Tilden Woods Stream Valley Park
Managed by Montgomery Parks
67 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Riley-Bolten House · Photo: Farragutful · CC BY-SA 3.0BOutdoors
Outdoors in North Bethesda
7% of North Bethesda’s land is conserved, and 97% of residents live within a half mile of a park
The biggest trail networks: Tilden Woods Stream Valley Park (0.5 mi). 7% of North Bethesda’s land is conserved, about 418 acres. 147 acres are parks and preserves, 3.0 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 59% of U.S. towns · #174 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
418 acres · of 8.9 sq mi of land
Trails
2.5 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
147 ac
3.0 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
97%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
23 mi
6.1 mi lanes · 14 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
4
3 beaches
What kind of outdoors town is North Bethesda?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does North Bethesda have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, North Bethesda is ahead of 59% of U.S. towns, #174 of 261 in Maryland. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
B
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of North Bethesda’s overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical MD town 9% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (3 mi) · MD 0.5 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land3.0 acres of park per 1,000 residents (147 acres) · MD 9 · U.S. 13C−Parks close to home97% 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 59%
LessMore
Maryland towns of 2,500+ (261)Ahead of 33%
Maryland towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 9%; the U.S., 4%), so North Bethesda’s 7% is ahead of 42% of Maryland towns, while its trails per square mile lead 28% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B− 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 Tilden Woods Stream Valley Park, with 0.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Rock Creek Stream Valley Park
Managed by Montgomery Parks
283 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Cabin John Stream Valley Park
Managed by Montgomery Parks
20 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 22 parks & preserves
Tilden Woods Stream Valley Park67 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsRock Creek Stream Valley Park283 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsTilden Woods Local Park9 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsTimberlawn Park14 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsFleming Local Park12 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsStratton Local Park11 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsGarrett Park Estates Local Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsRobin Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Cabin John Stream Valley Park20 acres · Montgomery Parks
Randolph Hills Park13 acres · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsWall Local Park12 acres
DirectionsWhite Flint Park9 acres · Montgomery Parks
Farmland Drive Local Park7 acres · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsLuxmanor Local Park6 acres
DirectionsWaverly - Schuylkill Park6 acres · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsJosiah Henson Special Park2 acres
DirectionsStrathmore Square2 acres
DirectionsWinding Creek Local Park1 acres · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsParkside Recreation Center1 acres
DirectionsParkside Park and Ballfield1 acres
DirectionsOld Farm Neighborhood Conservation Area1 acres
NoBe Market Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
418 conserved acres
7% of North Bethesda’s land. Who manages North Bethesda’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Other or Unknown Local Government75 ac
County29 ac
Regional agency26 ac
Not recorded329 ac
State Other or Unknown · 257 acLocal Park · 83 acConservation Easement · 58 acLocal Other or Unknown · 57 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 5 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 35 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 24 of 53 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rock Creek Stream Valley Park State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 178 | Unknown |
| Rock Creek Park State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 67 | Unknown |
| Rock Creek Stream Valley Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 54 | Unknown |
| Cabin John Creek Park State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 20 | Unknown |
| Randolph Hills Lp Local Park | Regional agency | 13 | Open |
| Fleming Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 13 | Open |
| Wall Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 11 | Open |
| White Flint Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 9 | Open |
| Farmland Drive Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 7 | Open |
| Waverly-Schuylkill Np Local Park | Regional agency | 7 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
45 places to go in North Bethesda
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in North Bethesda
3 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in North Bethesda
Tot LotIn Parkside Park and Ballfield
Directionspirate ship
Directions37 playgrounds are on OpenStreetMap in all; the list shows named ones from the first 30.
Dog parks in North Bethesda
Randolph Square Dog Park
DirectionsPicnic areas in North Bethesda
4 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 4 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 1.6 mi
Fleming Trail0.4 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
23 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
6.1 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
14 mi
off-road bike paths
3.4 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
71Tennis
21Basketball
20Baseball
13Soccer
4Football
4Softball
4Pickleball
3Tracks
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in North Bethesda: 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 | 74 | 83 | 87 | 85 | 78 | 67 | 56 | 47 |
| Rain (in) | 3.0 | 2.7 | 3.8 | 3.4 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.5 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 3.8 | 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 North Bethesda →
Next door
North Bethesda and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Potomac53 miRockville19 miWheaton12 miBethesda6.4 miNorth Bethesda2.5 miSouth Kensington1.9 miNorth Kensington0.6 miGarrett Park0.1 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Bethesda | 7% | 0.3 | 3 | 97% | B |
| Wheaton | 22% | 1.7 | 13 | 99% | A |
| Rockville | 10% | 1.4 | 16 | 99%+ | A |
| South Kensington | 20% | 0.9 | 3 | 85% | B+ |
| Bethesda | 6% | 0.5 | 3 | 99% | B |
| Potomac | 21% | 2.1 | 26 | 92% | A+ |
| Garrett Park | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| North Kensington | 11% | 0.4 | 5 | 99%+ | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in North Bethesda
Where can I hike in North Bethesda?
The longest trail networks: Tilden Woods Stream Valley Park, 0.5 miles; Rock Creek Stream Valley Park, 0.4 miles; Timberlawn Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of North Bethesda is conserved land?
7% 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 North Bethesda’s trails?
Tilden Woods Stream Valley Park and Rock Creek Stream Valley Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in North Bethesda?
23 miles of bike routes are on the map: 6.1 of painted or protected lanes, 14 of off-road paths and 3.4 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near North Bethesda?
23,623 acres of parks and open public land lie inside North Bethesda or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 147 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does North Bethesda have?
Ahead of 59% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #174 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 North Bethesda 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 →