Lions' Open Space
Nature preserve
12 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Famartin · CC BY-SA 4.0C+Outdoors
Outdoors in Laporte
Laporte has 66 acres of parks, 37 for every 1,000 residents
0.1 miles of mapped trail cross Laporte. 53% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 3% of Laporte’s land is conserved, about 123 acres.
Ahead of 42% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
123 acres · of 6.1 sq mi of land
Trails
0.1 mi
0.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
66 ac
37 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
53%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
5.2 mi
2.6 mi lanes · 2.5 mi paths
Highest peak
5,604 ft
Goat Hill
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Laporte have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Laporte is ahead of 42% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
C+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Laporte’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical CO town 7% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (0 mi) · CO 1.3 · U.S. 0.4C−Park land37 acres of park per 1,000 residents (66 acres) · CO 14 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home53% of residents within a half mile of a park · CO 97% · U.S. 72%C+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 42%
LessMore
Colorado towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 7%; the U.S., 4%), so Laporte’s 3% is ahead of 31% of Colorado towns, while its trails per square mile lead 3% of them.
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Laporte. OpenStreetMap is mapped by volunteers and coverage varies from town to town, so a town with unmapped parks scores low on them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B. 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 Lions' Open Space, with 0.1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
123 conserved acres
3% of Laporte’s land. Who manages Laporte’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife70 ac
Regional agency24 ac
County10 ac
Town or city10 ac
Private owners7 ac
State Conservation Area · 43 acLocal Other or Unknown · 34 acState Other or Unknown · 27 acLocal Park · 10 acPrivate Park · 6 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 8 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Watson Lake State Wildlife Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 43 | Open |
| Watson Lake SFU State Other or Unknown | State fish & wildlife | 27 | Restricted |
| Poudre R-1 School District School District Land - General Local Other or Unknown | Regional agency | 24 | Unknown |
| Lions Park Local Park | County | 10 | Open |
| City of Fort Collins City Land - Unknown Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 10 | Open |
| Sunset Ridge HOA Private Park Private Park | Private owners | 5 | Closed |
| Sunset Ridge Townhomes HOA Private Park Private Park | Private owners | 2 | Restricted |
| Cache La Poudre Irrigation Co Local Other or Unknown | Private owners | 1 | Closed |
Things to do
2 places to go in Laporte
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Laporte
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Laporte
Goat Hill5,604 ft elevation
DirectionsBiking & sports
5.2 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.6 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
2.5 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
3Baseball
3Tennis
1Soccer
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The best walking months in Laporte: April to June and August
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 | 15.1 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 44 | 46 | 55 | 62 | 70 | 82 | 88 | 86 | 78 | 64 | 52 | 43 |
| Rain (in) | 0.4 | 0.5 | 1.2 | 2.0 | 2.6 | 1.8 | 1.6 | 1.4 | 1.4 | 1.2 | 0.7 | 0.4 |
January is the driest month (0.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 88 °F). 2.6 inches fall in May, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 88 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Laporte →
Questions about parks and trails in Laporte
Where can I hike in Laporte?
The longest trail networks: Lions' Open Space, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Laporte is conserved land?
3% 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 Laporte’s trails?
Lions' Open Space doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Laporte?
5.2 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.6 of painted or protected lanes and 2.5 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Laporte?
26,306 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Laporte or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 66 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Laporte have?
Ahead of 42% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Laporte 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 →