Arapaho National Forest
Managed by United States Forest Service
9,799 acres32.6 mi of trail
Lower ArapahoeUte TrailUpper Roof of the RockiesLower Roof of the Rockies+1
Dogs allowed
Directionsto the trailheadWebsite ↗
Photo: Darkshark0159 at English Wikipedia · Public domainAOutdoors
Outdoors in Winter Park
More than half of Winter Park’s land is conserved: 78%
78% of Winter Park’s land is conserved, about 8,520 acres. 38 miles of mapped trail cross Winter Park, 2.2 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Arapaho National Forest (32.6 mi).
Ahead of 93% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
78%
8,520 acres · of 17.0 sq mi of land
Trails
38 mi
2.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
20 ac
24 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
72%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
5.0 mi
5.0 mi paths
Highest peak
12,060 ft
Parsenn Bowl
What kind of outdoors town is Winter Park?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Winter Park have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Winter Park is ahead of 93% of U.S. towns. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; conserved land ranks highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Winter Park’s overall grade.
Conserved land78% of the land · typical CO town 7% · U.S. 4%A+Trails2.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (38 mi) · CO 1.3 · U.S. 0.4APark land24 acres of park per 1,000 residents (20 acres) · CO 14 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home72% of residents within a half mile of a park · CO 97% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 93%
LessMore
Colorado towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 7%; the U.S., 4%), so Winter Park’s 78% is ahead of 100% of Colorado towns, while its trails per square mile lead 73% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be 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 Arapaho National Forest, with 32.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Vasquez Peak Wilderness
Managed by United States Forest Service
414 acres0.2 mi of trail
Second Creek Trail
Dogs on leash
No trailhead mapped yet
James Peak Protection Area
Managed by United States Forest Service
111 acres0.1 mi of trail
Buck Creek
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 7 parks & preserves
Arapaho National Forest9,799 acres · 32.6 mi of trail · United States Forest Service
DirectionsWolf Park8 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsVasquez Peak Wilderness414 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · United States Forest Service
Confluence Park3 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsJames Peak Protection Area111 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · United States Forest Service
Hideaway Park4 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsIdlewild Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Who protects it
8,520 conserved acres
78% of Winter Park’s land. Who manages Winter Park’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
U.S. Forest Service8,507 ac
Town or city10 ac
Regional Water Districts5 ac
National Forest · 8,507 acLocal Park · 10 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 5 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arapaho National Forest National Forest | U.S. Forest Service | 8,507 | Open |
| Vasquez-St. Louis Crk Diversn Private Other or Unknown | Regional Water Districts | 5 | Closed |
| Hideaway Park Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Wolf Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Unknown Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
Things to do
8 places to go in Winter Park
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Winter Park
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Peaks in Winter Park
Parsenn Bowl12,060 ft elevation · In Arapaho National Forest
DirectionsTwin Cones12,051 ft elevation · In Vasquez Peak Wilderness
DirectionsPicnic areas in Winter Park
Fox DenIn Arapaho National Forest
DirectionsCampgrounds in Winter Park
Midland CampgroundIn Arapaho National Forest
DirectionsTrails & water
25 named trails
Named trails
Open to bikes · 26.5 miHorses · 11.0 miUnpaved · 27.4 mi
Lower Arapahoe2.2 mi
Ute Trail2.1 mi
Upper Roof of the Rockies1.7 mi
Lower Roof of the Rockies1.6 mi
Serenity Trail1.5 mi
Blue Sky Trail1.3 mi
Yankee Doodle Trail1.3 mi
Lower Cherokee1.2 mi
Yankee Doodle1.1 mi
D-4 Trail1.0 mi
15 more trails
Crosstrails Trail
1.0 miD3
1.0 miAlpine Trail
0.8 miChickadee Trail
0.7 miLeland Creek Trail
0.7 miLower Take D' Leap
0.7 miUpper Cherokee
0.7 miArrow Trail
0.6 miSerendipity Trail
0.6 miTwin Bridges Trail
0.6 miRoly Poly
0.6 miWTB
0.6 miRainmaker
0.6 miIce Hill
0.5 miIcarus
0.5 miBiking & sports
5.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
5.0 mi
off-road bike paths
Fraser River TrailBike route
0.4 miCourts & fields
5Tennis
1Volleyball
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Winter Park: June to 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 | 15.0 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 31 | 33 | 41 | 47 | 57 | 68 | 73 | 71 | 64 | 52 | 39 | 30 |
| Rain (in) | 2.0 | 2.1 | 2.1 | 2.9 | 2.3 | 1.2 | 2.0 | 1.8 | 1.7 | 1.6 | 1.8 | 1.9 |
June is the driest month (1.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 73 °F). 2.9 inches fall in April, the wettest month. The climate in Winter Park →
Next door
Winter Park and its neighbors
Winter Park has the most mapped trails of the 2 towns around it. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winter Park | 78% | 2.2 | 24 | 72% | A |
| Fraser | 7% | 4.0 | 77 | 99% | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Winter Park
Where can I hike in Winter Park?
The longest trail networks: Arapaho National Forest, 32.6 miles; Wolf Park, 0.4 miles; Vasquez Peak Wilderness, 0.2 miles; James Peak Protection Area, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Winter Park is conserved land?
78% 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 Winter Park’s trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Arapaho National Forest and Vasquez Peak Wilderness (on leash). For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Winter Park?
5.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 5.0 of off-road paths. Named routes: Fraser River Trail.
Is there public land near Winter Park?
89,008 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Winter Park or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 7,935 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Winter Park have?
Ahead of 93% 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 Winter Park 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 →