Photo: Spatms · CC BY-SA 4.0Baton Rouge has 27 miles of mapped trails, 0.3 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Howell Park (4.5 mi), Forest Community Park (2.2 mi), City-Brooks Community Park (2.1 mi). 80% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 1,968 acres are parks and preserves, 8.8 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 52% of U.S. towns · #14 of 162 in Louisiana. What drives it
How much outdoors does Baton Rouge have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Baton Rouge is ahead of 52% of U.S. towns, #14 of 162 in Louisiana. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Baton Rouge ranks #349 on Outdoors.
Few Louisiana towns conserve much land (a typical one, 1%; the U.S., 4%), so Baton Rouge’s 3% is ahead of 89% of Louisiana towns, while its trails per square mile lead 71% of them.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Howell Park, with 4.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Forest Community Park
City-Brooks Community Park
Independence Park
North Sherwood Forest Community Park
Milton J. Womack Park
A. Z. Young Park
All 64 parks & preserves
1,736 conserved acres
3% of Baton Rouge’s land. Who manages Baton Rouge’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 3 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 4 of 98 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| State Capitol Park State Park | State parks | 311 | Open |
| Scotlandville Parkway Local Park | Town or city | 136 | Open |
| North Sherwood Forest Community Pk Local Park | Town or city | 123 | Open |
| Forest Community Park Local Park | Town or city | 123 | Open |
| Howell Community Park Local Park | Town or city | 106 | Open |
| City-Brooks Community Park Local Park | Town or city | 101 | Open |
| Webb Park Local Park | Town or city | 91 | Open |
| Independence Community Park Local Park | Town or city | 75 | Open |
| Oak Villa Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 53 | Open |
| Perkins Road Community Park Local Park | Town or city | 51 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
67 places to go in Baton Rouge
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
2 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
50 playgrounds are on OpenStreetMap in all; the list shows named ones from the first 30.
Plus 2 dog parks without a name on the map.
4 boat launches without a name on the map.
3 picnic areas without a name on the map.
2 community gardens without a name on the map.
4 named trails and 18 lakes & rivers
82 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
74 places on the National Register, 3 of them National Historic Landmarks
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 22 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
62 more on the History page.
The best walking months in Baton Rouge: April and May
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) | 10.4 | 11.1 | 11.9 | 12.9 | 13.7 | 14.1 | 13.9 | 13.2 | 12.3 | 11.4 | 10.6 | 10.2 |
| High (°F) | 62 | 66 | 73 | 79 | 86 | 90 | 92 | 92 | 88 | 81 | 71 | 64 |
| Rain (in) | 6.2 | 4.8 | 4.6 | 5.1 | 5.6 | 6.5 | 6.0 | 6.1 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 4.1 | 5.4 |
November is the driest month (4.1 in) and August the warmest (highs of 92 °F). 6.5 inches fall in June, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 92 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Baton Rouge →
Baton Rouge and its neighbors
Baton Rouge has the most mapped trails of the 7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baton Rouge | 3% | 0.3 | 9 | 80% | B− |
| St. George | 3% | 0.3 | 14 | 62% | B− |
| Merrydale | 1% | under 0.1 | 3 | 91% | C |
| Gardere | 14% | 0.2 | 9 | 84% | B |
| Monticello | 2% | 0.1 | 4 | 48% | C− |
| Brownfields | 3% | 0.2 | 21 | 51% | B− |
| Port Allen | 3% | 0.8 | 13 | 94% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Baton Rouge
Where can I hike in Baton Rouge?
The longest trail networks: Howell Park, 4.5 miles; Forest Community Park, 2.2 miles; City-Brooks Community Park, 2.1 miles; Independence Park, 1.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Baton Rouge is conserved land?
3% of its land, against a typical 1% for a Louisiana town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Baton Rouge’s trails?
Howell Park and Forest Community Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Baton Rouge?
82 miles of bike routes are on the map: 40 of painted or protected lanes, 32 of off-road paths and 11 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Baton Rouge?
7,566 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Baton Rouge or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,968 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Baton Rouge have?
Ahead of 52% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #14 of 162 in Louisiana. 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 Baton Rouge neighbors.
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 →