Oak Ridge Conservation Park
Nature preserve
180 acres2.3 mi of trail
Oak Ridge Loop TrailOak Drive TrailBethesda Church TrailOak Ridge Connector+1
Dogs on leash
Directionsto Hiking Trail Parking Lot - Bethesda Church RdWebsite ↗
Photo: G. Edward Johnson · CC BY 4.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Damascus
22% of Damascus’ land is conserved: 2,040 acres
774 acres are parks and preserves, 44 per 1,000 residents. 92% of residents live within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Oak Ridge Conservation Park (2.3 mi), Damascus Recreational Park (1 mi).
Ahead of 88% of U.S. towns · #49 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it
Conserved land
22%
2,040 acres · of 14.2 sq mi of land
Trails
4.7 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
774 ac
44 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
92%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
7.3 mi
2.2 mi lanes · 5.1 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Damascus?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Damascus have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Damascus is ahead of 88% of U.S. towns, #49 of 261 in Maryland. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; conserved land ranks highest, trail miles lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Damascus’ overall grade.
Conserved land22% of the land · typical MD town 9% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (5 mi) · MD 0.5 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land44 acres of park per 1,000 residents (774 acres) · MD 9 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home92% of residents within a half mile of a park · MD 87% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 88%
LessMore
Maryland towns of 2,500+ (261)Ahead of 82%
Maryland towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 9%; the U.S., 4%), so Damascus’ 22% is ahead of 91% of Maryland towns, while its trails per square mile lead 33% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A. 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 Oak Ridge Conservation Park, with 2.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Damascus Recreational Park
Managed by Montgomery Parks
280 acres1 mi of trail
Lower Magruder Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Magruder Branch Stream Valley Park
Managed by Montgomery Parks
301 acres0.3 mi of trail
Bamboo Pass
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Great Seneca Stream Valley Park
Managed by Montgomery Parks
638 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 9 parks & preserves
Oak Ridge Conservation Park180 acres · 2.3 mi of trail
DirectionsDamascus Recreational Park280 acres · 1 mi of trail · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsMagruder Branch Stream Valley Park301 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsGreat Seneca Stream Valley Park638 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Montgomery Parks
Moyer Road Local Park26 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsBennett Creek Conservation Park168 acres
DirectionsWoodfield Local Park34 acres · Montgomery Parks
Wildcat Branch Stream Valley Park30 acres · Montgomery Parks
Seneca Springs Local Park20 acres · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsWho protects it
2,040 conserved acres
22% of Damascus’ land. Who manages Damascus’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County981 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government418 ac
Private owners199 ac
Regional agency125 ac
Other state land74 ac
Not recorded982 ac
Conservation Easement · 1,381 acLocal Park · 487 acState Other or Unknown · 433 acLocal Other or Unknown · 352 acAgricultural Easement · 74 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 1,021 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 120 of 247 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| County Land Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 405 | Unknown |
| Great Seneca Stream Valley Park State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 232 | Unknown |
| Montgomery County Local Park | County | 190 | Open |
| Magruder Branch Stream Valley Park State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 147 | Unknown |
| Oak Ridge Conservation Park Local Park | Not recorded | 45 | Unknown |
| MD National Capital Parks and Planning Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 45 | Unknown |
| Woodfield Lp Local Park | Regional agency | 34 | Open |
| Great Seneca Stream Valley Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 32 | Unknown |
| Wildcat Branch Svu Local Conservation Area | Regional agency | 30 | Open |
| Moyer Road Lp Local Park | Regional agency | 26 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
9 places to go in Damascus
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Damascus
Valley Park Ct Playground
DirectionsPlus 8 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Trails & water
7 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 3.5 miHorses · 2.1 miUnpaved · 3.6 mi
Oak Ridge Loop Trail0.9 mi
Lower Magruder Trail0.8 mi
Oak Drive Trail0.5 mi
Bethesda Church Trail0.5 mi
Oak Ridge Connector0.3 mi
Community Center Trail0.2 mi
Bamboo Pass0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
7.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.2 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
5.1 mi
off-road bike paths
MoCo EpicBike route
0.8 miCourts & fields
9Basketball
7Tennis
6Baseball
4Pickleball
2Soccer
1Skate park
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Damascus: April 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 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 41 | 44 | 53 | 65 | 73 | 81 | 85 | 83 | 77 | 66 | 54 | 45 |
| Rain (in) | 3.2 | 2.7 | 4.0 | 3.6 | 4.5 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 3.7 | 4.4 | 3.8 | 3.3 | 3.6 |
February is the driest month (2.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 4.5 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Damascus →
Next door
Damascus and its neighbors
Damascus 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Damascus | 22% | 0.3 | 44 | 92% | A |
| Clarksburg | 28% | 1.1 | 18 | 99%+ | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Damascus
Where can I hike in Damascus?
The longest trail networks: Oak Ridge Conservation Park, 2.3 miles; Damascus Recreational Park, 1 miles; Magruder Branch Stream Valley Park, 0.3 miles; Great Seneca Stream Valley Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Damascus is conserved land?
22% 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 Damascus’ trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Oak Ridge Conservation Park (on leash). For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Damascus?
7.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.2 of painted or protected lanes and 5.1 of off-road paths. Named routes: MoCo Epic.
Is there public land near Damascus?
14,714 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Damascus or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 774 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Damascus have?
Ahead of 88% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #49 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 Damascus 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 →