Photo: Ente75 · Public domain6% of Picayune’s land is conserved: 655 acres
1.8 miles of mapped trail cross Picayune, 0.1 per square mile of land. 172 acres are parks and preserves, 14 per 1,000 residents. 68% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 51% of U.S. towns · #21 of 101 in Mississippi. What drives it
How much outdoors does Picayune have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Picayune is ahead of 51% of U.S. towns, #21 of 101 in Mississippi. Conserved land holds the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
Few Mississippi towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Picayune’s 6% is ahead of 76% of Mississippi towns, while its trails per square mile lead 39% 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.
Snyder Park
All 9 parks & preserves
655 conserved acres
6% of Picayune’s land. Who manages Picayune’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi 16th Section Public School Trust Lands State Resource Management Area | State land board | 503 | Open |
| Friendship Park Local Park | Town or city | 68 | Open |
| Crosby Arboretum Local Conservation Area | Other state land | 66 | Open |
| Snyder Park Local Park | Town or city | 13 | Open |
| Ben Taylor Park Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Shay Park Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Jp Johnson Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Crosby Commons Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Jack Read Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Canal St Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
1 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
12 places to go in Picayune
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Plus 9 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
3 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
1.6 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 map also marks 7 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
The best walking months in Picayune: April and May
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) | 10.4 | 11.1 | 11.9 | 12.9 | 13.7 | 14.1 | 13.9 | 13.2 | 12.3 | 11.4 | 10.6 | 10.2 |
| High (°F) | 62 | 66 | 72 | 78 | 85 | 90 | 91 | 91 | 88 | 80 | 70 | 64 |
| Rain (in) | 5.9 | 4.9 | 5.3 | 5.5 | 5.2 | 6.6 | 7.0 | 6.4 | 5.0 | 3.8 | 4.2 | 5.1 |
October is the driest month (3.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 91 °F). 7.0 inches fall in July, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 91 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Picayune →
Questions about parks and trails in Picayune
How much of Picayune is conserved land?
6% of its land, against a typical 2% for a Mississippi town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Picayune’s trails?
Friendship Park and Snyder Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Picayune?
1.6 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.6 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Picayune?
257 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Picayune or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 172 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Picayune have?
Ahead of 51% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #21 of 101 in Mississippi. 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 Picayune 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 →