First pick
Lions Park
Park or garden
3.5 ha0.4 km of path
Centralin the middle of Sparwood
Directionsto a point inside
Photo: Rod Lafond · CC BY 3.023%protected within 10 km
Outdoors in Sparwood · parks, protected land & trails
Protected areas cover 23% of the country around Sparwood
Waterton Lakes National Park is the closest national park, 49 km from town. The 10 km around town hold 20 protected areas. Within its own boundary, 3.4% of the town is protected.
Protected land
23%
of the land within 10 km
Typical Canadian town: 2.3%
Protected areas
20
within 10 km, 8 public
Typical Canadian town: 14
Nearest national park
49 km
Waterton Lakes National Park
Nearest provincial park
At the edge
Crowsnest Park
Character
What Sparwood has going for it outdoors
Each figure against Canadian towns of 2,500+; tap a tile for the detail.
Protected land all round23% of the land within 10 km, more than 96% of Canadian townsA provincial park at the edgeCrowsnest Park reaches the town
What Sparwood has most to offer outdoors is protected land around it, with a provincial park at its edge close behind.
Against other towns
How Sparwood compares with 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. No letter: the outdoors is described for Canadian towns, not graded.
Protected within 10 km23%Share of the land and water within 10 km of the town’s edge in a protected or conserved area
Protected in town3.4%Share of the town’s own area in a protected or conserved area
Public protected areas8Areas 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
Sparwood has the 3rd most protected land nearby of 40 towns its size
The 40 Canadian towns nearest in population (4,401 to 4,572 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
Sparwood23%
Towns its size2%
Towns in British Columbia6.7%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
Public protected areas
Sparwood8
Towns its size3
Towns in British Columbia14
Typical Canadian town4
Walking routes
Sparwood0
Towns its size0
Towns in British Columbia1
Typical Canadian town0
Against towns its size, Sparwood does best for protected land nearby: 2 of the other 39 have more.
Every town in the comparison
| Town | Protected within 10 km | In town | Areas | Routes | Beaches | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Electoral Area D (Oyster Bay - Buttle Lake), Strathcona BC | 49% | 64% | 34 | 11 | 8 |
| 2 | Shelburne NS | 27% | 28% | 194 | 0 | 80 |
| 3 | Sparwood BC | 23% | 3.4% | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Gaetz Brook NS | 15% | 4.2% | 55 | 2 | 19 |
| 5 | Douglas BC | 13% | 3.2% | 82 | 0 | 1 |
| 6 | Queenswood - Chatelaine ON | 12% | 0% | 40 | 0 | 1 |
| 7 | Electoral Area P (Rivers and the Peaks), Thompson-Nicola BC | 11% | 8.3% | 21 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | Bells Corners West ON | 9% | 11% | 13 | 3 | 1 |
| 9 | Bowen Island BC | 7.2% | 17% | 60 | 0 | 173 |
| 10 | Golden BC | 5.5% | 12% | 5 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | Melville SK | 5.2% | 1% | 13 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | Eastmount ON | 4.3% | 0% | 22 | 1 | 3 |
| 13 | Queensland AB | 4% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 11 |
| 14 | Deer Ridge AB | 3.7% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 10 |
| 15 | Crossroads ON | 3.5% | 0% | 26 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | Warner County No. 5 AB | 3.2% | 4.7% | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| 17 | Montague ON | 3% | 2.8% | 10 | 5 | 2 |
| 18 | Electoral Area E, Cowichan Valley BC | 2.8% | 3.6% | 42 | 3 | 2 |
| 19 | Country Hills ON | 2.6% | 0% | 22 | 1 | 0 |
| 20 | Red Hill ON | 2.1% | 0% | 17 | 3 | 5 |
| 21 | De Salaberry MB | 1.9% | 0.2% | 46 | 0 | 2 |
| 22 | Caraquet NB | 1.8% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 11 |
| 23 | New Maryland NB | 1.7% | 0% | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | Oxford AB | 1.7% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | Highway Valley ON | 1.6% | 1.7% | 18 | 5 | 6 |
| 26 | Minnetonka MB | 1.6% | 1.7% | 19 | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | Roslyn MB | 1.6% | 0% | 23 | 4 | 0 |
| 28 | Felker ON | 1.5% | 0% | 14 | 1 | 0 |
| 29 | Centennial MB | 1.5% | 0% | 18 | 4 | 0 |
| 30 | Rockwood MB | 1.5% | 0% | 23 | 0 | 0 |
| 31 | Casselman ON | 1.4% | 0% | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | Parkridge SK | 1.1% | 0% | 14 | 0 | 1 |
| 33 | South Calgary AB | 0.8% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 1 |
| 34 | Vulcan County AB | 0.3% | 0.4% | 33 | 0 | 0 |
| 35 | Montgomery AB | 0.3% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 36 | Blue Quill AB | 0.3% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 37 | Ormsby Place AB | 0.3% | 0% | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 38 | Vanderhoof BC | 0.2% | 3.8% | 4 | 0 | 3 |
| 39 | Saint-Anselme QC | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | Howick ON | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
The map
The green map of Sparwood
The town’s parks, woods, protected land and paths, with its named places numbered.
Green: OpenStreetMap parks, gardens, playing fields and woods. Hatched: CPCAD protected areas.© OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL); CPCAD (OGL-Canada)
Places to walk
4 parks and woods to walk in, in or near Sparwood
The biggest is Lions Park, 3.5 ha. Biggest first, numbered as on the map.
4 named parks and woods, 7 ha in all
Parks & gardens 6.6 ha
Two places, Lions Park and Central Park, make up 74% of the total.
Central Park
Park or garden
1.4 ha0.3 km of path
1.4 km northfrom 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
A park is within a short walk for 4 in 10 in Sparwood
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 (37%)Further (63%)
Sparwood37%
Towns in British Columbia72%
Typical Canadian town83%
In the typical Canadian town the share is 83%, higher than here. Around 2,800 residents are further than 400 m from a park.
Protected areas
20 protected areas around Sparwood
Every protected and conserved area in CPCAD within 10 km of the town’s edge: parks, reserves, wildlife areas and conservation land.
Inside Sparwood3.4%
Within 10 km23%
Towns in British Columbia6.7%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
On public land: 8 of the 20. The others are private conservation land. At 79,796 ha, Castle Wildland Provincial Park is the largest. Another 12 are privately owned conservation land; they count in the figures but aren’t named, as private land isn’t a place to visit.
Crowsnest ParkProvincial park · 46 ha · reaches Sparwood
High Rock Wildland Provincial ParkProvincial park · 8,011 ha · 0.1 km from the edge of town
Castle Wildland Provincial ParkProvincial park · 79,796 ha · 1.8 km from the edge of town
Chinook Provincial Park (Expansion)Provincial park · 265 ha · 2.9 km from the edge of town
Beehive Natural AreaNature reserve · 6,775 ha · 5.3 km from the edge of town
Castle Provincial ParkProvincial park · 25,540 ha · 5.6 km from the edge of town
Elk Valley ParkProvincial park · 81 ha · 6.2 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
49 km to Waterton Lakes National Park
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
Crowsnest Park
At the edge0.5 km²since 1960
Provincial park
High Rock Wildland Provincial Park
0.1 km east80 km²
Provincial park
Castle Wildland Provincial Park
1.8 km south-east798 km²since 2017
Provincial park
Chinook Provincial Park (Expansion)
2.9 km east2.6 km²
Provincial park
Castle Provincial Park
5.6 km south-east255 km²since 2017
Provincial park
Elk Valley Park
6.2 km south0.8 km²since 1960
6 provincial parks lie within 10 km.
Source: CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC): areas and outlines, distances outline to outline; directions from the town’s centre point.
Footpaths and woods
Sparwood and its edge hold 114 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
114 km
in and around the town (346.3 km²)
Woodland
65%
about 224.1 km² of mapped woods
Footpaths · km per km²
SparwoodTowns in British ColumbiaTypical Canadian town
Footpaths0.3
012 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
SparwoodTowns in British ColumbiaTypical Canadian town
Woodland65%
0%50%100%
It is more wooded than 89% of Canadian towns. 71% of Canadian towns have more footpath per km².
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 Sparwood
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 town 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.
When to get out
Walking season in Sparwood: May and July to September
Environment and Climate Change Canada’s 1991–2020 normals from Sparwood (1.9 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) | 8.6 | 10.0 | 11.7 | 13.7 | 15.4 | 16.3 | 15.9 | 14.4 | 12.5 | 10.6 | 9.0 | 8.1 |
| High (°C) | -2 | 0 | 5 | 11 | 16 | 20 | 25 | 25 | 19 | 11 | 2 | -3 |
| Rain & snow (mm) | 49 | 38 | 56 | 40 | 58 | 71 | 44 | 32 | 44 | 54 | 72 | 56 |
In July the typical high is 25 °C; in December, -3 °C. Most rain and snow falls in November, 72 mm; August sees 32 mm. A typical year sees 280 cm of snow. The climate in Sparwood →
Things to do
Near Sparwood: 3 viewpoints, 1 waterfalls
Viewpoints, peaks, waterfalls, picnic sites, nature reserves, playgrounds, dog parks, campsites and boat launches mapped within 2 km of the town.
The map shows 18 hills and peaks, ahead of the rest. The tallest named summit close by is Funnel Peak (2,777 m).
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 3
Continental Divide viewpointin town
DirectionsPaddle craft takeout1.9 km from town
DirectionsPlus 1 viewpoint without a name on the map.
Hills and peaks 18
Baldy Mountain2,042 m · in town
DirectionsHorseshoe Ridge1,811 m · in town
DirectionsNatal Peak2,115 m · in town
DirectionsNatal Ridge1,778 m · in town
DirectionsToboggan Hill1,118 m · in town
DirectionsMount Salter2,541 m · 0.1 km from town
DirectionsCoal Mountain2,088 m · 0.7 km from town
DirectionsScrubby Peak2,506 m · 0.8 km from town
DirectionsPlus 10 hills and peaks more.
Waterfalls 1
Crowsnest Cave Waterfall1.9 km from town
DirectionsPicnic sites 3
Plus 3 picnic sites without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 3
Plus 3 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Campsites 1
Mountain Shadows Campgroundin town
DirectionsSource: OpenStreetMap (tourism, natural, waterway and leisure tags), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Next door
Next to Sparwood
The nearest places, coloured by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected; tap one for its outdoors page. No closer places have figures: these lie 18–34 km from Sparwood.
Electoral Area A, East KootenayFernieElkfordCrowsnest PassSparwood
Under 1%1–5%5–15%15–40%40%+
| Town | Protected within 10 km | Areas | Routes | Beaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sparwood | 23% | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| Electoral Area A, East Kootenay 18 km | 33% | 35 | 11 | 15 |
| Fernie 29 km | 31% | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| Elkford 31 km | 12% | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| Crowsnest Pass 34 km | 25% | 21 | 6 | 0 |
Sparwood is not outdone two to one on protected land by any neighbour. For walking routes, Electoral Area A, East Kootenay leads the area with 11.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- National and provincial parks. National parks are Parks Canada’s; provincial parks are the province’s or territory’s, Québec’s parcs nationaux among them.
- Private land. Areas held by land trusts or private owners stay unnamed here, though they count in the shares.
- 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.
- Protected land. Protected here means in CPCAD, Canada’s official list: parks, reserves, wildlife areas and other conserved land, measured within 10 km of the town’s edge.
Questions about the outdoors in Sparwood
How far is Sparwood from a national park?
Waterton Lakes National Park, 49 km from the edge of town.
When is the best time for walking in Sparwood?
On the normals, May and July to September: that is when days are long, highs reach 15 °C and rain is light.
How much land around Sparwood is protected?
Within 10 km, 23% of the land lies in protected areas.
Which is the biggest protected area near Sparwood?
Castle Wildland Provincial Park, a provincial park of 79,796 ha.
How far is the nearest provincial park from Sparwood?
Crowsnest Park begins at the town’s edge.
Sources
The sources behind Sparwood’s outdoors figures
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).