Photo: USDAgov · Public domainVirtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park in Chevy Chase
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 8 acres are parks and preserves, 2.7 per 1,000 residents. 3% of Chevy Chase’s land is conserved, about 8 acres.
Ahead of 36% of U.S. towns · #232 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Chevy Chase?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Chevy Chase have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Chevy Chase is ahead of 36% of U.S. towns, #232 of 261 in Maryland. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
Maryland towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 9%; the U.S., 4%), so Chevy Chase’s 3% is ahead of 11% of Maryland towns, while its trails per square mile lead 2% 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
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Zimmerman Park
8 conserved acres
3% of Chevy Chase’s land. Who manages Chevy Chase’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leland Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 3 | Open |
| Elm Street Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 2 | Open |
| Zimmerman Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
5 places to go in Chevy Chase
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
5 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
0.1 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.
1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
The best walking months in Chevy Chase: April to June and August
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) | 9.7 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 14.9 | 14.6 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 43 | 46 | 54 | 66 | 75 | 83 | 87 | 85 | 79 | 68 | 56 | 47 |
| Rain (in) | 3.0 | 2.7 | 3.8 | 3.4 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.5 | 3.8 | 4.4 | 3.9 | 3.1 | 3.7 |
February is the driest month (2.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 87 °F). 4.5 inches fall in July, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 87 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Chevy Chase →
Chevy Chase and its neighbors
Chevy Chase has the second most mapped trails of the 2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chevy Chase | 3% | under 0.1 | 3 | 99%+ | C+ |
| Bethesda | 6% | 0.5 | 3 | 99% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Chevy Chase
How much of Chevy Chase is conserved land?
3% of its land, against a typical 9% for a Maryland town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Chevy Chase’s trails?
Leland Neighborhood Park and Elm Street Urban Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Chevy Chase?
0.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.1 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Chevy Chase?
16,840 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Chevy Chase or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 8 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Chevy Chase have?
Ahead of 36% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #232 of 261 in Maryland. 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 Chevy Chase 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 →