Hidden Waters Preserve
Managed by Lake County Water Authority
90 acres3.3 mi of trail
Longleaf Pine TrailLake Alfred TrailRavine TrailPrickly Pear Trail+1
No dogs
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Connor J. Williams · CC BY 3.0B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Eustis
6% of Eustis’ land is conserved: 413 acres
The biggest trail networks: Hidden Waters Preserve (3.3 mi). 213 acres are parks and preserves, 8.8 per 1,000 residents. 4.6 miles of mapped trail cross Eustis, 0.4 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 52% of U.S. towns · #299 of 638 in Florida. What drives it
Conserved land
6%
413 acres · of 11.7 sq mi of land
Trails
4.6 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
213 ac
8.8 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
56%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
3.3 mi
2.6 mi lanes · 0.7 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
10
1 boat launch
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Eustis have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Eustis is ahead of 52% of U.S. towns, #299 of 638 in Florida. Conserved land holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Eustis’ overall grade.
Conserved land6% of the land · typical FL town 3% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (5 mi) · FL 0.4 · U.S. 0.4BPark land8.8 acres of park per 1,000 residents (213 acres) · FL 6 · U.S. 13C+Parks close to home56% of residents within a half mile of a park · FL 70% · U.S. 72%B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 52%
LessMore
Florida towns of 2,500+ (638)Ahead of 53%
Water is 14% of Eustis’ area (2 of 14 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 5%.
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 Hidden Waters Preserve, with 3.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Trout Lake Nature Center
Managed by Trout Lake Nature Center, Inc.
222 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Sunset Island
Park
6 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Marsh Memorial Park
Park
33 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 10 parks & preserves
Hidden Waters Preserve90 acres · 3.3 mi of trail · Lake County Water Authority
DirectionsTrout Lake Nature Center222 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Trout Lake Nature Center, Inc.
Sunset Island6 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
Marsh Memorial Park33 acres
Carver Park29 acres
Ferran Park4 acres
DirectionsPine Meadows Conservation Easement2 acres · St. Johns River Water Management District
Bennett Park2 acres
Fountain Green2 acres
DirectionsPine Meadows Conservation Area1 acres · St. Johns River Water Management District
Who protects it
413 conserved acres
6% of Eustis’ land. Water is left out: Eustis has 11.7 square miles of land and 1.9 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Eustis’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Regional Water Districts93 ac
Town or city63 ac
County31 ac
Private owners5 ac
Not recorded222 ac
Private Recreation or Education · 222 acLocal Other or Unknown · 90 acLocal Park · 68 acLocal Recreation Area · 31 acLocal Conservation Area · 3 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 17 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trout Lake Nature Center Private Recreation or Education | Not recorded | 222 | Closed |
| Hidden Waters Preserve Local Other or Unknown | Regional Water Districts | 90 | Unknown |
| Marsh Park and Boat Ramp Local Recreation Area | County | 31 | Open |
| Palmetto Pointe Park Local Park | Town or city | 15 | Open |
| Sunset Island Park Local Park | Town or city | 12 | Open |
| Carver Park Local Park | Town or city | 12 | Open |
| Carver Park Annex Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Multi-Purpose Field-Bates Av Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Ferran Park Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Fountain Green Park Local Park | Private owners | 4 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
6 places to go in Eustis
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Eustis
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Eustis
Carla Gnann-Thompson Memorial Dog ParkHours: Mon–Sun 8 am – 6 pm
DirectionsBoat launches in Eustis
Marsh Park & Boat RampIn Marsh Memorial Park
DirectionsTrails & water
6 named trails and 10 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 1.8 mi
Longleaf Pine Trail1.5 mi
Lake Alfred Trail0.7 mi
Ravine Trail0.4 mi
Prickly Pear Trail0.3 mi
Hammock Trail0.2 mi
Gopher Tortoise Trail0.2 mi
Biking & sports
3.3 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
0.7 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
6Basketball
5Baseball
4Tennis
2Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →10 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Clifford HouseBuilding · listed 1975
About itWilliam Kimbrough Pendleton HouseBuilding · listed 1983
About itWoman's Club of EustisBuilding · listed 1991
About itFerran Park and the Alice McClelland Memorial BandshellSite · listed 1994
About itGould Hyde Norton HouseBuilding · listed 1997
About itMoses J. Taylor HouseBuilding · listed 1997
About itPurdy VillaBuilding · listed 2004
About itEustis Commercial Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2005
About itLaroe Family Homestead Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2009
About itEdgar L. Ferran HouseBuilding · listed 2019
About itWhen to get out
April is the best month for walking in Eustis
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) | 10.5 | 11.1 | 11.9 | 12.8 | 13.6 | 14.0 | 13.8 | 13.2 | 12.3 | 11.4 | 10.7 | 10.3 |
| High (°F) | 70 | 73 | 78 | 83 | 88 | 91 | 92 | 92 | 89 | 84 | 77 | 72 |
| Rain (in) | 2.7 | 2.4 | 3.3 | 2.4 | 3.5 | 7.8 | 7.5 | 7.7 | 6.2 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 2.3 |
November is the driest month (2.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 92 °F). 7.8 inches fall in June, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 92 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Eustis →
Next door
Eustis and its neighbors
Eustis has the second most mapped trails of the 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eustis | 6% | 0.4 | 9 | 56% | B− |
| Tavares | 2% | 0.4 | 11 | 61% | B− |
| Mount Dora | 5% | 0.1 | 17 | 60% | B− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Eustis
Where can I hike in Eustis?
The longest trail networks: Hidden Waters Preserve, 3.3 miles; Trout Lake Nature Center, 0.3 miles; Sunset Island, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Eustis is conserved land?
6% of its land, against a typical 3% for a Florida town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Eustis’ trails?
Hidden Waters Preserve and Trout Lake Nature Center don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Eustis?
3.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.6 of painted or protected lanes and 0.7 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Eustis?
49,643 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Eustis or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 213 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Eustis have?
Ahead of 52% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #299 of 638 in Florida. 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 Eustis 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 →