Mitchell Brothers Park
Park
12 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Rochambeau1783 · CC BY 4.0B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Lake Helen
Lake Helen has 45 acres of parks, 16 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Mitchell Brothers Park (0.5 mi). 1% of Lake Helen’s land is conserved, about 30 acres. 71% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 46% of U.S. towns · #348 of 638 in Florida. What drives it
Conserved land
1%
30 acres · of 4.6 sq mi of land
Trails
1.2 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
45 ac
16 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
71%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
3
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Lake Helen have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Lake Helen is ahead of 46% of U.S. towns, #348 of 638 in Florida. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Lake Helen’s overall grade.
Conserved land1% of the land · typical FL town 3% · U.S. 4%CTrails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (1 mi) · FL 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land16 acres of park per 1,000 residents (45 acres) · FL 6 · U.S. 13BParks close to home71% 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 46%
LessMore
Florida towns of 2,500+ (638)Ahead of 46%
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 Mitchell Brothers Park, with 0.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
All 7 parks & preserves
Mitchell Brothers Park12 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
DirectionsColby-Alderman Park6 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsLake Macy Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsAsa Gray Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsBlake Park8 acres
DirectionsMelissa Park2 acres
DirectionsRoyal Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
30 conserved acres
1% of Lake Helen’s land. Who manages Lake Helen’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city29 ac
Local Recreation Area · 18 acLocal Park · 11 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mitchell Brothers Sports Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 18 | Open |
| Blake Park Local Park | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| Lake Macy Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
Things to do
6 places to go in Lake Helen
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Lake Helen
5 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Lake Helen
1 dog park without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
3 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
3Basketball
3Tennis
3Baseball
2Equestrian
1Soccer
1Volleyball
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). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
April is the best month for walking in Lake Helen
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 | 77 | 82 | 87 | 90 | 92 | 91 | 89 | 83 | 77 | 72 |
| Rain (in) | 2.8 | 2.4 | 3.3 | 2.5 | 3.5 | 7.7 | 7.2 | 7.2 | 6.8 | 4.0 | 2.3 | 2.4 |
November is the driest month (2.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 92 °F). 7.7 inches fall in June, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 92 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Lake Helen →
Next door
Lake Helen and its neighbors
Lake Helen has the second 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Helen | 1% | 0.3 | 16 | 71% | B− |
| DeLand | 2% | 0.7 | 7 | 69% | B− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Lake Helen
Where can I hike in Lake Helen?
The longest trail networks: Mitchell Brothers Park, 0.5 miles; Colby-Alderman Park, 0.1 miles; Lake Macy Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Lake Helen is conserved land?
1% 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 Lake Helen’s trails?
Mitchell Brothers Park and Blake Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Lake Helen?
60,420 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Lake Helen or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 45 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Lake Helen have?
Ahead of 46% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #348 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 Lake Helen 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 →