First pick
Forêt domaniale d'Angervilliers
Wood or forest
288 ha5.6 km of path
1 h 15 minto walk all 5.6 km of path
4.5 km south-westfrom the center
Directionsto a point inside
Photo: YvesD fr · CC BY-SA 2.5100%of the land protected
Outdoors in Forges-les-Bains · protected areas, woods and footpaths
Forges-les-Bains lies inside Haute Vallée de Chevreuse Regional Nature Park
Protected areas cover 100% of Forges-les-Bains’ land. 36% of Forges-les-Bains is mapped woodland. Waymarked hiking routes add up to 16 km in Forges-les-Bains. France has no Outdoors Grade yet: these are the figures, each beside the compared towns’ median.
Protected areas
100%
of the commune’s land
Compared town: 0.1%
Woodland
36%
of the land, mapped on OpenStreetMap
Compared town: 13%
Footpaths
24 km
1.6 km per km²
Compared town: 1.7 km per km²
Hiking routes
16 km
waymarked, GR and others
Compared town: 0.3 km per km²
Parks & woods
3
named, in or within 400 m of the commune
First: Forêt domaniale d'Angervilliers
Throughout this page, the Essonne median and the France median are the median of compared communes (those with an overall grade), each figure its own median.
What kind of place
What kind of outdoors place is Forges-les-Bains?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and less good.
Inside Haute Vallée de Chevreuse Regional Nature Park100% of the commune is in the regional nature park.A wooded commune36% mapped woodland, more than in 82% of compared French towns, against 13% for the median compared town.On waymarked routes16 km of GR and other hiking routes cross the commune.
What sets Forges-les-Bains apart: the regional nature park around it, then its woods.
Against French towns
How Forges-les-Bains compares with French towns
Each figure against the 3,798 compared French towns (communes with an overall grade): the marked bar is the town’s, the line the median. Described, not graded.
Protected areas100%Share of the land in a national park, regional nature park, nature reserve or Natura 2000 site
93out of 100
Woodland36%Share of the land mapped as forest or woods on OpenStreetMap
82out of 100
Footpaths1.6 km per km²Km of mapped footpath and track open on foot, per km² of the commune
48out of 100
Hiking routes1.1 km per km²Km of waymarked hiking routes (GR and others), per km² of the commune
86out of 100
Percentiles among compared French towns; ties count half.
Towns its size
Forges-les-Bains has the 16th most footpaths per km² of 41 towns its size
The 40 compared French towns nearest in population (4,207 to 4,271 residents), by km of footpath per km². Hover for each one’s protected land and woods; click for its page.
From Le Touquet-Paris-Plage (5 km per km²) to Terres-de-Caux (0.1 km per km²).
Every town in the comparison
| Town | Paths (km/km²) | Woodland | Protected | Coast | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Le Touquet-Paris-Plage Pas-de-Calais | 5 | 23% | 9.8% | On it |
| 2 | Brives-Charensac Haute-Loire | 4.2 | 17% | 0% | 166 km |
| 3 | Mimet Bouches-du-Rhône | 3.9 | 49% | 44% | 16 km |
| 4 | Leuville-sur-Orge Essonne | 3.8 | 15% | 0% | 166 km |
| 5 | Corenc Isère | 3.8 | 50% | 45% | 206 km |
| 6 | Barbentane Bouches-du-Rhône | 3.1 | 36% | 8.1% | 50 km |
| 7 | Montarnaud Hérault | 3 | 47% | 17% | 22 km |
| 8 | Courseulles-sur-Mer Calvados | 2.7 | 1% | 0% | On it |
| 9 | Angoulins Charente-Maritime | 2.7 | 0.3% | 3.8% | On it |
| 10 | Pont-Péan Ille-et-Vilaine | 2.3 | 16% | 0% | 57 km |
| 11 | Saint-Pierre-d'Albigny Savoie | 2.2 | 50% | 100% | 225 km |
| 12 | La Norville Essonne | 2.2 | 4% | 0% | 168 km |
| 13 | Combrit Finistère | 2.2 | 20% | 3.3% | On it |
| 14 | Plomelin Finistère | 2.1 | 19% | 0% | On it |
| 15 | Rouffach Haut-Rhin | 1.8 | 37% | 10% | 464 km |
| 16 | Forges-les-Bains Essonne | 1.6 | 36% | 100% | 155 km |
| 17 | Pomponne Seine-et-Marne | 1.6 | 48% | 4% | 161 km |
| 18 | Wolfisheim Bas-Rhin | 1.6 | 7.5% | 0% | 446 km |
| 19 | Désertines Allier | 1.5 | 20% | 0% | 281 km |
| 20 | Fleury Aude | 1.5 | 0.7% | 98% | On it |
| 21 | Tonnerre Yonne | 1.5 | 41% | 0% | 308 km |
| 22 | Vimy Pas-de-Calais | 1.3 | 16% | 0% | 80 km |
| 23 | Saint-Just-Malmont Haute-Loire | 1.3 | 47% | 0.3% | 199 km |
| 24 | Maîche Doubs | 1.3 | 31% | 100% | 389 km |
| 25 | Beauvallon Rhône | 1.3 | 18% | 0% | 231 km |
| 26 | Rognonas Bouches-du-Rhône | 1.2 | 0% | 13% | 50 km |
| 27 | Pluguffan Finistère | 1.1 | 14% | 0% | 4.3 km |
| 28 | Bartenheim Haut-Rhin | 1.1 | 30% | 29% | 428 km |
| 29 | Grisolles Tarn-et-Garonne | 1 | 13% | 19% | 168 km |
| 30 | Rians Var | 0.9 | 70% | 70% | 45 km |
| 31 | Noues de Sienne Calvados | 0.7 | 20% | 0% | 32 km |
| 32 | Saint-Laurent-Nouan Loir-et-Cher | 0.6 | 42% | 26% | 213 km |
| 33 | Nailloux Haute-Garonne | 0.6 | 5.1% | 0% | 123 km |
| 34 | Nanteuil-le-Haudouin Oise | 0.5 | 9.7% | 32% | 142 km |
| 35 | Sanvignes-les-Mines Saône-et-Loire | 0.5 | 12% | 0% | 345 km |
| 36 | Serémange-Erzange Moselle | 0.5 | 14% | 0% | 307 km |
| 37 | Breteuil Oise | 0.4 | 15% | 0% | 75 km |
| 38 | Jouarre Seine-et-Marne | 0.3 | 28% | 0% | 175 km |
| 39 | Betschdorf Bas-Rhin | 0.2 | 41% | 49% | 436 km |
| 40 | Redessan Gard | 0.2 | 0% | 66% | 41 km |
| 41 | Terres-de-Caux Seine-Maritime | 0.1 | 0.8% | 0% | 19 km |
The map
Parks, woods, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park or wood. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is the commune’s boundary.
Green: parks, gardens and woods mapped on OpenStreetMap, named or not.© OpenStreetMap contributors · INPN / PatriNat · IGN
Places to walk
Parks and woods to walk in, in and around Forges-les-Bains
Named parks, gardens and woods in the commune or within 400 m, the biggest and best-pathed first: Forêt domaniale d'Angervilliers leads, at 288 ha. Directions go to a point inside.
Bois de Croulard
Wood or forest · 230 m outside the commune
15 ha1.1 km of path
15 minto walk all 1.1 km of path
2.9 km south-eastfrom the center
Directionsto a point inside
Parc des Thermes
Park or garden
1.4 ha0.6 km of path
10 minto walk all 0.6 km of path
1.2 km eastfrom the center
Directionsto a point inside
Source: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL): named parks, gardens and woods; sizes are the whole site.
Protected areas
Protected land in and around Forges-les-Bains
The protected areas reaching the commune, and the nearest: national parks, regional nature parks, nature reserves and Natura 2000 sites.
Regional nature park
Haute Vallée de Chevreuse Regional Nature Park
100% of the commune
Natura 2000 site
Massif de Rambouillet et zones humides proches
3.2 km from the town center
Share of the commune’s land
Any protected area100%
Regional nature park100%
Designations overlap (a regional park can hold a Natura 2000 site), so the rows don’t add up; the first counts each piece of land once.
100% of Forges-les-Bains’ land is protected, more than in 93% of compared French towns; the median compared town in Essonne has 0%. A regional nature park is a charter between communes to look after a landscape: farming, building and hunting go on inside it.
Source: INPN / PatriNat, protected areas July 2026, Natura 2000 December 2024; shares of IGN’s commune boundary.
Footpaths and woods
24 km of footpaths and 16 km of hiking routes cross Forges-les-Bains
Paths, bridleways, steps and tracks open on foot, and waymarked hiking routes, mapped on OpenStreetMap inside the commune; woods are mapped forest and woodland, private woods included.
Footpaths
24 km
1.6 km per km²
Hiking routes
16 km
waymarked: 1.1 km per km²
Woodland
36%
about 5.3 km² of mapped woods
Km per km² of the commune · mapped on OpenStreetMap
Forges-les-BainsEssonne medianFrance median
Footpaths1.6
Hiking routes1.1
02.55 km per km²
Share of the land · mapped woods and forest
Forges-les-BainsEssonne medianFrance median
Woodland36%
0%50%100%
That is less than in 52% of compared French towns for footpaths per km², and for woodland more than in 82% of compared French towns. Hiking routes often follow paths and lanes already counted, so the two lengths overlap: don’t add them. Every home in Forges-les-Bains is within 800 m of a mapped park or wood, as in most French towns.
10 named hiking routes within 2 km
GR (long-distance)Other named walk
GR 11D12 km
GR655 OT7.8 km
Grand Tour de Paris, Franchard - Villiers-Saint-Frédéric11 km
La Mare des 3 Ruisseaux3.4 km
Réserve naturelle et Cité Féodale1.7 km
Le Gros Chêne1.6 km
Du Val d'Yerres à l'Étampois1.2 km
PR150.8 km
PR70.5 km
Les Bruyères0.3 km
2 GR routes pass within 2 km of Forges-les-Bains: GR 11D and GR655 OT.
Source: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), extracts of October 25, 2026 (Geofabrik).
When to get out
The best walking months in Forges-les-Bains: April and June to September
Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at Fontenay-Les-B., 6.2 km away, and the daylight at the town’s latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 15 to 30 °C and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 8.7 | 10.1 | 11.7 | 13.6 | 15.2 | 16.1 | 15.7 | 14.3 | 12.5 | 10.7 | 9.1 | 8.3 |
| High (°C) | 7 | 9 | 13 | 16 | 20 | 24 | 26 | 26 | 22 | 17 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 54 | 49 | 50 | 48 | 69 | 58 | 61 | 63 | 51 | 61 | 61 | 71 |
April is the driest month (48 mm) and July the warmest (highs of 26 °C). 71 mm of rain falls in December, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 53 nights a year. The climate in Forges-les-Bains →
Neighbors
Next to Forges-les-Bains
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more, colored by the share of their land in protected areas.
LimoursBriis-sous-ForgesGometz-le-ChâtelGif-sur-YvetteBruyères-le-ChâtelBures-sur-YvetteForges-les-Bains
Under 1%1–10 %10–25 %25–50 %50 %+
| Town | Protected | Woodland | Paths (km/km²) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forges-les-Bains | 100% | 36% | 1.6 |
| Limours 6,517 · 1.9 km | 0.1% | 22% | 3.1 |
| Briis-sous-Forges 3,342 · 3.1 km | 0.1% | 22% | 3.5 |
| Gometz-le-Châtel 2,630 · 7.1 km | 0.2% | 24% | 2.5 |
| Gif-sur-Yvette 22,544 · 7.8 km | 60% | 28% | 7.8 |
| Bruyères-le-Châtel 3,788 · 8.5 km | 0.1% | 64% | 4.2 |
| Bures-sur-Yvette 9,548 · 8.6 km | 0.2% | 26% | 8.5 |
Bruyères-le-Châtel is more wooded.
How to read these numbers
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Protected areas. National-park cores, national parks’ outer areas, regional nature parks, nature reserves and Natura 2000 sites, from INPN. A national park’s core is strictly protected; its outer area and a regional park are charters between communes, not bans. Designations overlap, so the total counts each piece of land once.
- Woodland. Forest and woods as OpenStreetMap maps them, private woods included: woods nobody has mapped are missing, and a mapped wood isn’t necessarily open to walkers.
- Footpaths and hiking routes. Footpaths, bridleways, steps and tracks open on foot, then waymarked hiking routes (GR and others) measured apart. A route often follows a path or lane already counted: the two overlap. Paths nobody has mapped are missing.
- Green space nearby. The share of residents (INSEE’s 200 m grid) within 800 m, as the crow flies, of a mapped park, garden or wood edge. It measures nearness, not a way in. Guadeloupe and French Guiana have no grid: their pages say whether the town center is within 800 m.
- The coast. The straight-line distance from the town center to OpenStreetMap’s coastline, which follows the tide line into estuaries. A commune is on the coast when the coastline crosses its boundary.
- No grade yet. U.S. and UK towns have an Outdoors Grade; French towns don’t yet. Each figure is set beside the median of compared communes (those with an overall grade) in the département and in France, each figure its own median.
Questions about the outdoors in Forges-les-Bains
Is Forges-les-Bains in a national or regional nature park?
Yes: Forges-les-Bains lies in Haute Vallée de Chevreuse Regional Nature Park (100% of the commune).
Are there good walks in Forges-les-Bains?
OpenStreetMap maps 24 km of footpaths and tracks open on foot in the commune, 1.6 km per km² (the median compared town: 1.7 km per km²); 16 km of waymarked hiking routes cross it.
How much of Forges-les-Bains is woodland?
36% of the commune is mapped woodland, private woods included; the median compared French town has 13%.
Is Forges-les-Bains near the sea?
No: the coast is 155 km from the town center, as the crow flies.
When is the best time for walking in Forges-les-Bains?
April and June to September: long days, mild highs and little rain, from Météo-France’s 1991–2020 normals at the nearest suitable station.
Why is there no Outdoors Grade for French towns?
TownRatings grades the outdoors in the U.S. and the UK; the French figures are new and not graded yet. This page sets each one beside the median compared French town instead.
Sources: INPN / PatriNat (protected areas 2026, Natura 2000 2024) · © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL (paths, hiking routes, woods, coast, gardens) · INSEE, Filosofi 2021 200 m grid (residents) · IGN Admin Express (boundaries) · Météo-France normals 1991–2020 · Medians and percentiles: TownRatings, over compared French towns, updated November 9, 2026. Under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab).
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.