Fairland Recreational Park
Managed by Montgomery Parks
157 acres4.7 mi of trail
Crowsfoot TrailCrowsfoot LoopHolly TrailPedestrian/Bike Access+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
AOutdoors
Outdoors in Fairland
18% of Fairland’s land is conserved, and virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 8.7 miles of mapped trail cross Fairland, 1.8 per square mile of land. 18% of Fairland’s land is conserved, about 580 acres.
Ahead of 93% of U.S. towns · #26 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it
Conserved land
18%
580 acres · of 5.0 sq mi of land
Trails
8.7 mi
1.8 per sq mi of land
Park land
257 ac
9.8 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
11 mi
6.4 mi lanes · 4.3 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Fairland?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Fairland have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Fairland is ahead of 93% of U.S. towns, #26 of 261 in Maryland. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Fairland’s overall grade.
Conserved land18% of the land · typical MD town 9% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (9 mi) · MD 0.5 · U.S. 0.4APark land9.8 acres of park per 1,000 residents (257 acres) · MD 9 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · MD 87% · U.S. 72%A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 93%
LessMore
Maryland towns of 2,500+ (261)Ahead of 90%
Maryland towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 9%; the U.S., 4%), so Fairland’s 18% is ahead of 85% of Maryland towns, while its trails per square mile lead 87% 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 Fairland Recreational Park, with 4.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Upper Paint Branch Stream Valley Park
Managed by Montgomery Parks
134 acres1.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Paint Branch Stream Valley Park
Managed by Montgomery Parks
121 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Countryside Neighborhood Park
Park
20 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 14 parks & preserves
Fairland Recreational Park157 acres · 4.7 mi of trail · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsUpper Paint Branch Stream Valley Park134 acres · 1.7 mi of trail · Montgomery Parks
Paint Branch Stream Valley Park121 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsCountryside Neighborhood Park20 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Stonecrest Neighborhood Conservation Area20 acres
West Fairland Local Park19 acres
Cross Creek Club Local Park16 acres · Montgomery Parks
Edgewood Neighborhood Park9 acres
Duvall Road Neighborhood Conservation Area6 acres
Miles Road Neighborhood Conservation Area5 acres
Fairdale Road Neighborhood Conservation Area5 acres
Tanglewood Neighborhood Park2 acres
Pilgrim Hills Local Park2 acres
DirectionsPaint Branch Neighborhood Park1 acres
Who protects it
580 conserved acres
18% of Fairland’s land. Who manages Fairland’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County94 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government85 ac
Regional agency67 ac
Other state land9 ac
Not recorded459 ac
State Other or Unknown · 457 acConservation Easement · 155 acLocal Park · 57 acLocal Conservation Area · 36 acForest Stewardship Easement · 7 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 79 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 36 of 75 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paint Branch Park State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 273 | Unknown |
| Fairland Recreational Park State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 148 | Unknown |
| Tanglewood Park State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 28 | Unknown |
| Stonecrest Nca Local Conservation Area | Regional agency | 20 | Open |
| Countryside Np Local Park | Regional agency | 20 | Open |
| Cross Creek Lp Local Park | Regional agency | 16 | Open |
| Upper Paint Branch Park State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 10 | Unknown |
| Edgewood Np Local Park | Regional agency | 9 | Open |
| Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission Property Park Land State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 8 | Unknown |
| Duvall Road Nca Local Conservation Area | County | 6 | Open |
4 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
8 places to go in Fairland
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Fairland
6 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Picnic areas in Fairland
Spectator AreaIn Fairland Recreational Park
DirectionsSpectator AreaIn Fairland Recreational Park
DirectionsTrails & water
5 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 6.0 miHorses · 3.2 miUnpaved · 6.1 mi
Crowsfoot Trail1.4 mi
Crowsfoot Loop1.1 mi
Holly Trail0.6 mi
Pedestrian/Bike Access0.1 mi
Board Walk0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
11 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
6.4 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
4.3 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
24Tennis
6Baseball
4Basketball
3Soccer
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Fairland: 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 | 14.7 | 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 | 3.9 | 3.5 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 4.5 | 4.1 | 4.4 | 4.0 | 3.2 | 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 Fairland →
Next door
Fairland and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Cloverly26 miBurtonsville15 miFairland8.7 miColesville8.4 miKonterra8.1 miCalverton3.7 miWhite Oak2.6 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fairland | 18% | 1.8 | 10 | 99%+ | A |
| Burtonsville | 31% | 1.9 | 118 | 99% | A+ |
| Colesville | 16% | 1.6 | 9 | 93% | A |
| Calverton | 11% | 0.8 | 7 | 99% | A− |
| Cloverly | 28% | 2.6 | 36 | 90% | A+ |
| White Oak | 13% | 0.8 | 5 | 46% | B |
| Konterra | 6% | 1.3 | 48 | 90% | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Fairland
Where can I hike in Fairland?
The longest trail networks: Fairland Recreational Park, 4.7 miles; Upper Paint Branch Stream Valley Park, 1.7 miles; Paint Branch Stream Valley Park, 0.4 miles; Countryside Neighborhood Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Fairland is conserved land?
18% 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 Fairland’s trails?
Fairland Recreational Park and Upper Paint Branch Stream Valley Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Fairland?
11 miles of bike routes are on the map: 6.4 of painted or protected lanes and 4.3 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Fairland?
19,185 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Fairland or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 257 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Fairland have?
Ahead of 93% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #26 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 Fairland 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 →