Muddy Branch Stream Valley Park
Managed by Montgomery Parks
480 acres7.7 mi of trail
Muddy Branch Greenway TrailLowlineLowline Connector 2Pebble Hill Connector+1
Dogs allowed
Directionsto the trailheadWebsite ↗
Photo: TwoScarsUp · CC BY-SA 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in North Potomac
North Potomac has 15 miles of mapped trails, 2.3 for every square mile of land
92% of residents live within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Muddy Branch Stream Valley Park (7.7 mi). 6% of North Potomac’s land is conserved, about 245 acres.
Ahead of 76% of U.S. towns · #107 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it
Conserved land
6%
245 acres · of 6.5 sq mi of land
Trails
15 mi
2.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
122 ac
5.1 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
92%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
15 mi
6.3 mi lanes · 8.5 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is North Potomac?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does North Potomac have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, North Potomac is ahead of 76% of U.S. towns, #107 of 261 in Maryland. Trail miles hold the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of North Potomac’s overall grade.
Conserved land6% of the land · typical MD town 9% · U.S. 4%BTrails2.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (15 mi) · MD 0.5 · U.S. 0.4APark land5.1 acres of park per 1,000 residents (122 acres) · MD 9 · U.S. 13CParks 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 76%
LessMore
Maryland towns of 2,500+ (261)Ahead of 59%
Maryland towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 9%; the U.S., 4%), so North Potomac’s 6% is ahead of 31% of Maryland towns, while its trails per square mile lead 93% 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 Muddy Branch Stream Valley Park, with 7.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Quince Orchard Knolls Local Park
Managed by Montgomery Parks
10 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Aberdeen Local Park
Managed by Montgomery Parks
15 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
All 7 parks & preserves
Muddy Branch Stream Valley Park480 acres · 7.7 mi of trail · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsQuince Orchard Knolls Local Park10 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsAberdeen Local Park15 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Montgomery Parks
DirectionsDufief Local Park16 acres
Traville Local Park14 acres
Big Pines Local Park11 acres
Lambertina Park1 acres
Who protects it
245 conserved acres
6% of North Potomac’s land. Who manages North Potomac’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Other or Unknown Local Government107 ac
Regional agency79 ac
County77 ac
Other state land5 ac
Not recorded68 ac
Conservation Easement · 156 acLocal Park · 66 acLocal Other or Unknown · 55 acState Other or Unknown · 48 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 6 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 86 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 31 of 63 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Muddy Branch Park State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 41 | Unknown |
| Potomac Horse Center Local Other or Unknown | Regional agency | 41 | Open |
| Dufief Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 15 | Open |
| Aberdeen Lp Local Park | Regional agency | 15 | Open |
| County Land Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 14 | Unknown |
| Traville Lp Local Park | Regional agency | 14 | Open |
| Quince Orchard Knolls Park State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 13 | Unknown |
| Quince Orchard Knolls Lp Local Park | Regional agency | 10 | Open |
| Big Pines Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 10 | Open |
| Montgomery County Local Park | County | 3 | Open |
Things to do
16 places to go in North Potomac
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in North Potomac
Willows of Potomac Community Pool
DirectionsPlaygrounds in North Potomac
Lambertina Place PlaygroundIn Lambertina Park
DirectionsPlus 14 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Trails & water
11 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 10.2 miHorses · 4.1 miUnpaved · 11.6 mi
Muddy Branch Greenway Trail4.1 mi
Pepco Trail2.2 mi
Lowline1.3 mi
Lowline Connector 20.3 mi
Pebble Hill Connector0.2 mi
Creekside Connector0.2 mi
Lowline Connector 30.2 mi
Backbreaker0.1 mi
Creekside Hill0.1 mi
Connector Trail0.1 mi
1 more trails
Brandy Hall Connector
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
15 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
6.3 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
8.5 mi
off-road bike paths
Muddy Branch Mtb RouteBike route
4.1 miMoCo EpicBike route
3.6 miMoCoEpic SouthBike route
3.6 miCourts & fields
33Tennis
10Basketball
6Soccer
4Baseball
4Pickleball
1Volleyball
1Equestrian
1Softball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in North Potomac: 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) | 42 | 45 | 54 | 66 | 74 | 82 | 86 | 85 | 78 | 67 | 56 | 46 |
| Rain (in) | 3.1 | 2.6 | 3.8 | 3.5 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 3.7 | 4.2 | 3.7 | 3.2 | 3.6 |
February is the driest month (2.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 86 °F). 4.4 inches fall in May, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 86 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in North Potomac →
Next door
North Potomac and its neighbors
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Potomac | 6% | 2.3 | 5 | 92% | A− |
| Travilah | 18% | 0.8 | 64 | 65% | A |
| Darnestown | 13% | 2.3 | 83 | 31% | A |
| Gaithersburg | 9% | 1.0 | 9 | 98% | A− |
| Rockville | 10% | 1.4 | 16 | 99%+ | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in North Potomac
Where can I hike in North Potomac?
The longest trail networks: Muddy Branch Stream Valley Park, 7.7 miles; Quince Orchard Knolls Local Park, 0.3 miles; Aberdeen Local Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of North Potomac is conserved land?
6% 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 Potomac’s trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Muddy Branch Stream Valley Park. For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in North Potomac?
15 miles of bike routes are on the map: 6.3 of painted or protected lanes and 8.5 of off-road paths. Named routes: Muddy Branch Mtb Route, MoCo Epic and MoCoEpic South.
Is there public land near North Potomac?
21,684 acres of parks and open public land lie inside North Potomac or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 122 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does North Potomac have?
Ahead of 76% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #107 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 Potomac 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 →