Violet Cury Nature Preserve
Nature preserve
163 acres5.4 mi of trail
Yellow TrailRed TrailBlue Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Bleau420 · CC BY-SA 4.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Lutz
Lutz has 1,903 acres of parks, 70 for every 1,000 residents
12% of Lutz’s land is conserved, about 1,886 acres. The biggest trail networks: Violet Cury Nature Preserve (5.4 mi). 46% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 69% of U.S. towns · #173 of 638 in Florida. What drives it
Conserved land
12%
1,886 acres · of 24.5 sq mi of land
Trails
6.1 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,903 ac
70 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
46%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
17 mi
17 mi lanes
Lakes & rivers
33
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Lutz?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Lutz have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Lutz is ahead of 69% of U.S. towns, #173 of 638 in Florida. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Lutz’s overall grade.
Conserved land12% of the land · typical FL town 3% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · FL 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land70 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,903 acres) · FL 6 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home46% of residents within a half mile of a park · FL 70% · U.S. 72%C+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 69%
LessMore
Florida towns of 2,500+ (638)Ahead of 73%
Water is 9% of Lutz’s area (2 of 27 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 11%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B to 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 Violet Cury Nature Preserve, with 5.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Cypress Creek
Nature preserve
1,244 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Wilson's Duck Haven
Nature preserve
61 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 11 parks & preserves
Violet Cury Nature Preserve163 acres · 5.4 mi of trail
Wilson's Duck Haven61 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Oscar Cooler Park61 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsCypress Creek1,244 acres
Nye Park11 acres
DirectionsIdlewild Park4 acres
Stonebrier HOA Recreation Fields3 acres
DirectionsCypress Creek Nature Preserve2 acres
Kambridge Park1 acres
Promenade Central Greenspace1 acres
Wellington Manor common area1 acres
Who protects it
1,886 conserved acres
12% of Lutz’s land. Water is left out: Lutz has 24.5 square miles of land and 2.4 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Lutz’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city1,809 ac
County77 ac
Local Conservation Area · 1,801 acLocal Park · 85 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cypress Creek Preserve (Hillsborough County) Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 1,640 | Open |
| Violet Cury Nature Preserve Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 161 | Open |
| Oscar Cooler Sports Complex Local Park | County | 65 | Open |
| Nye Park Recreation Center Local Park | County | 11 | Open |
| Carolyn Meeker Park Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Bullard Park Local Park | County | 1 | Open |
Things to do
16 places to go in Lutz
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Lutz
12 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Lutz
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
3 named trails and 33 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 5.6 mi
Yellow Trail0.9 mi
Red Trail0.8 mi
Blue Trail0.4 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Brant LakelakeBrowns LakelakeBurrell LakelakeCommston LakelakeCool Kell LakelakeCooper LakeDeer LakelakeFeinsinger LakelakeFlynn LakelakeHanna LakelakeHart LakelakeHog Island LakelakeKeene LakelakeLake AllenlakeLake BrookerlakeLake CrenshawlakeLake HarveylakeLake HobbslakeLake KelllakeLake RuthlakeLake StemperlakeLake ThomaslakeLake VirginialakeLittle Deer LakelakeLittle Hobbs LakelakeNorth Crystal LakelakePearl LakelakeReinheimer LakelakeRound LakelakeSaddleback LakelakeSapphire LakelakeSouth Crystal LakelakeSwamp Lakepond
Biking & sports
17 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
17 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
0.3 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
21Baseball
10Tennis
7Basketball
6Soccer
3Pickleball
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Lutz Elementary School, OldBuilding · listed 1996
About itWhen to get out
April is the best month for walking in Lutz
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 | 11.2 | 11.9 | 12.8 | 13.5 | 13.9 | 13.8 | 13.1 | 12.3 | 11.4 | 10.7 | 10.4 |
| High (°F) | 71 | 74 | 78 | 83 | 88 | 90 | 91 | 91 | 89 | 84 | 78 | 73 |
| Rain (in) | 3.0 | 2.4 | 2.9 | 2.7 | 3.1 | 8.1 | 8.6 | 9.0 | 6.5 | 2.8 | 1.7 | 2.5 |
November is the driest month (1.7 in) and August the warmest (highs of 91 °F). 9.0 inches fall in August, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 91 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Lutz →
Next door
Lutz and its neighbors
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lutz | 12% | 0.2 | 70 | 46% | B+ |
| Tampa | 9% | 0.4 | 14 | 89% | B+ |
| Cheval | under 1% | 1.1 | under 1 | 36% | C− |
| Lake Magdalene | 1% | 0.4 | 2 | 41% | C |
| University | 2% | under 0.1 | 2 | 62% | C− |
| Land O' Lakes | 7% | 0.1 | 25 | 65% | B− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Lutz
Where can I hike in Lutz?
The longest trail networks: Violet Cury Nature Preserve, 5.4 miles; Wilson's Duck Haven, 0.1 miles; Oscar Cooler Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Lutz is conserved land?
12% 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 Lutz’s trails?
Violet Cury Nature Preserve and Cypress Creek don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Lutz?
17 miles of bike routes are on the map: 17 of painted or protected lanes and 0.3 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Lutz?
45,420 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Lutz or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,903 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Lutz have?
Ahead of 69% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #173 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 Lutz 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 →