First pick
Clearwater Demonstration Forest Recreation Site
Park or garden
867 ha31.1 km of path
6 h 55 minto walk all 31.1 km of path
5.5 km north-eastfrom the centre
Greasy JungleConvoyRaft Rim+5 paths
Directionsto a point inside
Photo: Kiyoteru Awaji · CC BY 4.07.7%protected within 10 km
Outdoors in Clearwater · parks, protected land & trails
Few places match Clearwater for protected land nearby: more than 8 in 10 Canadian towns
OpenStreetMap shows 3 unnamed beaches within 5 km. Within 100 km there is no national park. Some protected land is inside the town: 4.1% of its area.
Protected land
7.7%
of the land within 10 km
Typical Canadian town: 2.3%
Protected areas
4
within 10 km, 4 public
Typical Canadian town: 14
Nearest provincial park
At the edge
Wells Gray Park
Beaches
3
within 5 km (OpenStreetMap)
Character
What Clearwater has going for it outdoors
Each figure against Canadian towns of 2,500+; tap a tile for the detail.
Protected land all round7.7% of the land within 10 km, more than 81% of Canadian townsA provincial park at the edgeWells Gray Park reaches the town
What Clearwater has most to offer outdoors is protected land around it, with a provincial park at its edge close behind.
Against other towns
Clearwater 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 km7.7%Share of the land and water within 10 km of the town’s edge in a protected or conserved area
Protected in town4.1%Share of the town’s own area in a protected or conserved area
Public protected areas4Areas within 10 km held by a government or an Indigenous nation
Walking routes0Named OpenStreetMap walking and hiking routes with 300 m+ within 2 km
Beaches3Beaches mapped on OpenStreetMap within 5 km
CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC, 2026), OpenStreetMap (November 2026). Distances from the town’s outline.
Towns its size
Clearwater has the 6th most protected land nearby of 40 towns its size
The 40 Canadian towns nearest in population (2,500 to 2,587 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
Clearwater7.7%
Towns its size1.6%
Towns in British Columbia6.7%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
Public protected areas
Clearwater4
Towns its size4
Towns in British Columbia14
Typical Canadian town4
Walking routes
Clearwater0
Towns its size0
Towns in British Columbia1
Typical Canadian town0
Clearwater beats most towns its size for protected land nearby; 5 of 39 do better.
Every town in the comparison
| Town | Protected within 10 km | In town | Areas | Routes | Beaches | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anmore BC | 22% | 47% | 16 | 5 | 98 |
| 2 | Saint-Alexandre-de-Kamouraska QC | 19% | 0% | 28 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Gracefield QC | 19% | 19% | 34 | 0 | 6 |
| 4 | East Preston NS | 16% | 6.3% | 20 | 1 | 5 |
| 5 | Castlemore Estates ON | 7.8% | 6.5% | 26 | 0 | 1 |
| 6 | Clearwater BC | 7.7% | 4.1% | 4 | 0 | 3 |
| 7 | Roberval QC | 6.1% | 1.2% | 22 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | Saint-Louis-de-Gonzague QC | 5.8% | 0% | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | North Frontenac ON | 5.7% | 5.2% | 13 | 6 | 4 |
| 10 | Cap-Chat QC | 5.3% | 0.4% | 13 | 0 | 10 |
| 11 | Killaloe, Hagarty and Richards ON | 4.4% | 1.5% | 9 | 0 | 4 |
| 12 | Saint-Polycarpe QC | 4.2% | 0% | 11 | 0 | 2 |
| 13 | Macassa ON | 4.1% | 0% | 18 | 1 | 0 |
| 14 | Saint-Damien QC | 4% | 3.2% | 22 | 1 | 9 |
| 15 | Unity SK | 3.4% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | Sherwood ON | 3.4% | 0% | 19 | 2 | 0 |
| 17 | McNab SK | 2.6% | 0% | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| 18 | Mandeville QC | 2.5% | 1.8% | 19 | 4 | 7 |
| 19 | Esterhazy SK | 1.8% | 0% | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | City Commercial Core ON | 1.8% | 0% | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| 21 | Caswell Hill SK | 1.4% | 0% | 16 | 0 | 3 |
| 22 | Fossambault-sur-le-Lac QC | 1.3% | 7.8% | 15 | 0 | 14 |
| 23 | Pembina MB | 1.1% | 1.8% | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | Burrows-Keewatin MB | 1% | 0% | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | Elmwood AB | 0.8% | 0% | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| 26 | Hatley QC | 0.7% | 0% | 9 | 0 | 5 |
| 27 | Munroe West MB | 0.4% | 0% | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| 28 | Brooke-Alvinston ON | 0.3% | 0.2% | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 29 | Rosedale AB | 0.3% | 0% | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 30 | Minchau AB | 0.3% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 31 | Lunenburg NS | 0.1% | 0% | 19 | 0 | 5 |
| 32 | Salisbury NB | 0.1% | 2.1% | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | Dufferin MB | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 34 | Ekota AB | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| 35 | Satoo AB | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 36 | Saint-Éphrem-de-Beauce QC | 0% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 37 | Magrath AB | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 38 | Nanton AB | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 39 | Rimbey AB | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | Sexsmith AB | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
The map
The green map of Clearwater
Green space, woods, protected areas and footpaths in and around the town; 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
5 named parks and woods to walk in near Clearwater
The biggest is Clearwater Demonstration Forest Recreation Site, 867 ha. Biggest first, numbered as on the map.
5 named parks and woods, 1,621 ha in all
Parks & gardens 1,621 ha
Clearwater Demonstration Forest Recreation Site plus Clearwater River Trail Recreation Site account for 100% of the green.
Clearwater River Trail Recreation Site
Park or garden
751 ha14.3 km of path
3 h 10 minto walk all 14.3 km of path
5.4 km northfrom the centre
Clearwater River Trail
Directionsto a point inside
Dutch Lake Beach Park
Park or garden
1.1 ha0.1 km of path
2.0 km westfrom 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
About 2 in 10 of Clearwater’s residents are a short walk from 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 (20%)Further (80%)
Clearwater20%
Towns in British Columbia72%
Typical Canadian town83%
The typical Canadian town reaches 83%. Around 2,000 residents are further than 400 m from a park.
Protected areas
4 protected areas around Clearwater
Every protected and conserved area in CPCAD within 10 km of the town’s edge: parks, reserves, wildlife areas and conservation land.
Inside Clearwater4.1%
Within 10 km7.7%
Towns in British Columbia6.7%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
All 4 are public land. The largest named one is Wells Gray Park, at 540,448 ha.
Wells Gray ParkProvincial park · 540,448 ha · reaches Clearwater
North Thompson River ParkProvincial park · 126 ha · reaches Clearwater
Dunn Peak ParkNature reserve · 19,547 ha · 10.0 km from the edge of town
1 area recorded only by its type (a provincial layer such as wildlife habitat areas) is counted, not listed.
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
Wells Gray Park meets Clearwater
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
Wells Gray Park
At the edge5,404 km²since 1939
Provincial park
North Thompson River Park
At the edge1.3 km²since 1967
Canada’s national parks are all more than 100 km from Clearwater, so the parks here are provincial. Within 10 km are 2 provincial parks.
Source: CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC): areas and outlines, distances outline to outline; directions from the town’s centre point.
Footpaths and woods
Clearwater and its edge hold 55 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
55 km
in and around the town (115.9 km²)
Woodland
85%
about 98.7 km² of mapped woods
Footpaths · km per km²
ClearwaterTowns in British ColumbiaTypical Canadian town
Footpaths0.5
012 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
ClearwaterTowns in British ColumbiaTypical Canadian town
Woodland85%
0%50%100%
66% of Canadian towns have more footpath per km². For woods, it beats 98% 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.
Walking routes
No mapped walking route near Clearwater
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 town; 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
The best months for walking in Clearwater: May and July to September
Environment and Climate Change Canada’s 1991–2020 normals from Blue River (74 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) | 8.3 | 9.9 | 11.7 | 13.8 | 15.6 | 16.6 | 16.2 | 14.6 | 12.6 | 10.5 | 8.7 | 7.8 |
| High (°C) | -3 | 1 | 6 | 12 | 18 | 21 | 25 | 24 | 18 | 9 | 1 | -3 |
| Rain & snow (mm) | 109 | 55 | 69 | 61 | 71 | 103 | 96 | 74 | 78 | 111 | 120 | 93 |
November is the wettest month (120 mm) and February the driest (55 mm). Summer highs reach 25 °C in July; in January they stay near -3 °C. The climate in Clearwater →
Beaches
3 beaches within 5 km of Clearwater, none named
Beaches on OpenStreetMap within 5 km of the town’s edge, nearest first, with directions.
Whether the water is fit for a swim isn’t in any open national dataset; public health posts the local advisories.
Source: OpenStreetMap (natural=beach), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Things to do
Clearwater has 4 viewpoints and 2 waterfalls nearby
Viewpoints, peaks, waterfalls, picnic sites, nature reserves, playgrounds, dog parks, campsites and boat launches mapped within 2 km of the town.
4 viewpoints top the list.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 4
Raft River Viewing Parkin town
DirectionsTriple Decker Falls Viewpoint0.1 km from town
DirectionsOsprey Viewpoint0.8 km from town
DirectionsPlus 1 viewpoint without a name on the map.
Waterfalls 2
Triple Decker Falls0.1 km from town
DirectionsCandle Creek Falls0.6 km from town
DirectionsPicnic sites 2
Plus 2 picnic sites without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 1
Plus 1 playground without a name on the map.
Campsites 3
Clearwater Valley Resortin town
DirectionsNorth Thompson River Campground1.2 km from town
DirectionsPlus 1 campsite without a name on the map.
Source: OpenStreetMap (tourism, natural, waterway and leisure tags), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Next door
Next to Clearwater
The nearest places, coloured by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected; tap one for its outdoors page. The nearest places to Clearwater with figures are 12–77 km away.
Electoral Area A (Wells Gray Country), Thompson-NicolaBarriereElectoral Area O (Lower North Thompson), Thompson-NicolaElectoral Area H, CaribooElectoral Area L, CaribooClearwater
Under 1%1–5%5–15%15–40%40%+
| Town | Protected within 10 km | Areas | Routes | Beaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clearwater | 7.7% | 4 | 0 | 3 |
| Electoral Area A (Wells Gray Country), Thompson-Nicola 12 km | 56% | 16 | 0 | 5 |
| Barriere 52 km | 6.8% | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Electoral Area O (Lower North Thompson), Thompson-Nicola 63 km | 13% | 25 | 0 | 0 |
| Electoral Area H, Cariboo 76 km | 24% | 10 | 0 | 2 |
| Electoral Area L, Cariboo 77 km | 9.1% | 12 | 0 | 0 |
For protected land, Electoral Area A (Wells Gray Country), Thompson-Nicola and Electoral Area H, Cariboo have twice as much or more.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Private land. Private conservation land is in the totals, not the lists. Many such areas are easements on working farms or woodlots.
- Protected land. The 10 km band starts at the town’s outline, not its centre, so a large municipality reaches further than a small town.
- Beaches. Beaches are OpenStreetMap’s, named or not; in the north many are unnamed shoreline imports.
- 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.
- National and provincial parks. Distances run from the town’s edge to the park’s, so 0 km means they touch.
Questions about the outdoors in Clearwater
How far is Clearwater from a national park?
None within 100 km of Clearwater.
When is the best time for walking in Clearwater?
On the normals, May and July to September: that is when days are long, highs reach 15 °C and rain is light.
What is the biggest park or reserve near Clearwater?
It is Wells Gray Park, a provincial park covering 540,448 ha.
Where can you swim near Clearwater?
The beaches mapped within 5 km have no names on the map.
How much land around Clearwater is protected?
Yes: 7.7% of the land within 10 km is protected.
Is there a provincial park near Clearwater?
Wells Gray Park touches the town.
Sources
Sources for this page on Clearwater
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.
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).