Photo: Jeffrey Beall · CC BY 4.096% of residents live within a half mile of a park in Rifle
6.8 miles of mapped trail cross Rifle, 1.0 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Centennial Park (0.8 mi). 3% of Rifle’s land is conserved, about 141 acres.
Ahead of 73% of U.S. towns · #98 of 159 in Colorado. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Rifle?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Rifle have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Rifle is ahead of 73% of U.S. towns, #98 of 159 in Colorado. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
Colorado towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 7%; the U.S., 4%), so Rifle’s 3% is ahead of 31% of Colorado towns, while its trails per square mile lead 33% of them.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Centennial Park, with 0.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
141 conserved acres
3% of Rifle’s land. Who manages Rifle’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 10 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lions Park Rifle Visitor Center Local Park | Town or city | 57 | Open |
| Deerfield Park Local Park | Town or city | 27 | Open |
| Garfield County Fairgrounds Local Other or Unknown | County | 25 | Unknown |
| Centennial Park Local Park | Town or city | 10 | Open |
| City of Rifle City Parks Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Sunrise Art Park Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Davidson Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Joyce Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Macintosh Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Arnold Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
3 places to go in Rifle
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
6 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
The best walking months in Rifle: 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) | 9.7 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 14.9 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 38 | 44 | 56 | 63 | 74 | 86 | 91 | 89 | 80 | 66 | 51 | 38 |
| Rain (in) | 0.7 | 0.8 | 0.9 | 1.1 | 1.2 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 1.0 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 0.8 | 0.7 |
June is the driest month (0.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 91 °F). 1.4 inches fall in September, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 91 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Rifle →
Questions about parks and trails in Rifle
Where can I hike in Rifle?
The longest trail networks: Centennial Park, 0.8 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Rifle 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 Rifle’s trails?
Centennial Park and Davidson Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Rifle?
123,153 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Rifle or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 124 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Rifle have?
Ahead of 73% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #98 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 Rifle neighbors.
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 →