Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
6.4 km from town is Big Island Provincial Park, the nearest provincial park. Of the country within 10 km, 0.3% lies in protected areas; the median Canadian town has 2.3%. There is a beach within 5 km, unnamed on the map.
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. Outdoors isn’t graded in Canada. The page compares each figure with other towns and leaves it there.
CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC, 2026), OpenStreetMap (November 2026). Distances from the town’s outline.
The 40 Canadian towns nearest in population (6,011 to 6,186 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, MacEwan is weakest for protected land nearby: 29 of 39 have more.
| Town | Protected within 10 km | In town | Areas | Routes | Beaches | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Crowsnest Pass AB | 25% | 20% | 21 | 6 | 0 |
| 2 | Cumberland County, Subdivision C NS | 20% | 8% | 133 | 0 | 9 |
| 3 | Sainte-Anne-des-Monts QC | 15% | 0.2% | 17 | 0 | 15 |
| 4 | Playfair Park - Guildwood Estates ON | 13% | 0% | 37 | 0 | 1 |
| 5 | Civic Hospital ON | 11% | 0% | 34 | 3 | 4 |
| 6 | Crystal Bay - Lakeview Park ON | 7.1% | 20% | 37 | 5 | 8 |
| 7 | Central Business Dis ON | 6.9% | 11% | 21 | 3 | 2 |
| 8 | Cumberland ON | 6.7% | 2.9% | 50 | 0 | 1 |
| 9 | Rolston ON | 6.5% | 0% | 17 | 1 | 1 |
| 10 | Tay Valley ON | 5.8% | 3.9% | 37 | 5 | 8 |
| 11 | McMasterville QC | 5.5% | 0% | 23 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | Electoral Area A, Cariboo BC | 5.4% | 6% | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| 13 | Lawfield ON | 4.2% | 0% | 19 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | Crown Point West ON | 4.1% | 0% | 24 | 1 | 7 |
| 15 | Southwood AB | 4% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 8 |
| 16 | Delta East ON | 3.7% | 0% | 22 | 1 | 6 |
| 17 | Barrhead County No. 11 AB | 3.4% | 1.2% | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | Rosemount ON | 1.8% | 0% | 22 | 1 | 0 |
| 19 | Sioux Lookout ON | 1.7% | 4.5% | 5 | 0 | 1 |
| 20 | Haultain SK | 1.7% | 0% | 17 | 0 | 3 |
| 21 | Richmond West MB | 1.6% | 0% | 17 | 0 | 1 |
| 22 | Pleasant Hill SK | 1.6% | 6.9% | 17 | 0 | 2 |
| 23 | Richelieu QC | 1.4% | 4.8% | 18 | 0 | 1 |
| 24 | Worthington MB | 1.3% | 0% | 19 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | Dunluce AB | 1.3% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Saint-Henri QC | 0.5% | 0% | 22 | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | Inkster Gardens MB | 0.5% | 0% | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| 28 | Saint-Césaire QC | 0.4% | 0% | 25 | 0 | 1 |
| 29 | Capitol Hill AB | 0.4% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 30 | Saint-Pie QC | 0.3% | 0% | 21 | 0 | 0 |
| 31 | Stettler AB | 0.3% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | Castleridge AB | 0.3% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | Forest Heights AB | 0.3% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 34 | MacEwan AB | 0.3% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| 35 | Vegreville AB | 0.2% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 36 | South Walkerville ON | 0.2% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 37 | Melfort SK | 0.1% | 1.5% | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 38 | Amqui QC | 0% | 0% | 0 | 3 | 2 |
| 39 | Alberta Avenue AB | 0% | 0% | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| 40 | Homesteader AB | 0% | 0% | 1 | 1 | 0 |
The neighbourhood’s parks, woods, protected land and paths, with its named places numbered.
Largest first: Whitemud Creek Ravine leads with 386 ha. Numbers match the map.
Two places, Whitemud Creek Ravine and Blackmud Creek Ravine, make up 97% of the total.
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.
For about 1,700 people, the nearest park is over 400 m away. For comparison, the typical Canadian town has 83%.
Every protected and conserved area in CPCAD within 10 km of the town’s edge: parks, reserves, wildlife areas and conservation land.
Public ownership covers 2 of the 3. Big Island Provincial Park covers 79 ha, the most of any named area. One further area is privately owned conservation land; it counts in the figures but isn’t named, as a person’s land isn’t a place to visit.
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.
A provincial park is closer: Big Island Provincial Park, at 6.4 km.
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).
For woods, it beats 61% of Canadian towns. Paths are denser here than in 87% of Canadian towns.
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.
Nothing near the neighbourhood is mapped as a named walking route, which often means the trails just haven’t been entered as routes.
Source: OpenStreetMap (route relations hiking, foot and walking), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Trans Canada Trail sections as OSM maps them.
Daylight at the town’s latitude and ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals (Edmonton (Airport), 13 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) | 8.0 | 9.7 | 11.7 | 13.9 | 15.9 | 17.0 | 16.5 | 14.8 | 12.6 | 10.4 | 8.5 | 7.5 |
| High (°C) | -7 | -4 | 1 | 10 | 18 | 21 | 23 | 22 | 18 | 10 | 0 | -5 |
| Rain & snow (mm) | 22 | 12 | 17 | 30 | 47 | 75 | 87 | 53 | 35 | 22 | 20 | 15 |
About 127 cm of snow falls in a year. Summer brings the most rain: 87 mm in July; February gets 12 mm. January brings highs of -7 °C, July highs of 23 °C. The climate in MacEwan →
Beaches on OpenStreetMap within 5 km of the town’s edge, nearest first, with directions.
Canada publishes no open register of beach water tests; the local public health unit posts swimming advisories.
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.
The tallest named summit close by is Rabbit Hill (713 m). The map shows 17 playgrounds, ahead of the rest.
Plus 1 viewpoint without a name on the map.
Plus 14 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MacEwan | 0.3% | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| Twin Brooks 0.9 km | 0.3% | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| Cavanagh 1.5 km | 0.2% | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Rutherford 1.8 km | 0.3% | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| Mactaggart 2.0 km | 0.7% | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Skyrattler 2.1 km | 0.3% | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| Bearspaw 2.4 km | 0.3% | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Its neighbours have no more than twice MacEwan’s protected share.
Yes: 0.3% of the land within 10 km is protected.
There is an unnamed beach within 5 km.
Elk Island National Park, 38 km from the edge of town.
May, August and September: long days, mild highs and little rain.
Big Island Provincial Park, 6.4 km away.
It is Big Island Provincial Park, a provincial park covering 79 ha.
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).