Rock Springs Nature Preserve
Park
116 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Denver
Denver has 116 acres of parks, 46 for every 1,000 residents
9% of Denver’s land is conserved, about 341 acres. 18% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 0.3 miles of mapped trail cross Denver, 0.1 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 46% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
9%
341 acres · of 5.9 sq mi of land
Trails
0.3 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
116 ac
46 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
18%
of residents within ½ mile
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Denver have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Denver is ahead of 46% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Denver’s overall grade.
Conserved land9% of the land · typical NC town 3% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (0 mi) · NC 0.2 · U.S. 0.4C−Park land46 acres of park per 1,000 residents (116 acres) · NC 8 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home18% of residents within a half mile of a park · NC 51% · U.S. 72%C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 46%
LessMore
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Denver. OpenStreetMap is mapped by volunteers and coverage varies from town to town, so a town with unmapped parks scores low on them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B. 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
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
341 conserved acres
9% of Denver’s land. Who manages Denver’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Other state land225 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits108 ac
County2 ac
Not recorded554 ac
Unknown Easement · 333 acPrivate Conservation · 227 acState Other or Unknown · 224 acLocal Other or Unknown · 103 acLocal Park · 2 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 8 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 6 of 12 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| NC Land and Water Fund Conservation Agreement State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 224 | Restricted |
| Lincoln County Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 103 | Unknown |
| Catawba Lands Conservancy - Old Stumpy Preserve Private Conservation | Not recorded | 87 | Restricted |
| Catawba Lands Conservancy - St. James Preserve Private Conservation | Not recorded | 73 | Restricted |
| Catawba Lands Conservancy - Catawba Springs Preserve Private Conservation | Not recorded | 39 | Restricted |
| Catawba Lands Conservancy - Little Falls Preserve Private Conservation | Not recorded | 28 | Restricted |
| Rock Springs Nature Preserve Park Local Park | County | 2 | Open |
Things to do
2 places to go in Denver
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Denver
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Campgrounds in Denver
Rock Springs Campground
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail
Named trails
Piedmont Trail0.1 mi
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
1Baseball
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Denver: April to June
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) | 10.0 | 10.8 | 11.9 | 13.0 | 14.0 | 14.5 | 14.3 | 13.5 | 12.3 | 11.2 | 10.2 | 9.8 |
| High (°F) | 50 | 55 | 62 | 71 | 79 | 85 | 88 | 87 | 81 | 72 | 61 | 53 |
| Rain (in) | 3.7 | 3.2 | 4.0 | 3.9 | 3.8 | 4.2 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 4.0 | 3.3 | 3.3 | 3.8 |
February is the driest month (3.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 88 °F). 4.2 inches fall in June, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 88 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Denver →
Questions about parks and trails in Denver
How much of Denver is conserved land?
9% of its land, against a typical 3% for a North Carolina town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Denver’s trails?
Rock Springs Nature Preserve doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Denver?
4,172 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Denver or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 116 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Denver have?
Ahead of 46% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Denver 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 →