PFC Emory L. Bennett Veterans Park
Park
60 acres1.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Louis P. Thursby House · Photo: Ebyabe · CC BY-SA 3.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Orange City
Orange City has 276 acres of parks, 19 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: PFC Emory L. Bennett Veterans Park (1.2 mi), Mill Lake Park (0.9 mi). 4.2 miles of mapped trail cross Orange City, 0.5 per square mile of land. 5% of Orange City’s land is conserved, about 254 acres.
Ahead of 68% of U.S. towns · #181 of 638 in Florida. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
254 acres · of 7.8 sq mi of land
Trails
4.2 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
276 ac
19 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
72%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
2
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Orange City have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Orange City is ahead of 68% of U.S. towns, #181 of 638 in Florida. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Orange City’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical FL town 3% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (4 mi) · FL 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land19 acres of park per 1,000 residents (276 acres) · FL 6 · U.S. 13BParks close to home72% 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 68%
LessMore
Florida towns of 2,500+ (638)Ahead of 72%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be 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 PFC Emory L. Bennett Veterans Park, with 1.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Waggin’ Trail Dog Park
Park
5 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 9 parks & preserves
PFC Emory L. Bennett Veterans Park60 acres · 1.2 mi of trail
DirectionsMill Lake Park29 acres · 0.9 mi of trail
DirectionsWaggin’ Trail Dog Park5 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
Veteran Memorial Park Splash Pad3 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsColeman Park4 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsBlue Springs Villas Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Town Center Park4 acres
DirectionsBelltower Park1 acres
Dickonson Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
254 conserved acres
5% of Orange City’s land. Who manages Orange City’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County211 ac
Town or city42 ac
Local Recreation Area · 208 acLocal Park · 45 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pfc Emory L Bennett Park Local Recreation Area | County | 207 | Open |
| Mill Lake Park Local Park | Town or city | 23 | Open |
| Waggin' Trail Dog Park Local Park | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| Coleman Park Local Park | County | 4 | Open |
| Veterans Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Marshall Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Dickinson Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Shuffleboard Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
11 places to go in Orange City
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Orange City
9 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Orange City
2 dog parks without a name on the map.
Trails & water
2 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
5Basketball
4Tennis
4Baseball
2Soccer
1Pickleball
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →5 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
April is the best month for walking in Orange City
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 | 82 | 87 | 90 | 92 | 92 | 89 | 84 | 77 | 72 |
| Rain (in) | 2.8 | 2.3 | 3.3 | 2.5 | 3.6 | 7.8 | 7.3 | 7.3 | 6.7 | 3.9 | 2.2 | 2.4 |
November is the driest month (2.2 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 Orange City →
Next door
Orange City and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Questions about parks and trails in Orange City
Where can I hike in Orange City?
The longest trail networks: PFC Emory L. Bennett Veterans Park, 1.2 miles; Mill Lake Park, 0.9 miles; Waggin’ Trail Dog Park, 0.3 miles; Coleman Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Orange City is conserved land?
5% 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 Orange City’s trails?
PFC Emory L. Bennett Veterans Park and Mill Lake Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Orange City?
63,041 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Orange City or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 276 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Orange City have?
Ahead of 68% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #181 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 Orange City 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 →