Bourbon County Park
Managed by Judy Hutson (Park Director)
35 acres0.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Spiritrock4u at English Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0BOutdoors
Outdoors in Paris
Paris has 5.8 miles of mapped trails, 0.7 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Bourbon County Park (0.8 mi). 150 acres are parks and preserves, 15 per 1,000 residents. 57% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 58% of U.S. towns · #38 of 142 in Kentucky. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
138 acres · of 7.9 sq mi of land
Trails
5.8 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
150 ac
15 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
57%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Paris?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Paris have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Paris is ahead of 58% of U.S. towns, #38 of 142 in Kentucky. Trail miles hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Paris’ overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical KY town 2% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · KY 0.3 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land15 acres of park per 1,000 residents (150 acres) · KY 8 · U.S. 13BParks close to home57% of residents within a half mile of a park · KY 59% · U.S. 72%B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 58%
LessMore
Kentucky towns of 2,500+ (142)Ahead of 74%
Few Kentucky towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Paris’ 3% is ahead of 72% of Kentucky towns, while its trails per square mile lead 86% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B− 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 Bourbon County Park, with 0.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Chief Reed Park
Park
4 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
138 conserved acres
3% of Paris’ land. Who manages Paris’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city130 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits15 ac
Local Park · 94 acLocal Recreation Area · 36 acConservation Easement · 8 acRanch Easement · 8 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 8 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bourbon County Park Local Park | Town or city | 30 | Open |
| Garrard Park Local Park | Town or city | 25 | Open |
| Legion Park Local Park | Town or city | 22 | Open |
| Paris Athletic Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 20 | Open |
| Ymca Field Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 16 | Open |
| Cheif Reed Park Local Park | Town or city | 14 | Open |
| Fordsmill Rd Dog Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Hopewell Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
6 places to go in Paris
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Paris
6 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Trails & water
1 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
15Soccer
11Baseball
4Tennis
2Football
2Pickleball
2Basketball
2Softball
1Tracks
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →13 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 2 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Duncan TavernBuilding · listed 1973
About itParis Railroad DepotBuilding · listed 1973
About itEades TavernBuilding · listed 1973
About itBourbon County CourthouseBuilding · listed 1974
About itAllen-Alexander HouseBuilding · listed 1975
About itCapt. James Wright House and CabinBuilding · listed 1976
About itParis Cemetery GatehouseBuilding · listed 1978
About itParis Courthouse Square Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1979
About itDuncan Avenue Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1988
About itDowntown Paris Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1989
About itJacob Aker FarmDistrict · listed 1993
About itWoodlawnBuilding · listed 1996
About it1 more on the History page.
When to get out
August is the best month for walking in Paris
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) | 9.8 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.1 | 14.2 | 14.8 | 14.6 | 13.6 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.5 |
| High (°F) | 42 | 46 | 56 | 67 | 76 | 83 | 87 | 86 | 80 | 68 | 56 | 46 |
| Rain (in) | 3.5 | 3.5 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 5.2 | 4.7 | 5.2 | 3.5 | 3.7 | 3.5 | 3.3 | 4.1 |
November is the driest month (3.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 87 °F). 5.2 inches fall in May, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 87 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Paris →
Questions about parks and trails in Paris
Where can I hike in Paris?
The longest trail networks: Bourbon County Park, 0.8 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Paris is conserved land?
3% of its land, against a typical 2% for a Kentucky town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Paris’ trails?
Bourbon County Park and Garrard City Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Paris?
1,082 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Paris or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 150 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Paris have?
Ahead of 58% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #38 of 142 in Kentucky. 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 Paris 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 →