Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Photo: Sikander Iqbal · CC BY-SA 4.0Within 10 km are 28 protected areas. Uxbridge Urban Provincial Park is the closest provincial park, at 31 km. Elgin West Channel Lands (89 ha) is the biggest, 9.0 km from town.
Each figure against Canadian towns of 2,500+; tap a tile for the detail.
What German Mills has most to offer outdoors is Rouge National Urban Park within easy reach, with the number of public protected areas close by close behind.
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.
CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC, 2026), OpenStreetMap (November 2026). Distances from the town’s outline.
The 40 Canadian towns nearest in population (11,625 to 12,218 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, German Mills does best for public protected areas: 8 of the other 39 have more. On protected land nearby it is behind: 25 of 39 have more.
| Town | Protected within 10 km | In town | Areas | Routes | Beaches | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | L'Île-Perrot QC | 42% | 0.5% | 44 | 0 | 4 |
| 2 | Notre-Dame-de-l'Île-Perrot QC | 34% | 0.6% | 50 | 0 | 5 |
| 3 | Mont-Tremblant QC | 27% | 29% | 20 | 0 | 18 |
| 4 | Chapel Hill North ON | 14% | 1.2% | 36 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | Nelson BC | 14% | 0.1% | 10 | 2 | 8 |
| 6 | Clearwater County AB | 13% | 5.7% | 44 | 3 | 4 |
| 7 | Cardinal Creek ON | 11% | 0% | 43 | 0 | 1 |
| 8 | Rideau Lakes ON | 10% | 14% | 77 | 6 | 12 |
| 9 | Valley Creek ON | 6.3% | 29% | 10 | 0 | 1 |
| 10 | Chapman Mills ON | 6% | 1.9% | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | Provinceton BC | 5.3% | 5.9% | 160 | 6 | 0 |
| 12 | Saint-Rodrigue QC | 4.8% | 0% | 15 | 1 | 4 |
| 13 | Adjala-Tosorontio ON | 4.7% | 1.1% | 68 | 3 | 4 |
| 14 | Chester NS | 4.1% | 6.1% | 124 | 1 | 21 |
| 15 | Humber Summit ON | 3.6% | 0% | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | Milliken ON | 3.4% | 0% | 15 | 0 | 1 |
| 17 | McKenzie Lake AB | 3.3% | 1.1% | 2 | 0 | 17 |
| 18 | Fletchers Meadow North ON | 3% | 4.9% | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | Marieville QC | 2.9% | 0.7% | 37 | 0 | 5 |
| 20 | Morrisburg ON | 2.6% | 4.2% | 17 | 0 | 5 |
| 21 | Saint-Sauveur QC | 2.3% | 0% | 21 | 0 | 7 |
| 22 | St. Andrews MB | 2.3% | 1.1% | 9 | 2 | 2 |
| 23 | St. Clements MB | 2.2% | 3% | 9 | 8 | 10 |
| 24 | René-Goupil QC | 2.1% | 0% | 16 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts QC | 1.8% | 1.6% | 15 | 1 | 8 |
| 26 | German Mills ON | 1.6% | 0% | 28 | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | Grey Highlands ON | 1.3% | 0.7% | 77 | 4 | 0 |
| 28 | Saint-Raymond QC | 1.2% | 1.2% | 27 | 8 | 5 |
| 29 | The Hamptons AB | 1.2% | 0% | 11 | 0 | 0 |
| 30 | Georgian Bluffs ON | 1.1% | 1.9% | 67 | 4 | 17 |
| 31 | Hamilton ON | 0.9% | 0.8% | 14 | 2 | 4 |
| 32 | Wetaskiwin County No. 10 AB | 0.7% | 1% | 52 | 0 | 3 |
| 33 | Tay ON | 0.5% | 0.6% | 17 | 3 | 5 |
| 34 | West Springs AB | 0.3% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 35 | Weyburn SK | 0.2% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 36 | Etobicoke West Mall ON | 0.2% | 0% | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| 37 | South Cameron ON | 0.2% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 38 | Mississauga Valleys ON | 0.1% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 2 |
| 39 | Cityscape AB | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 40 | Martensville SK | 0% | 0% | 3 | 0 | 0 |
The neighbourhood’s parks, woods, protected land and paths, with its named places numbered.
East Don Parkland is the largest, at 125 ha; the rest follow by size, numbered as on the map.
The bulk, 57%, is East Don Parkland and German Mills Meadow and Natural Habitat.
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 1,000 people, the nearest park is over 400 m away. Few do better: the typical Canadian town is at 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 22 of the 28. Biggest of the named areas: Elgin West Channel Lands, 89 ha. 6 areas, privately held or of unrecorded ownership, are left unnamed.
12 more named areas within 10 km are in the figures.
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.
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).
Woods cover less of it than in 59% of Canadian towns. Paths are denser here than in 56% 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.
OpenStreetMap has no named walking route within 2 km of the neighbourhood. Trails may exist without being mapped as routes.
Source: OpenStreetMap (route relations hiking, foot and walking), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Trans Canada Trail sections as OSM maps them.
Environment and Climate Change Canada’s 1991–2020 normals from Toronto Buttonville (Airport) (4.5 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) | 9.3 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.4 | 15.1 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 8.9 |
| High (°C) | -2 | -1 | 5 | 12 | 19 | 25 | 27 | 26 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 2 |
| Rain & snow (mm) | 64 | 51 | 52 | 79 | 80 | 87 | 85 | 72 | 83 | 71 | 77 | 63 |
Summer highs reach 27 °C in July; in January they stay near -2 °C. February is the driest month at 51 mm; June the wettest at 87 mm. Some 146 cm of snow falls each winter. The climate in German Mills →
Viewpoints, peaks, waterfalls, picnic sites, nature reserves, playgrounds, dog parks, campsites and boat launches mapped within 2 km of the town.
There are 95 playgrounds, more than of anything else.
Plus 1 dog park without a name on the map.
Source: OpenStreetMap (tourism, natural, waterway and leisure tags), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| German Mills | 1.6% | 28 | 0 | 0 |
| Thornlea 2.0 km | 1.9% | 29 | 0 | 0 |
| Hillcrest Village 2.2 km | 1.6% | 21 | 0 | 0 |
| Bayview Woods-Steeles 3.2 km | 1.7% | 21 | 0 | 0 |
| Steeles 3.7 km | 1.9% | 18 | 0 | 0 |
| Steeles Corners 4.1 km | 1.8% | 26 | 0 | 0 |
| Langstaff 4.2 km | 2.3% | 27 | 0 | 0 |
German Mills holds its own on protected land: no neighbour has twice its share.
Rouge National Urban Park, 13 km from the edge of town.
On the normals, May and July to September: that is when days are long, highs reach 15 °C and rain is light.
Elgin West Channel Lands, a nature reserve of 89 ha.
Uxbridge Urban Provincial Park, 31 km away.
Within 10 km, 1.6% of the land lies in protected areas.
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).