First pick
Bayfront Park
Park or garden · 60 m outside town
19 ha3.2 km of path
45 minto walk all 3.2 km of path
0.7 km northfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
Photo: Rick Cordeiro · Public domain5.6%protected within 10 km
Outdoors in Central · parks, protected land & trails
From Central, Bronte Creek Provincial Park is the nearest provincial park (17 km)
5.6% of the land and water within 10 km is protected (the typical Canadian town: 2.3%). The Bruce Trail - Iroquoia section is the one mapped walking route close by. Within 5 km lie 3 beaches, unnamed on the map.
Protected land
5.6%
of the land within 10 km
Typical Canadian town: 2.3%
Protected areas
24
within 10 km, 5 public
Typical Canadian town: 14
Nearest national park
83 km
Rouge National Urban Park
Nearest provincial park
17 km
Bronte Creek Provincial Park
Walking routes
1
named, within 2 km (OpenStreetMap)
Beaches
3
within 5 km (OpenStreetMap)
Against other towns
Central 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. Canada’s grades don’t include the outdoors, so this page compares the figures rather than grading them.
Protected within 10 km5.6%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 areas5Areas within 10 km held by a government or an Indigenous nation
Walking routes1Named 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
Central has the 8th most protected land nearby of 40 towns its size
The 40 Canadian towns nearest in population (3,648 to 3,746 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
Central5.6%
Towns its size1.5%
Towns in Ontario2.3%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
Public protected areas
Central5
Towns its size5
Towns in Ontario4
Typical Canadian town4
Walking routes
Central1
Towns its size0
Towns in Ontario1
Typical Canadian town0
Central beats most towns its size for protected land nearby; 7 of 39 do better.
Every town in the comparison
| Town | Protected within 10 km | In town | Areas | Routes | Beaches | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Baie-D'Urfé QC | 49% | 0.1% | 44 | 0 | 6 |
| 2 | Electoral Area A, Columbia-Shuswap BC | 33% | 25% | 26 | 26 | 2 |
| 3 | Blind River ON | 21% | 41% | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Saint-Sulpice QC | 12% | 5.8% | 29 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | Golf Course ON | 7.3% | 3% | 20 | 3 | 1 |
| 6 | Bright NB | 7.1% | 4.6% | 46 | 0 | 5 |
| 7 | Woodbridge Meadows ON | 5.7% | 2.7% | 23 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | Central ON | 5.6% | 0% | 24 | 1 | 3 |
| 9 | Cowichan Bay BC | 4.2% | 5.7% | 64 | 2 | 10 |
| 10 | Westville NS | 4.1% | 0% | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | Industrial Sector A and Keith ON | 3.5% | 0.9% | 30 | 0 | 15 |
| 12 | Deer Run AB | 3.4% | 47% | 2 | 0 | 15 |
| 13 | Parkland AB | 3.4% | 39% | 2 | 0 | 10 |
| 14 | Piedmont QC | 3.1% | 15% | 17 | 2 | 3 |
| 15 | Parkview West ON | 2.1% | 2.7% | 26 | 0 | 14 |
| 16 | North Glenora AB | 1.9% | 0% | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 17 | Killarney MB | 1.8% | 2.3% | 61 | 0 | 1 |
| 18 | Powassan ON | 1.6% | 1.8% | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | Electoral Area C, Nanaimo BC | 1.5% | 1.1% | 60 | 6 | 47 |
| 20 | Kensington AB | 1.5% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 21 | Studholm NB | 1.4% | 0% | 15 | 0 | 3 |
| 22 | Deer Lodge MB | 1.3% | 0% | 18 | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | Fifty Point ON | 1.2% | 0% | 19 | 0 | 3 |
| 24 | Alpine Place MB | 0.9% | 2.3% | 19 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | Cameron Heights AB | 0.9% | 0% | 6 | 1 | 0 |
| 26 | Inkster-Faraday MB | 0.8% | 0% | 13 | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | Ascot Corner QC | 0.7% | 0% | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 28 | North Inkster Industrial MB | 0.5% | 0% | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| 29 | Flagstaff County AB | 0.4% | 0.3% | 47 | 0 | 0 |
| 30 | Radisson MB | 0.4% | 0% | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| 31 | Victoria West MB | 0.4% | 0% | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | Eau Claire AB | 0.4% | 0% | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 33 | West Kildonan Industrial MB | 0.3% | 0% | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| 34 | Greenfield AB | 0.3% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 35 | Magrath Heights AB | 0.3% | 13% | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 36 | Cartier MB | 0.2% | 0.5% | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| 37 | Pleasantview AB | 0.1% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 38 | Sainte-Claire QC | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 39 | Saint-Michel QC | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | Country Hills AB | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 |
The map
Parks, woods and paths around Central
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
8 parks and woods to walk in, in or near Central
The biggest is Bayfront Park, 19 ha. Biggest first, numbered as on the map.
8 named parks and woods, 24 ha in all
Parks & gardens 24 ha
Two places, Bayfront Park and Central Park, make up 89% of the total.
Central Park
Park or garden
2.6 ha0.7 km of path
10 minto walk all 0.7 km of path
Centralin the middle of Central
Directionsto a point inside
Gore Park
Park or garden
0.4 ha0.6 km of path
5 minto walk all 0.6 km of path
1.0 km south-eastfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
Immigration Square
Park or garden
0.3 ha0.2 km of path
0.7 km eastfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
York Boulevard Parkette #3
Park or garden
0.5 ha
Centralin the middle of Central
Directionsto a point inside
John Rebecca Park
Park or garden · 240 m outside town
0.6 ha
1.1 km south-eastfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
Whitehern
Park or garden · 290 m outside town
0.4 ha0.1 km of path
1.1 km southfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
McLaren Park
Park or garden · 240 m outside town
0.3 ha
0.9 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
All of Central is within a short walk of 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%)
Central100%
Towns in Ontario90%
Typical Canadian town83%
It is above the typical Canadian town (83%).
Protected areas
5.6% of the country within 10 km of Central is protected
Every protected and conserved area in CPCAD within 10 km of the town’s edge: parks, reserves, wildlife areas and conservation land.
Inside Central0%
Within 10 km5.6%
Towns in Ontario2.3%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
Public bodies own 5 of the 24; land trusts and private owners hold the others. Windermere Basin Park is the biggest, 39 ha. 19 more areas within 10 km are private land, held by landowners or conservation groups: counted here, not named.
BontaProtected area · 8.3 ha · 6.3 km from the edge of town
Windermere Basin ParkNature reserve · 39 ha · 6.6 km from the edge of town
Former Upper Ottawa LandfillNature reserve · 11 ha · 6.9 km from the edge of town
Burlington EasementNature reserve · 27 ha · 9.2 km from the edge of town
FarmerProtected area · 15 ha · 9.9 km from the edge of town
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
83 km to Rouge National Urban 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
Bronte Creek Provincial Park
17 km north-east6.8 km²since 1975
National urban park
Rouge National Urban Park
83 km north-east46 km²since 2015
A provincial park is closer: Bronte Creek Provincial Park, at 17 km.
Source: CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC): areas and outlines, distances outline to outline; directions from the town’s centre point.
Footpaths and woods
Central has 31 km of footpaths in and around it
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
31 km
in and around the town (8.1 km²)
Woodland
0.9%
about 0.1 km² of mapped woods
Footpaths · km per km²
CentralTowns in OntarioTypical Canadian town
Footpaths3.8
02.55 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
CentralTowns in OntarioTypical Canadian town
Woodland0.9%
0%50%100%
Few places match it for paths: more than 82% of Canadian towns have fewer. 82% of Canadian towns are more wooded.
Source: OpenStreetMap, © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Mapping varies by place: a dense figure can mean keen local mappers as much as many paths.
Walking routes
Central has 1 named walking route
Named walking and hiking routes on OpenStreetMap with at least 300 m within 2 km of the town, longest first; national routes lead.
Regional
Bruce Trail - Iroquoia section124.0 km
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 Central: May, June, August and September
Daylight at the town’s latitude and ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals (Hamilton, 12 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) | 9.3 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.4 | 15.1 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 9.0 |
| High (°C) | 0 | 1 | 5 | 10 | 17 | 22 | 26 | 25 | 21 | 15 | 8 | 3 |
| Rain & snow (mm) | 73 | 53 | 69 | 81 | 81 | 78 | 98 | 67 | 74 | 84 | 78 | 67 |
From 0 °C in January to 26 °C in July: that is the range of daytime highs. The warmest month, July, is also the wettest (98 mm), while February is driest at 53 mm. The climate in Central →
Beaches
3 beaches within 5 km of Central, none named
Beaches on OpenStreetMap within 5 km of the town’s edge, nearest first, with directions.
This page can’t show water quality: no open, Canada-wide record of beach testing exists. Check local advisories first.
Source: OpenStreetMap (natural=beach), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Things to do
10 viewpoints near Central
Viewpoints, peaks, waterfalls, picnic sites, nature reserves, playgrounds, dog parks, campsites and boat launches mapped within 2 km of the town.
Burlington Heights, 100 m, is the high point nearby. 56 playgrounds top the list.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 10
view of the bay/harbour0.3 km from town
DirectionsCultural history of Carroll's Bay1.8 km from town
DirectionsPrincess Point2.0 km from town
DirectionsPlus 7 viewpoints without a name on the map.
Hills and peaks 1
Burlington Heights100 m · 1.4 km from town
DirectionsPicnic sites 1
Plus 1 picnic site without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 56
Tom Street Park Playground1.0 km from town
DirectionsPlus 55 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Slipways 2
Plus 2 slipways without a name on the map.
Source: OpenStreetMap (tourism, natural, waterway and leisure tags), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Gardens to visit
A garden to visit near Central: Royal Botanical Gardens, 2.6 km away
Gardens and arboretums within 15 km of the town’s edge, and the historic gardens, parks and estates in the town itself, nearest first.
Royal Botanical GardensNational Historic Site · 2.6 km from town
Its pageOne carries a national designation.
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.
Next door
Next to Central
The nearest places, coloured by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected; tap one for its outdoors page.
StrathconaNorth End EastDurandBeasleyCorktownKirkendall NorthCentral
Under 1%1–5%5–15%15–40%40%+
| Town | Protected within 10 km | Areas | Routes | Beaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central | 5.6% | 24 | 1 | 3 |
| Strathcona 1.0 km | 6% | 26 | 1 | 3 |
| North End East 1.2 km | 4.8% | 23 | 0 | 3 |
| Durand 1.2 km | 6.3% | 24 | 1 | 3 |
| Beasley 1.2 km | 5.1% | 23 | 1 | 3 |
| Corktown 1.6 km | 5.6% | 24 | 1 | 3 |
| Kirkendall North 1.7 km | 7.2% | 23 | 2 | 3 |
None of the places nearby has twice as much protected land around it as Central.
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.
- Beaches. A beach counts when its centre point lies within 5 km of the town’s outline. Names come from the map.
- Protected land. CPCAD maps each protected area; the page counts how much of the 10 km around the town they cover, lakes and sea included.
- Private land. Private conservation land is in the totals, not the lists. Many such areas are easements on working farms or woodlots.
- Walking routes. Routes are what OpenStreetMap’s volunteers have mapped as named walking or hiking routes; many good trails aren’t mapped that way.
Questions about the outdoors in Central
When is the best time for walking in Central?
May, June, August and September: long days, mild highs and little rain.
How far is the nearest provincial park from Central?
The closest is Bronte Creek Provincial Park, at 17 km.
How far is Central from a national park?
The nearest is Rouge National Urban Park, 83 km away.
Which is the biggest protected area near Central?
Windermere Basin Park: 39 ha, a nature reserve.
Is there protected land near Central?
Protected areas cover 5.6% of the land within 10 km.
Are there hiking trails near Central?
OpenStreetMap maps the Bruce Trail - Iroquoia section close by.
What is the nearest beach to Central?
The beaches mapped within 5 km have no names on the map.
Sources
Where Central’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).