Carstens Park
Park
35 acres1.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Jeffrey Beall · CC BY 3.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Federal Heights
18% of Federal Heights’ land is conserved, and virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 5.2 miles of mapped trail cross Federal Heights, 2.9 per square mile of land. 18% of Federal Heights’ land is conserved, about 196 acres.
Ahead of 96% of U.S. towns · #31 of 159 in Colorado. What drives it
Conserved land
18%
196 acres · of 1.8 sq mi of land
Trails
5.2 mi
2.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
201 ac
14 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.3 mi
0.3 mi lanes · 1.0 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Federal Heights?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Federal Heights have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Federal Heights is ahead of 96% of U.S. towns, #31 of 159 in Colorado. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Federal Heights’ overall grade.
Conserved land18% of the land · typical CO town 7% · U.S. 4%ATrails2.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (5 mi) · CO 1.3 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land14 acres of park per 1,000 residents (201 acres) · CO 14 · U.S. 13BParks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · CO 97% · U.S. 72%A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 96%
LessMore
Colorado towns of 2,500+ (159)Ahead of 81%
Colorado towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 7%; the U.S., 4%), so Federal Heights’ 18% is ahead of 80% of Colorado towns, while its trails per square mile lead 84% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A to A+. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Carstens Park, with 1.1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
196 conserved acres
18% of Federal Heights’ land. Who manages Federal Heights’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Regional agency164 ac
Town or city31 ac
Local Park · 111 acLocal Recreation Area · 76 acPrivate Historic or Cultural · 4 acPrivate Recreation or Education · 3 acPrivate Park · 2 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Camenisch Park Local Park | Regional agency | 80 | Open |
| Water World Local Recreation Area | Regional agency | 52 | Open |
| Sports Complex Local Recreation Area | Regional agency | 16 | Open |
| Cartens Park Local Park | Regional agency | 15 | Open |
| Ruston Park Local Park | Town or city | 14 | Open |
| Kimberly Hills Rec Area Private Historic or Cultural | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Holiday Hills Recreation Area Private Recreation or Education | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Kimberly Hills Recreation Area Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Denver Cascade Rec Area Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Greenway Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
3 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
10 places to go in Federal Heights
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Federal Heights
Little Bear Pond
DirectionsThunder Bay Wave Pool
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Federal Heights
8 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Biking & sports
1.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.3 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
1.0 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
4Pickleball
4Baseball
3Basketball
1Tennis
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Federal Heights: April to June
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.6 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.0 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 46 | 48 | 56 | 62 | 71 | 83 | 89 | 87 | 79 | 66 | 54 | 46 |
| Rain (in) | 0.5 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 2.0 | 2.4 | 1.6 | 1.8 | 1.6 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 0.5 |
January is the driest month (0.5 in) and July the warmest (highs of 89 °F). 2.4 inches fall in May, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 89 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Federal Heights →
Next door
Federal Heights and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Federal Heights | 18% | 2.9 | 14 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Thornton | 11% | 1.0 | 18 | 98% | A |
| Sherrelwood | 3% | 0.3 | 4 | 92% | B− |
| Westminster | 34% | 3.0 | 34 | 99% | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Federal Heights
Where can I hike in Federal Heights?
The longest trail networks: Carstens Park, 1.1 miles; Carmenisch Park, 0.3 miles; Ruston Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Federal Heights is conserved land?
18% of its land, against a typical 7% for a Colorado town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Federal Heights’ trails?
Carstens Park and Carmenisch Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Federal Heights?
1.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.3 of painted or protected lanes and 1.0 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Federal Heights?
21,696 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Federal Heights or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 201 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Federal Heights have?
Ahead of 96% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #31 of 159 in Colorado. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Federal Heights neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →