Frenchtown Conservation Area
Managed by BREC
505 acres3.8 mi of trail
Hardwood Forest LoopRailroad TrailGreat Bamboo LoopAmite Overlook Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailhead
C+Outdoors
Outdoors in Central
Central has 1,002 acres of parks, 34 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Frenchtown Conservation Area (3.8 mi), Blackwater Conservation Area (1.5 mi). 6.6 miles of mapped trail cross Central, 0.1 per square mile of land. 35% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 41% of U.S. towns · #41 of 162 in Louisiana. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
1,016 acres · of 62.3 sq mi of land
Trails
6.6 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,002 ac
34 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
35%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.8 mi
Lakes & rivers
7
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Central have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Central is ahead of 41% of U.S. towns, #41 of 162 in Louisiana. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
C+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Central’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical LA town 1% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (7 mi) · LA 0.1 · U.S. 0.4CPark land34 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,002 acres) · LA 5 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home35% of residents within a half mile of a park · LA 53% · U.S. 72%C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 41%
LessMore
Louisiana towns of 2,500+ (162)Ahead of 75%
Few Louisiana towns conserve much land (a typical one, 1%; the U.S., 4%), so Central’s 3% is ahead of 83% of Louisiana towns, while its trails per square mile lead 43% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C 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 Frenchtown Conservation Area, with 3.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Blackwater Conservation Area
Managed by BREC
67 acres1.5 mi of trail
North Pond LoopSouth Pond LoopWarbler TrailWood Duck Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Jackson Park
Managed by BREC
9 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
1,016 conserved acres
3% of Central’s land. Who manages Central’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city455 ac
County452 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government88 ac
State fish & wildlife21 ac
Local Park · 512 acLocal Conservation Area · 453 acLocal Recreation Area · 29 acState Conservation Area · 21 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frenchtown Road Conservation Area Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 453 | Open |
| Brec Palomino Drive Park Local Park | County | 138 | Open |
| Howard Park Local Park | County | 98 | Open |
| Comite River Park Local Park | County | 66 | Open |
| Central Community Sports Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 59 | Open |
| Brec Lovett Road Park Local Park | County | 56 | Open |
| Brec Jacob Kornmeyer Park Local Park | County | 44 | Open |
| Kinchloe Lloyd Baker Local Recreation Area | Other or Unknown Local Government | 29 | Open |
| Comite River State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 19 | Restricted |
| Brec Greenwell Springs Park Local Park | County | 16 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
13 places to go in Central
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Central
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Dog parks in Central
Lovett Dog Park
DirectionsFishing spots in Central
2 fishing spots without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Scenic views in Central
5 scenic views without a name on the map.
Picnic areas in Central
4 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Trails & water
9 named trails and 7 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 3.5 mi
Hardwood Forest Loop1.8 mi
Railroad Trail0.6 mi
Great Bamboo Loop0.5 mi
North Pond Loop0.5 mi
Amite Overlook Trail0.5 mi
Forest Edge Trail0.4 mi
South Pond Loop0.4 mi
Warbler Trail0.2 mi
Wood Duck Trail0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.8 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.8 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
11Baseball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Central: 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) | 6.3 | 5.0 | 4.8 | 5.1 | 5.5 | 6.3 | 5.9 | 6.2 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 4.1 | 5.5 |
November is the driest month (4.1 in) and August the warmest (highs of 92 °F). 6.3 inches fall in January, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 92 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Central →
Next door
Central and its neighbors
Central has the second most mapped trails of the 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central | 3% | 0.1 | 34 | 35% | C+ |
| Denham Springs | under 1% | 0.2 | 3 | 55% | C− |
| Brownfields | 3% | 0.2 | 21 | 51% | B− |
| Monticello | 2% | 0.1 | 4 | 48% | C− |
| Zachary | 1% | under 0.1 | 10 | 53% | C |
| St. George | 3% | 0.3 | 14 | 62% | B− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Central
Where can I hike in Central?
The longest trail networks: Frenchtown Conservation Area, 3.8 miles; Blackwater Conservation Area, 1.5 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Central 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 Central’s trails?
Frenchtown Conservation Area and Blackwater Conservation Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Central?
0.8 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.8 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Central?
7,073 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Central or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,002 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Central have?
Ahead of 41% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #41 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 Central 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 →