First pick
East Neebish Island
Wood or forest
208 ha
4.7 km southfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
Photo: Fungus Guy · CC BY-SA 3.0–Not graded
Outdoors in Laird · parks, protected land & trails
From Laird, North Channel Islands - la Cloche Provincial Park Addition is the nearest provincial park (25 km)
The protected share within 10 km is 0%, where a typical Canadian town has 2.3%. 3 protected areas lie within 10 km. OpenStreetMap shows 3 unnamed beaches within 5 km.
Protected land
0%
of the land within 10 km
Typical Canadian town: 2.3%
Protected areas
3
within 10 km, 0 public
Typical Canadian town: 14
Nearest provincial park
25 km
North Channel Islands - la Cloche Provincial Park Addition
Beaches
3
within 5 km (OpenStreetMap)
Against other towns
Laird beside other Canadian towns, figure by figure
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 one of Canada’s graded subjects, so there’s no letter here: each figure is set against other Canadian towns instead.
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
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
Laird sits 5th from last of 40 towns its size for protected land around it
The 40 Canadian towns nearest in population (1,221 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
Laird0%
Towns its size1.4%
Towns in Ontario2.3%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
Public protected areas
Laird0
Towns its size3
Towns in Ontario4
Typical Canadian town4
Walking routes
Laird0
Towns its size0
Towns in Ontario1
Typical Canadian town0
Against towns its size, Laird is weakest for public protected areas: 33 of 39 have more.
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 | Clearwater BC | 7.7% | 4.1% | 4 | 0 | 3 |
| 6 | Roberval QC | 6.1% | 1.2% | 22 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | Saint-Louis-de-Gonzague QC | 5.8% | 0% | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | North Frontenac ON | 5.7% | 5.2% | 13 | 6 | 4 |
| 9 | Cap-Chat QC | 5.3% | 0.4% | 13 | 0 | 10 |
| 10 | Killaloe, Hagarty and Richards ON | 4.4% | 1.5% | 9 | 0 | 4 |
| 11 | Saint-Polycarpe QC | 4.2% | 0% | 11 | 0 | 2 |
| 12 | Macassa ON | 4.1% | 0% | 18 | 1 | 0 |
| 13 | Saint-Damien QC | 4% | 3.2% | 22 | 1 | 9 |
| 14 | Unity SK | 3.4% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | Sherwood ON | 3.4% | 0% | 19 | 2 | 0 |
| 16 | McNab SK | 2.6% | 0% | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| 17 | Mandeville QC | 2.5% | 1.8% | 19 | 4 | 7 |
| 18 | Esterhazy SK | 1.8% | 0% | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | City Commercial Core ON | 1.8% | 0% | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | Caswell Hill SK | 1.4% | 0% | 16 | 0 | 3 |
| 21 | Fossambault-sur-le-Lac QC | 1.3% | 7.8% | 15 | 0 | 14 |
| 22 | Pembina MB | 1.1% | 1.8% | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | Burrows-Keewatin MB | 1% | 0% | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | Elmwood AB | 0.8% | 0% | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| 25 | Hatley QC | 0.7% | 0% | 9 | 0 | 5 |
| 26 | Munroe West MB | 0.4% | 0% | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | Brooke-Alvinston ON | 0.3% | 0.2% | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 28 | Rosedale AB | 0.3% | 0% | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 29 | Minchau AB | 0.3% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 30 | Lunenburg NS | 0.1% | 0% | 19 | 0 | 5 |
| 31 | Salisbury NB | 0.1% | 2.1% | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | Dufferin MB | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | Ekota AB | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| 34 | Satoo AB | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 35 | Saint-Éphrem-de-Beauce QC | 0% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 36 | Laird ON | 0% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| 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 Laird
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
Walk in Laird: 7 named parks and woods
Largest first: East Neebish Island leads with 208 ha. Numbers match the map.
7 named parks and woods, 331 ha in all
Woods 331 ha
Between them, East Neebish Island and Pine Island cover 88%.
Forshaw Island
Wood or forest · 330 m outside town
9.1 ha
6.6 km southfrom 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
In Laird, parks are rarely a short walk away
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 (0%)Further (100%)
Laird0%
Towns in Ontario90%
Typical Canadian town83%
In the typical Canadian town the share is 83%, higher than here. For about 1,200 people, the nearest park is over 400 m away.
Protected areas
3 protected areas lie within 10 km of Laird
Every protected and conserved area in CPCAD within 10 km of the town’s edge: parks, reserves, wildlife areas and conservation land.
Inside Laird0%
Within 10 km0%
Towns in Ontario2.3%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
Every one is privately held, and none is named: private 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 & provincial parks
25 km to North Channel Islands - la Cloche Provincial Park Addition
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
North Channel Islands - la Cloche Provincial Park Addition
25 km south-east821 km²
No national park lies within 100 km of Laird; the provincial parks are the big protected land within reach.
Source: CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC): areas and outlines, distances outline to outline; directions from the town’s centre point.
Footpaths and woods
Paths to walk: 4 km in and around Laird
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
3.7 km
in and around the town (168.2 km²)
Woodland
52%
about 87.3 km² of mapped woods
Footpaths · km per km²
LairdTowns in OntarioTypical Canadian town
Footpaths0
01.53 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
LairdTowns in OntarioTypical Canadian town
Woodland52%
0%50%100%
Paths are thinner on the ground than in 96% of Canadian towns. More of it is wooded than in 84% 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
OpenStreetMap shows no walking route near Laird
Named walking and hiking routes on OpenStreetMap with at least 300 m within 2 km of the town, longest first; national routes lead.
There is no mapped walking route within 2 km of the town; a local trail club’s maps may show more.
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 Laird: May to August
Environment and Climate Change Canada’s 1991–2020 normals from Sault Ste Marie (34 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) | 9.0 | 10.3 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 15.0 | 15.8 | 15.4 | 14.2 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.3 | 8.6 |
| High (°C) | -5 | -4 | 1 | 9 | 16 | 22 | 24 | 24 | 19 | 12 | 5 | -1 |
| Rain & snow (mm) | 65 | 46 | 52 | 71 | 69 | 79 | 77 | 78 | 109 | 111 | 89 | 70 |
Most rain and snow falls in October, 111 mm; February sees 46 mm. July is the warmest month, with highs around 24 °C; January the coldest, at -5 °C. Expect around 325 cm of snow over a winter. The climate in Laird →
Beaches
3 unnamed beaches near Laird
Beaches on OpenStreetMap within 5 km of the town’s edge, nearest first, with directions.
No open data on beach water quality covers every province, so check with public health before a swim.
Source: OpenStreetMap (natural=beach), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Things to do
Near Laird: 4 outdoor spots on the map
Viewpoints, peaks, waterfalls, picnic sites, nature reserves, playgrounds, dog parks, campsites and boat launches mapped within 2 km of the town.
Most numerous: slipways (4).
Every named place, with directions
Slipways 4
Plus 4 slipways without a name on the map.
Source: OpenStreetMap (tourism, natural, waterway and leisure tags), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Next door
Next to Laird
The nearest places, coloured by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected; tap one for its outdoors page.
Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen AdditionalSt. JosephGarden River 14Laird
Under 1%1–5%5–15%15–40%40%+
| Town | Protected within 10 km | Areas | Routes | Beaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laird | 0% | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional 10 km | 1.5% | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| St. Joseph 14 km | 0.3% | 8 | 0 | 7 |
| Garden River 14 18 km | 5.4% | 7 | 0 | 5 |
Around Macdonald, Meredith and Aberdeen Additional and Garden River 14 the protected share is at least double.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Beaches. The count includes unnamed stretches mapped as beach, which can make a lakeside town’s figure large.
- Walking routes. The list is OpenStreetMap’s, so a missing trail may just be unmapped. The Trans Canada Trail appears where OSM maps it.
- 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.
- 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. National parks are Parks Canada’s; provincial parks are the province’s or territory’s, Québec’s parcs nationaux among them.
Questions about the outdoors in Laird
Are there protected areas near Laird?
Within 10 km, 0% of the land lies in protected areas.
Is there a beach near Laird?
There are beaches within 5 km, none of them named.
Is Laird near a national park?
None within 100 km of Laird.
How far is the nearest provincial park from Laird?
It is North Channel Islands - la Cloche Provincial Park Addition, 25 km away.
When should you visit Laird for the outdoors?
On the normals, May to August: that is when days are long, highs reach 15 °C and rain is light.
Sources
Where Laird’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.
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).