First pick
Secteur de ski du Mont Pesaq
Wood or forest
20 ha
10 km north-westfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
Photo: busand2003 · CC BY 3.013%protected within 10 km
Outdoors in Gaspé · parks, protected land & trails
Gaspé borders Forillon National Park
For walks, 13 named routes run within 2 km, such as the SIA, 2-Côte de Gaspé and Sentier les Lacs. 13% of the land and water within 10 km is protected (the typical Canadian town: 2.3%). Swimmers have 51 beaches within 5 km, Boom Defense the nearest.
Protected land
13%
of the land within 10 km
Typical Canadian town: 2.3%
Protected areas
41
within 10 km, 23 public
Typical Canadian town: 14
Nearest national park
At the edge
Forillon National Park
Nearest provincial park
19 km
Île-Bonaventure-et-du-Rocher-Percé National Park (Québec)
Walking routes
13
named, within 2 km (OpenStreetMap)
Beaches
51
within 5 km (OpenStreetMap)
Character
Where Gaspé stands out outdoors
Each figure against Canadian towns of 2,500+; tap a tile for the detail.
Next to a national parkForillon National Park starts at the edge of townProtected land all round13% of the land within 10 km, more than 90% of Canadian townsWalking routes13 named routes within 2 kmBeaches51 beaches within 5 km
Gaspé is strongest on Forillon National Park on its doorstep, with protected land around it close behind.
Against other towns
Gaspé 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. No letter: the outdoors is described for Canadian towns, not graded.
Protected within 10 km13%Share of the land and water within 10 km of the town’s edge in a protected or conserved area
Protected in town21%Share of the town’s own area in a protected or conserved area
Public protected areas23Areas within 10 km held by a government or an Indigenous nation
Walking routes13Named OpenStreetMap walking and hiking routes with 300 m+ within 2 km
Beaches51Beaches mapped on OpenStreetMap within 5 km
CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC, 2026), OpenStreetMap (November 2026). Distances from the town’s outline.
Towns its size
Gaspé has the 4th most protected land nearby of 40 towns its size
The 40 Canadian towns nearest in population (15,181 to 15,792 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
Gaspé13%
Towns its size2.4%
Towns in Quebec4.9%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
Public protected areas
Gaspé23
Towns its size7
Towns in Quebec10
Typical Canadian town4
Walking routes
Gaspé13
Towns its size0
Towns in Quebec0
Typical Canadian town0
For protected land nearby, Gaspé sits near the top of its size group: 3 of 39 have more.
Every town in the comparison
| Town | Protected within 10 km | In town | Areas | Routes | Beaches | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pincourt QC | 33% | 0.6% | 38 | 0 | 4 |
| 2 | Lachine-Ouest QC | 19% | 0.1% | 28 | 0 | 4 |
| 3 | Beauharnois QC | 17% | 2.2% | 32 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Gaspé QC | 13% | 21% | 41 | 13 | 51 |
| 5 | Ledbury-Heron Gate-Ridgemont ON | 12% | 0% | 34 | 0 | 1 |
| 6 | Severn ON | 9.6% | 1.1% | 52 | 1 | 7 |
| 7 | Brookside - Briarbrook - Morgans Grant ON | 8.1% | 0% | 14 | 0 | 1 |
| 8 | Pointe-Saint-Charles QC | 7.7% | 0% | 24 | 1 | 6 |
| 9 | Vieux-Longueuil QC | 6.4% | 0% | 24 | 0 | 5 |
| 10 | Lougheed BC | 5.6% | 0% | 53 | 2 | 49 |
| 11 | Saint-François QC | 5.4% | 1% | 56 | 0 | 1 |
| 12 | Lairet QC | 5% | 0% | 15 | 0 | 4 |
| 13 | Sainte-Adèle QC | 4.8% | 8% | 24 | 1 | 5 |
| 14 | Jésuites QC | 4.6% | 0% | 17 | 1 | 6 |
| 15 | Parksville BC | 4.4% | 13% | 24 | 0 | 11 |
| 16 | Vallée-de-la-Lièvre QC | 4.3% | 16% | 39 | 0 | 0 |
| 17 | Downtown ON | 3.6% | 2.8% | 8 | 1 | 0 |
| 18 | Lachute QC | 3.5% | 0.9% | 27 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | François-Perrault QC | 2.6% | 0% | 17 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | Vanier ON | 2.6% | 0% | 22 | 1 | 0 |
| 21 | Trinity-Bellwoods ON | 2.1% | 0% | 11 | 7 | 24 |
| 22 | Byron ON | 2.1% | 0% | 14 | 1 | 0 |
| 23 | Pleasant View ON | 1.9% | 0% | 17 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | Little Portugal ON | 1.8% | 0% | 11 | 4 | 20 |
| 25 | East Willowdale ON | 1.7% | 0% | 20 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Hamilton Road ON | 1.7% | 0% | 15 | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | Stonebridge SK | 1.7% | 0% | 18 | 0 | 1 |
| 28 | Saint-Vincent-de-Paul QC | 1.5% | 0% | 23 | 0 | 0 |
| 29 | Parc-Jarry QC | 1.5% | 0% | 15 | 0 | 0 |
| 30 | Loretteville QC | 1.1% | 0% | 21 | 1 | 2 |
| 31 | Pembroke ON | 1% | 0% | 6 | 0 | 3 |
| 32 | Dorchester ON | 0.6% | 1% | 17 | 2 | 2 |
| 33 | High River AB | 0.6% | 0% | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 34 | Thorncliffe AB | 0.3% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 35 | Central Elgin ON | 0.2% | 0.3% | 8 | 7 | 6 |
| 36 | Edenbridge-Humber Valley ON | 0.2% | 2.1% | 6 | 1 | 6 |
| 37 | Laurel AB | 0.2% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| 38 | Sheridan ON | 0.1% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 39 | East Riverside ON | 0% | 0% | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 40 | Edgemont AB | 0% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 2 |
The map
Parks, woods and paths around Gaspé
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
6 named parks and woods to walk in near Gaspé
Secteur de ski du Mont Pesaq is the largest, at 20 ha; the rest follow by size, numbered as on the map.
6 named parks and woods, 30 ha in all
Parks & gardens 6.3 haWoods 24 ha
The bulk, 81%, is Secteur de ski du Mont Pesaq and Parc Charlie O'Brien.
Place François-Mitterand
Park or garden
0.2 ha
1.2 km north-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
1 in 10 people in Gaspé live near 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 (10%)Further (90%)
Gaspé10%
Towns in Quebec52%
Typical Canadian town83%
Around 13,900 residents are further than 400 m from a park. The typical Canadian town reaches 83%.
Protected areas
13% of the country within 10 km of Gaspé 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 Gaspé21%
Within 10 km13%
Towns in Quebec4.9%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
On public land: 23 of the 41. The others are private conservation land. Biggest of the named areas: Banc-des-Américains Marine Protected Area, 100,013 ha. The figures include 17 private conservation areas, left unnamed.
Forillon National ParkNational park · 21,696 ha · reaches Gaspé
Saint-Hélier 18-10-02 Water Fowl Gathering AreaWildlife area · 975 ha · reaches Gaspé
Marais de l'Anse du Cap des Rosiers Water Fowl Gathering AreaWildlife area · 895 ha · reaches Gaspé
Cap Gaspé Nord 18-12-06 Water Fowl Gathering AreaWildlife area · 644 ha · reaches Gaspé
Anse-aux-Griffons 18-12-02 Water Fowl Gathering AreaWildlife area · 392 ha · reaches Gaspé
Cap-des-Rosiers 18-12-04 Water Fowl Gathering AreaWildlife area · 273 ha · reaches Gaspé
11255R139 Biological RefugeWildlife area · 205 ha · reaches Gaspé
Ruisseau-Watering Rare Forest EcosystemProtected area · 133 ha · reaches Gaspé
11255R136 Biological RefugeWildlife area · 108 ha · reaches Gaspé
Baie de Penouille 18-13-07 Water Fowl Gathering AreaWildlife area · 64 ha · reaches Gaspé
13 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 & provincial parks
The parks within reach of Gaspé
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
National park
Forillon National Park
At the edge217 km²since 1970
Québec national park (provincial)
Île-Bonaventure-et-du-Rocher-Percé National Park (Québec)
19 km south-east5.8 km²since 1985
Québec’s “national” parks are the province’s own, managed by Sépaq.
Source: CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC): areas and outlines, distances outline to outline; directions from the town’s centre point.
Footpaths and woods
298 km of paths in and around Gaspé
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
298 km
in and around the town (1,372.4 km²)
Woodland
83%
about 1,132.6 km² of mapped woods
Footpaths · km per km²
GaspéTowns in QuebecTypical Canadian town
Footpaths0.2
012 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
GaspéTowns in QuebecTypical Canadian town
Woodland83%
0%50%100%
76% of Canadian towns have more footpath per km². It is more wooded than 97% 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
The SIA, 2-Côte de Gaspé passes Gaspé
Named walking and hiking routes on OpenStreetMap with at least 300 m within 2 km of the town, longest first; national routes lead.
NationalRegionalLocal
SIA, 2-Côte de Gaspé102.0 km
Sentier les Lacs17.5 km
Sentier les Crêtes15.4 km
Sentier le Portage10.0 km
Boucle Mont-Saint-Alban7.1 km
Sentier les Graves7.0 km
Sentier des Éoliennes5.5 km
Accès SIA5.2 km
Sentier la Vallée4.6 km
SIA Mont-Saint-Alban3.7 km
Sentier les Parages1.2 km
Sentier la Chute0.9 km
Plus 1 more waymarked walk on the map.
46.1 km of the SIA, 2-Côte de Gaspé runs within 2 km of town; mapped end to end, it is 102 km. The longest of the rest is the Sentier les Lacs, 17.5 km. 3 of them are under 3 km, good for a short outing.
Source: OpenStreetMap (route relations hiking, foot and walking), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL. Trans Canada Trail sections as OSM maps them.
When to get out
The best months for walking in Gaspé: June to September
Daylight at the town’s latitude and ECCC’s 1991–2020 normals (Gaspe, 5.8 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) | 8.7 | 10.1 | 11.7 | 13.6 | 15.2 | 16.1 | 15.8 | 14.4 | 12.5 | 10.7 | 9.1 | 8.3 |
| High (°C) | -6 | -5 | 0 | 6 | 14 | 20 | 24 | 23 | 18 | 11 | 4 | -2 |
| Rain & snow (mm) | 88 | 73 | 104 | 88 | 92 | 79 | 100 | 91 | 91 | 130 | 105 | 120 |
October is the wettest month (130 mm) and February the driest (73 mm). From -6 °C in January to 24 °C in July: that is the range of daytime highs. The yearly snowfall is near 385 cm. The climate in Gaspé →
Beaches
51 beaches within 5 km of Gaspé
Beaches on OpenStreetMap within 5 km of the town’s edge, nearest first, with directions.
Boom Defensein town
DirectionsPlage de Penouillein town
DirectionsPlage de Boom défensein town
DirectionsPlage de Cap-aux-Osin town
DirectionsPlage Haldimandsand · 0.1 km from town
DirectionsBarre de Sandy Beach0.4 km from town
DirectionsThe coast is close: 193 km of shoreline within 5 km. 45 further beaches go unnamed. 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.
Things to do
Viewpoints and waterfalls near Gaspé: 36 and 2
Viewpoints, peaks, waterfalls, picnic sites, nature reserves, playgrounds, dog parks, campsites and boat launches mapped within 2 km of the town.
Top of the list: viewpoints, 36 of them. Highest of the named peaks: Mont Béchervaise, 370 m.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 36
Belvédèrein town
DirectionsBelvédère mt st Albanin town
DirectionsCap Bon Amiin town
DirectionsDu Sanatoriumin town
DirectionsLe Bout du Mondein town
DirectionsSommet Mont St Albanin town
DirectionsLe Belvédère0.0 km from town
DirectionsPlus 29 viewpoints without a name on the map.
Hills and peaks 10
Mont Béchervaise370 m · in town
DirectionsMont Pesaq260 m · in town
DirectionsMont Puddingstonein town
DirectionsMont Saint-Alban280 m · in town
DirectionsMontagne Blanchein town
DirectionsMontagne de Rochein town
DirectionsMonts Chic-Chocsin town
DirectionsPlatins de la Moussein town
DirectionsPlus 2 hills and peaks more.
Playgrounds 17
Aire de jeux Plage Haldimandin town
DirectionsPlus 16 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Campsites 16
Auberge Griffon Aventurein town
DirectionsCamping Azellusin town
DirectionsCamping Baie De Gaspéin town
DirectionsCamping de la Chutein town
DirectionsCamping des ancêtreein town
DirectionsCamping des Carrièresin town
DirectionsCamping des Crêtes (1)in town
DirectionsCamping des Crêtes (2)in town
DirectionsPlus 8 campsites without a name on the map.
Slipways 3
Plus 3 slipways without a name on the map.
Source: OpenStreetMap (tourism, natural, waterway and leisure tags), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Next door
Next to Gaspé
The nearest places, coloured by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected; tap one for its outdoors page. Distances here run 30–48 km: that is how far the nearest places with figures are from Gaspé.
PercéSainte-Thérèse-de-GaspéGrande-RivièreGaspé
Under 1%1–5%5–15%15–40%40%+
| Town | Protected within 10 km | Areas | Routes | Beaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gaspé | 13% | 41 | 13 | 51 |
| Percé 30 km | 15% | 39 | 2 | 20 |
| Sainte-Thérèse-de-Gaspé 44 km | 3.1% | 5 | 0 | 1 |
| Grande-Rivière 48 km | 4.9% | 9 | 0 | 1 |
None of its neighbours has twice the protected land around it that Gaspé has.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Walking routes. Routes are what OpenStreetMap’s volunteers have mapped as named walking or hiking routes; many good trails aren’t mapped that way.
- 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.
- National and provincial parks. Distances run from the town’s edge to the park’s, so 0 km means they touch.
- Beaches. Beaches are OpenStreetMap’s, named or not; in the north many are unnamed shoreline imports.
- Private land. Areas held by land trusts or private owners stay unnamed here, though they count in the shares.
Questions about the outdoors in Gaspé
What is the biggest park or reserve near Gaspé?
It is Banc-des-Américains Marine Protected Area, a nature reserve covering 100,013 ha.
What is the best season to get outdoors in Gaspé?
June to September: long days, mild highs and little rain.
What is the nearest provincial park to Gaspé?
It is Île-Bonaventure-et-du-Rocher-Percé National Park (Québec), 19 km away.
How far is Gaspé from a national park?
It is on the doorstep: Forillon National Park touches Gaspé.
Is there protected land near Gaspé?
Within 10 km, 13% of the land lies in protected areas.
What is the nearest beach to Gaspé?
Boom Defense, in town, is the nearest mapped beach.
What walking routes are near Gaspé?
Try the SIA, 2-Côte de Gaspé, Sentier les Lacs and Sentier les Crêtes; more are on the map.
Sources
Sources for this page on Gaspé
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).