First pick
Parc municipal
Park or garden
1.6 ha
7.2 km north-westfrom the centre
Directionsto a point inside
Photo: Harfang · CC BY 3.01.4%protected within 10 km
Outdoors in Nantes · parks, protected land & trails
Frontenac National Park (Québec) is 8.2 km from Nantes
For a swim, Plage de la Baie-des-Sables is the nearest of 2 beaches within 5 km. Within 100 km there is no national park. Of the country within 10 km, 1.4% lies in protected areas; the median Canadian town has 2.3%.
Protected land
1.4%
of the land within 10 km
Typical Canadian town: 2.3%
Protected areas
8
within 10 km, 7 public
Typical Canadian town: 14
Nearest provincial park
8.2 km
Frontenac National Park (Québec)
Beaches
2
within 5 km (OpenStreetMap)
Against other towns
Each figure for Nantes, set against 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. 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 km1.4%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 areas7Areas within 10 km held by a government or an Indigenous nation
Walking routes0Named OpenStreetMap walking and hiking routes with 300 m+ within 2 km
Beaches2Beaches mapped on OpenStreetMap within 5 km
CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC, 2026), OpenStreetMap (November 2026). Distances from the town’s outline.
Towns its size
Nantes has the 20th most protected land nearby of 40 towns its size
The 40 Canadian towns nearest in population (1,412 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
Nantes1.4%
Towns its size1.4%
Towns in Quebec4.9%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
Public protected areas
Nantes7
Towns its size4
Towns in Quebec10
Typical Canadian town4
Walking routes
Nantes0
Towns its size0
Towns in Quebec0
Typical Canadian town0
Among its peers, Nantes’ strong point is public protected areas, where 13 of 39 top it.
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 | Nantes QC | 1.4% | 0% | 8 | 0 | 2 |
| 21 | Caswell Hill SK | 1.4% | 0% | 16 | 0 | 3 |
| 22 | Fossambault-sur-le-Lac QC | 1.3% | 7.8% | 15 | 0 | 14 |
| 23 | Pembina MB | 1.1% | 1.8% | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | Burrows-Keewatin MB | 1% | 0% | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | Elmwood AB | 0.8% | 0% | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| 26 | Hatley QC | 0.7% | 0% | 9 | 0 | 5 |
| 27 | Munroe West MB | 0.4% | 0% | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| 28 | Brooke-Alvinston ON | 0.3% | 0.2% | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| 29 | Rosedale AB | 0.3% | 0% | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 30 | Minchau AB | 0.3% | 0% | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 31 | Lunenburg NS | 0.1% | 0% | 19 | 0 | 5 |
| 32 | Salisbury NB | 0.1% | 2.1% | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | Dufferin MB | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 34 | Ekota AB | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| 35 | Satoo AB | 0.1% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 36 | Saint-Éphrem-de-Beauce QC | 0% | 0% | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 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
Where the green is in Nantes
The town’s parks, woods, protected land and paths, with its named places numbered.
Green: OpenStreetMap parks, gardens, playing fields and woods. Hatched: CPCAD protected areas.© OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL); CPCAD (OGL-Canada)
Places to walk
One park or wood to walk in, in or near Nantes
The biggest is Parc municipal, 1.6 ha. Biggest first, numbered as on the map.
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
Most of Nantes is more than a short walk from 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 (0%)Further (100%)
Nantes0%
Towns in Quebec52%
Typical Canadian town83%
For about 1,400 people, the nearest park is over 400 m away. For comparison, the typical Canadian town has 83%.
Protected areas
Around Nantes, protected areas make up 1.4%
Every protected and conserved area in CPCAD within 10 km of the town’s edge: parks, reserves, wildlife areas and conservation land.
Inside Nantes0%
Within 10 km1.4%
Towns in Quebec4.9%
Typical Canadian town2.3%
Public ownership covers 7 of the 8. Frontenac National Park (Québec) is the biggest, 15,650 ha. One area belongs to a private owner or a land trust and isn’t named here.
Ruisseau au Castor White-Tailed Deer YardProtected area · 402 ha · 0.9 km from the edge of town
Whitton Muskrat HabitatWildlife area · 13 ha · 1.0 km from the edge of town
Lac Mciver Water Fowl Gathering AreaWildlife area · 39 ha · 6.1 km from the edge of town
Rivière Legendre Muskrat HabitatWildlife area · 16 ha · 6.9 km from the edge of town
Lac à la Loutre Muskrat HabitatWildlife area · 112 ha · 7.2 km from the edge of town
Frontenac National Park (Québec)Québec national park (provincial) · 15,650 ha · 8.2 km from the edge of town
03452R002 Biological RefugeWildlife area · 53 ha · 8.7 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
8.2 km to Frontenac National Park (Québec)
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
Québec national park (provincial)
Frontenac National Park (Québec)
8.2 km north-west157 km²since 1987
No national park lies within 100 km of Nantes; the provincial parks are the big protected land within reach. The province names its big parks parcs nationaux, though they are provincial.
Source: CPCAD 2.9.0 (ECCC): areas and outlines, distances outline to outline; directions from the town’s centre point.
Footpaths and woods
14 km of paths in and around Nantes
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
14 km
in and around the town (181.1 km²)
Woodland
87%
about 158 km² of mapped woods
Footpaths · km per km²
NantesTowns in QuebecTypical Canadian town
Footpaths0.1
012 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
NantesTowns in QuebecTypical Canadian town
Woodland87%
0%50%100%
Woods cover more of it than in 99% of Canadian towns. Paths are thinner on the ground than in 89% 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
No named walking route passes Nantes on the map
Named walking and hiking routes on OpenStreetMap with at least 300 m within 2 km of the town, longest first; national routes lead.
OpenStreetMap lists no walking route near the town, though paths on the ground may well exist.
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 Nantes: May and September
Environment and Climate Change Canada’s 1991–2020 normals from ST Ludger (26 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) | 9.1 | 10.3 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 14.9 | 15.7 | 15.4 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.4 | 8.7 |
| High (°C) | -6 | -4 | 1 | 9 | 17 | 22 | 25 | 24 | 19 | 12 | 5 | -2 |
| Rain & snow (mm) | 93 | 80 | 77 | 87 | 98 | 113 | 115 | 107 | 90 | 103 | 80 | 88 |
July is the warmest month, with highs around 25 °C; January the coldest, at -6 °C. Expect 115 mm in July, warm and wet, and 77 mm in March. Expect around 287 cm of snow over a winter. The climate in Nantes →
Beaches
For a swim near Nantes: Plage de la Baie-des-Sables, 0.5 km off
Beaches on OpenStreetMap within 5 km of the town’s edge, nearest first, with directions.
Plage de la Baie-des-Sables0.5 km from town
DirectionsOne more is mapped without a name. Beach water tests aren’t published as open data across Canada, so swimming advisories come from the local health unit.
Source: OpenStreetMap (natural=beach), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Things to do
Outdoors around Nantes: 4 places to go
Viewpoints, peaks, waterfalls, picnic sites, nature reserves, playgrounds, dog parks, campsites and boat launches mapped within 2 km of the town.
Every named place, with directions
Picnic sites 1
Plus 1 picnic site without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 1
Plus 1 playground without a name on the map.
Campsites 1
Camping Baie Des Sables0.4 km from town
DirectionsSlipways 1
Plus 1 slipway without a name on the map.
Source: OpenStreetMap (tourism, natural, waterway and leisure tags), © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
Next door
Next to Nantes
The nearest places, coloured by the share of the land within 10 km that is protected; tap one for its outdoors page.
Lac-MéganticFrontenacLac-DroletNantes
Under 1%1–5%5–15%15–40%40%+
| Town | Protected within 10 km | Areas | Routes | Beaches |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nantes | 1.4% | 8 | 0 | 2 |
| Lac-Mégantic 4.5 km | 0.2% | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Frontenac 9.0 km | 6.5% | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| Lac-Drolet 17 km | 0.1% | 2 | 0 | 0 |
For protected land, Frontenac has twice as much or more.
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.
- Protected land. The share is of the land and water within 10 km of the town’s outline, from CPCAD’s mapped areas; marine areas count, so a coastal town can score high on water.
- Beaches. A beach counts when its centre point lies within 5 km of the town’s outline. Names come from the map.
- Walking routes. The list is OpenStreetMap’s, so a missing trail may just be unmapped. The Trans Canada Trail appears where OSM maps it.
- Private land. Land owned by individuals, companies or conservation groups counts toward the figures but is never named: a person’s land isn’t a place to visit.
Questions about the outdoors in Nantes
Which is the biggest protected area near Nantes?
Frontenac National Park (Québec), a québec national park (provincial) of 15,650 ha.
How far is the nearest provincial park from Nantes?
Frontenac National Park (Québec), 8.2 km from the edge of town.
When should you visit Nantes for the outdoors?
On the normals, May and September: that is when days are long, highs reach 15 °C and rain is light.
Is there a beach near Nantes?
Plage de la Baie-des-Sables, 0.5 km from town, is the nearest mapped beach.
Are there protected areas near Nantes?
Yes: 1.4% of the land within 10 km is protected.
Is Nantes near a national park?
None within 100 km of Nantes.
Sources
Sources for this page on Nantes
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).