Get out in Sandstone Valley in May and July to September
Daylight at the town’s latitude and ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals (Calgary (Airport), 6.4 km away). Good months: long days, highs of 15–30 °C, light 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 |
Some 139 cm of snow falls each winter. For dry weather, January is best (10 mm); June gets 113 mm. Summer highs reach 24 °C in July; in January they stay near -2 °C. The climate in Sandstone Valley →
Things to do
Near Sandstone Valley: one viewpoint on the map
Viewpoints, peaks, waterfalls, picnic sites, nature reserves, playgrounds, dog parks, campsites and boat launches mapped within 2 km of the town.
75 playgrounds top the list.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 1
Plus 1 viewpoint without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 75
Hidden Hut Playground0.7 km from town
DirectionsPlus 74 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Dog parks 2
Nose Hill Park Off-Leash Area1.9 km from town
DirectionsPlus 1 dog park without a name on the map.
Source: OpenStreetMap (tourism, natural, waterway and leisure tags), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Gardens to visit
2 gardens and historic parks to visit near Sandstone Valley
Gardens and arboretums within 15 km of the town’s edge, and the historic gardens, parks and estates in the town itself, nearest first.
Prince's Island ParkGarden or park · 8.6 km from town
DirectionsOlympic PlazaGarden or park · 9.8 km from town
DirectionsSources: 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.
Next door
Next to Sandstone Valley
The nearest places, coloured by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected; tap one for its outdoors page.
Macewan GlenBeddington HeightsHidden ValleyCountry HillsPanorama HillsHarvest HillsSandstone Valley
Under 1%1–5%5–15%15–40%40%+
| Town | Protected within 10 km | Areas | Routes | Beaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sandstone Valley | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Macewan Glen 1.1 km | 0.2% | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Beddington Heights 1.7 km | 0% | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Hidden Valley 1.9 km | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Country Hills 1.9 km | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Panorama Hills 2.6 km | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Harvest Hills 3.1 km | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
None of the places nearby has twice as much protected land around it as Sandstone Valley.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Protected land. Measured on CPCAD’s outlines: the part of a 10 km band around the town that lies in a protected or conserved area, water included.
- Private land. Private conservation land is in the totals, not the lists. Many such areas are easements on working farms or woodlots.
- National and provincial parks. A park at 0 km touches or overlaps the town’s outline; directions point from the town’s centre.
- Walking routes. A route counts when 300 m or more of it lies within 2 km of the town. Coverage of trails on OpenStreetMap varies by region.
Questions about the outdoors in Sandstone Valley
What is the best season to get outdoors in Sandstone Valley?
May and July to September: long days, mild highs and little rain.
How far is Sandstone Valley from a national park?
The nearest is Banff National Park, 74 km away.
What is the nearest provincial park to Sandstone Valley?
The closest is Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park, at 14 km.
Sources
Where Sandstone Valley’s outdoors figures come from
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).