Red Bug Slough Preserve
Nature preserve
49 acres0.8 mi of trail
Red Bug Slough Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
B+Outdoors
Outdoors in South Gate Ridge
98% of residents live within a half mile of a park in South Gate Ridge
The biggest trail networks: Red Bug Slough Preserve (0.8 mi). 0.9 miles of mapped trail cross South Gate Ridge, 0.5 per square mile of land. 4% of South Gate Ridge’s land is conserved, about 49 acres.
Ahead of 70% of U.S. towns · #165 of 638 in Florida. What drives it
Conserved land
4%
49 acres · of 1.7 sq mi of land
Trails
0.9 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
50 ac
9.5 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
98%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.8 mi
1.8 mi lanes
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is South Gate Ridge?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does South Gate Ridge have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, South Gate Ridge is ahead of 70% of U.S. towns, #165 of 638 in Florida. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of South Gate Ridge’s overall grade.
Conserved land4% of the land · typical FL town 3% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (1 mi) · FL 0.4 · U.S. 0.4BPark land9.5 acres of park per 1,000 residents (50 acres) · FL 6 · U.S. 13C+Parks close to home98% of residents within a half mile of a park · FL 70% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 70%
LessMore
Florida towns of 2,500+ (638)Ahead of 74%
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in South Gate Ridge. OpenStreetMap is mapped by volunteers and coverage varies from town to town, so a town with unmapped parks scores low on them.
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 Red Bug Slough Preserve, with 0.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
49 conserved acres
4% of South Gate Ridge’s land. Who manages South Gate Ridge’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County49 ac
Local Conservation Area · 49 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Bug Slough Preserve Local Conservation Area | County | 49 | Open |
Things to do
1 places to go in South Gate Ridge
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in South Gate Ridge
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Red Bug Slough Trail0.4 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
1.8 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.8 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
Courts & fields
3Tennis
2Baseball
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
April is the best month for walking in South Gate Ridge
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) | 10.6 | 11.2 | 11.9 | 12.8 | 13.5 | 13.9 | 13.7 | 13.1 | 12.3 | 11.5 | 10.8 | 10.4 |
| High (°F) | 73 | 75 | 78 | 83 | 88 | 91 | 92 | 92 | 90 | 86 | 79 | 75 |
| Rain (in) | 2.7 | 2.1 | 3.0 | 2.6 | 3.5 | 8.1 | 7.7 | 9.1 | 7.4 | 3.0 | 1.9 | 2.4 |
November is the driest month (1.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 92 °F). 9.1 inches fall in August, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 92 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in South Gate Ridge →
Next door
South Gate Ridge and its neighbors
South Gate Ridge 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Gate Ridge | 4% | 0.5 | 9 | 98% | B+ |
| Ridge Wood Heights | 4% | 0.5 | 6 | 63% | B− |
| Bee Ridge | 3% | 0.6 | 7 | 67% | B− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in South Gate Ridge
Where can I hike in South Gate Ridge?
The longest trail networks: Red Bug Slough Preserve, 0.8 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of South Gate Ridge is conserved land?
4% 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 South Gate Ridge’s trails?
Red Bug Slough Preserve doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in South Gate Ridge?
1.8 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.8 of painted or protected lanes.
Is there public land near South Gate Ridge?
13,265 acres of parks and open public land lie inside South Gate Ridge or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 50 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does South Gate Ridge have?
Ahead of 70% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #165 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 South Gate Ridge 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 →