Photo: unknown. Canada. Department of National Defence. · Public domainThe boundary of Thousand Islands National Park runs along Picton
Within 5 km are 13 beaches; Campers Beach is the nearest. The Woodlands Trail is the one mapped walking route close by. CPCAD lists 31 protected areas within 10 km.
Where Picton stands out outdoors
Each figure against Canadian towns of 2,500+; tap a tile for the detail.
Picton’s best card is Thousand Islands National Park on its doorstep, with its beaches close behind.
How Picton 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.
CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC, 2026), OpenStreetMap (November 2026). Distances from the town’s outline.
Picton sits 9th from last of 40 towns its size for protected land around it
The 40 Canadian towns nearest in population (26,607 to 28,591 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, Picton does best for public protected areas: 13 of the other 39 have more. For protected land nearby, though, 31 of 39 are ahead.
Every town in the comparison
| Town | Protected within 10 km | In town | Areas | Routes | Beaches | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Squamish BC | 30% | 21% | 20 | 3 | 20 |
| 2 | Marpole BC | 17% | 0% | 13 | 0 | 5 |
| 3 | Loyola QC | 14% | 0% | 25 | 0 | 1 |
| 4 | Austinville NS | 11% | 0% | 27 | 7 | 17 |
| 5 | Kitsilano BC | 10% | 0% | 11 | 3 | 68 |
| 6 | René-Lévesque QC | 8.1% | 0% | 23 | 1 | 5 |
| 7 | Montagne QC | 7.7% | 42% | 20 | 1 | 5 |
| 8 | Ebenezer East ON | 7.5% | 6.6% | 18 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | Parc-Kent QC | 5.4% | 0% | 23 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | Laurendeau QC | 4.9% | 0% | 27 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | La Prairie QC | 4.6% | 0% | 19 | 0 | 2 |
| 12 | Enfield NS | 4.4% | 5.2% | 184 | 13 | 6 |
| 13 | Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville QC | 4.4% | 20% | 39 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | Sandalwood West (sunny Meadow) ON | 4.1% | 4.4% | 8 | 0 | 1 |
| 15 | Collingwood ON | 3.9% | 0.2% | 15 | 0 | 3 |
| 16 | Duberger—Les Saules QC | 3.7% | 0% | 29 | 1 | 4 |
| 17 | Vieux-Rosemont QC | 3.7% | 0% | 18 | 0 | 1 |
| 18 | Grandview-Woodland BC | 3.5% | 0% | 12 | 4 | 51 |
| 19 | Agincourt North ON | 3.3% | 0% | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | Woburn North ON | 3.2% | 5.1% | 18 | 0 | 2 |
| 21 | Clairlea-Birchmount ON | 2.7% | 2.4% | 15 | 0 | 12 |
| 22 | Golfdale-Cedarbrae-Woburn ON | 2.7% | 0% | 18 | 0 | 4 |
| 23 | York University Heights ON | 2.7% | 1.2% | 22 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | Thetford Mines QC | 2.4% | 0% | 6 | 0 | 2 |
| 25 | West Hill ON | 2.4% | 15% | 16 | 0 | 6 |
| 26 | Harbourfront-CityPlace ON | 2.2% | 0% | 12 | 7 | 42 |
| 27 | Tam O'Shanter-Sullivan ON | 2.2% | 0% | 18 | 0 | 0 |
| 28 | Lunenburg NS | 2.1% | 1.7% | 140 | 5 | 33 |
| 29 | Wexford/Maryvale ON | 2% | 0% | 15 | 0 | 5 |
| 30 | Don Valley Village ON | 1.8% | 0% | 19 | 0 | 0 |
| 31 | Banbury-Don Mills ON | 1.6% | 2.4% | 13 | 0 | 1 |
| 32 | Picton ON | 1.5% | 3.6% | 31 | 1 | 13 |
| 33 | South Riverdale ON | 1.5% | 16% | 12 | 9 | 49 |
| 34 | Argyle ON | 1.5% | 0.3% | 13 | 1 | 0 |
| 35 | Auteuil QC | 1.4% | 0% | 30 | 0 | 0 |
| 36 | Beamsville ON | 1.2% | 1.3% | 26 | 5 | 9 |
| 37 | Sainte-Thérèse QC | 1% | 0% | 23 | 2 | 0 |
| 38 | Rathwood ON | 0.4% | 0% | 7 | 1 | 0 |
| 39 | Saint-Lin--Laurentides QC | 0.3% | 0% | 6 | 0 | 3 |
| 40 | Amherstburg ON | 0.1% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 4 |
Parks, woods and paths around Picton
The town’s parks, woods, protected land and paths, with its named places numbered.
19 parks and woods to walk in, in or near Picton
Largest first: The Big Swamp leads with 1,774 ha. Numbers match the map.
Two places, The Big Swamp and The Little Swamp, make up 96% of the total.
Zwick's Island Park
Dunes Beach Day Use Area Sandbanks Provincial Park
Koala Forest
All 19 named parks and green spaces
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.
A park is within a short walk for 1 in 10 in Picton
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.
Around 24,000 residents are further than 400 m from a park. The usual figure for a Canadian town is 83%, above this.
1.5% of the country within 10 km of Picton is protected
Every protected and conserved area in CPCAD within 10 km of the town’s edge: parks, reserves, wildlife areas and conservation land.
On public land: 10 of the 31. The others are private conservation land. Thousand Islands National Park leads for size with 2,364 ha. Another 21 are privately owned conservation land; they count in the figures but aren’t named, as 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.
The parks within reach of Picton
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.
Thousand Islands National Park
Sandbanks Provincial Park
Lake on the Mountain Provincial Picnic Grounds
North Beach Provincial Park
Timber Island Provincial Park
Presqu'Ile Provincial Park
Within 10 km are 5 provincial parks.
Source: CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC): areas and outlines, distances outline to outline; directions from the town’s centre point.
126 km of paths in and around Picton
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 · km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
88% of Canadian towns have more footpath per km². More of it is wooded than in 67% 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.
1 walking route near Picton
Named walking and hiking routes on OpenStreetMap with at least 300 m within 2 km of the town, longest first; national routes lead.
Source: OpenStreetMap (route relations hiking, foot and walking), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Trans Canada Trail sections as OSM maps them.
Picton is best on foot in May to September
Daylight at the town’s latitude and ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals (Trenton, 24 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) | 9.2 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.5 | 15.2 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 8.9 |
| High (°C) | -2 | -1 | 4 | 12 | 19 | 24 | 27 | 26 | 22 | 14 | 7 | 1 |
| Rain & snow (mm) | 78 | 60 | 64 | 84 | 81 | 83 | 75 | 70 | 92 | 91 | 84 | 77 |
Rain and snow peak in September (92 mm) and ease in February (60 mm). From -2 °C in January to 27 °C in July: that is the range of daytime highs. The yearly snowfall is near 155 cm. The climate in Picton →
13 beaches within 5 km of Picton
Beaches on OpenStreetMap within 5 km of the town’s edge, nearest first, with directions.
4 are mapped as sand. OpenStreetMap shows 8 more, nameless. No national or provincial register of beach water quality is published as open data, so check the local health unit before swimming.
Source: OpenStreetMap (natural=beach), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Picton has 14 viewpoints and 1 waterfalls nearby
Viewpoints, peaks, waterfalls, picnic sites, nature reserves, playgrounds, dog parks, campsites and boat launches mapped within 2 km of the town.
The map shows 30 playgrounds, ahead of the rest.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 14
Plus 10 viewpoints without a name on the map.
Waterfalls 1
Plus 1 waterfall without a name on the map.
Nature reserves 8
Picnic sites 16
Plus 14 picnic sites without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 30
Plus 22 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Dog parks 2
Campsites 26
Plus 18 campsites without a name on the map.
Slipways 15
Plus 11 slipways without a name on the map.
Source: OpenStreetMap (tourism, natural, waterway and leisure tags), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Next to Picton
The nearest places, coloured by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected; tap one for its outdoors page. Picton has few close neighbours with figures, so the list reaches 18–29 km out.
| Town | Protected within 10 km | Areas | Routes | Beaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Picton | 1.5% | 31 | 1 | 13 |
| Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory 18 km | 0.1% | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Belleville 20 km | 1.2% | 18 | 1 | 0 |
| Deseronto 25 km | 0.2% | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Quinte West 27 km | 1.4% | 22 | 3 | 1 |
| Tyendinaga 29 km | 3% | 30 | 0 | 0 |
For protected land, Tyendinaga has twice as much or more. Quinte West has the most mapped walking routes nearby: 3.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- 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.
- Beaches. The count includes unnamed stretches mapped as beach, which can make a lakeside town’s figure large.
- National and provincial parks. The nearest national park and the nearest provincial park are always shown when they are within 100 km.
- Walking routes. Routes are what OpenStreetMap’s volunteers have mapped as named walking or hiking routes; many good trails aren’t mapped that way.
- Private land. CPCAD includes conservation land held privately; the page counts it and leaves the names out.
Questions about the outdoors in Picton
Is there a provincial park near Picton?
Timber Island Provincial Park begins at the town’s edge.
When should you visit Picton for the outdoors?
May to September: long days, mild highs and little rain.
Where can you walk near Picton?
The Woodlands Trail, mapped within 2 km.
Is there a beach near Picton?
The nearest is Campers Beach, in town.
Is there protected land near Picton?
Yes: 1.5% of the land within 10 km is protected.
What is the largest protected area near Picton?
It is Thousand Islands National Park, a national park covering 2,364 ha.
What is the nearest national park to Picton?
Thousand Islands National Park begins right at Picton’s edge.
The sources behind Picton’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).