Roundhouse Memorial Park
Park
49 acres1.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Raton
Raton has 369 acres of parks, 61 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Roundhouse Memorial Park (1.5 mi). 7% of Raton’s land is conserved, about 377 acres. 5.2 miles of mapped trail cross Raton, 0.7 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 83% of U.S. towns · #19 of 73 in New Mexico. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
377 acres · of 8.0 sq mi of land
Trails
5.2 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
369 ac
61 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
79%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.9 mi
1.9 mi lanes
Highest peak
7,047 ft
Goat Hill
What kind of outdoors town is Raton?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Raton have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Raton is ahead of 83% of U.S. towns, #19 of 73 in New Mexico. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; park acres per resident rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Raton’s overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical NM town 4% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (5 mi) · NM 0.9 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land61 acres of park per 1,000 residents (369 acres) · NM 7 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home79% of residents within a half mile of a park · NM 67% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 83%
LessMore
New Mexico towns of 2,500+ (73)Ahead of 75%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be 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 Roundhouse Memorial Park, with 1.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Optimist Park South
Park
1 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
377 conserved acres
7% of Raton’s land. Who manages Raton’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city375 ac
Private owners1 ac
Local Park · 369 acLocal Recreation Area · 6 acPrivate Recreation or Education · 1 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Climax Canyon Park Local Park | Town or city | 294 | Open |
| Roundhouse Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 57 | Open |
| Legion Park Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Sally Romero Ball Fields Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Romero Park Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Bonahoom Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Ripley Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Vermejo Park Ranch Private Recreation or Education | Private owners | 1 | Closed |
| Optimist Park South Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
11 places to go in Raton
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Raton
7 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Raton
1 dog park without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Raton
Goat Hill7,047 ft elevation
DirectionsPicnic areas in Raton
2 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 named trail
Named trails
Climax Loop1.7 mi
Biking & sports
1.9 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.9 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
Courts & fields
5Baseball
4Tennis
2Football
2Basketball
1Equestrian
1Tracks
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →10 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Raton Downtown Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1977
About itColfax County CourthouseBuilding · listed 1987
About itColumbian SchoolBuilding · listed 1996
About itKearny SchoolBuilding · listed 1996
About itLongfellow SchoolBuilding · listed 1996
About itRaton ArmoryBuilding · listed 1996
About itRaton Junior-Senior High SchoolBuilding · listed 1996
About itEl Raton TheaterBuilding · listed 2007
About itOriginal Townsite Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2008
About itRaton Pass Scenic HighwayDistrict · listed 2015
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Raton: 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) | 9.9 | 10.8 | 11.9 | 13.1 | 14.1 | 14.7 | 14.4 | 13.6 | 12.4 | 11.2 | 10.1 | 9.6 |
| High (°F) | 47 | 49 | 57 | 63 | 72 | 82 | 85 | 83 | 77 | 67 | 55 | 46 |
| Rain (in) | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.9 | 1.1 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 2.9 | 2.8 | 1.6 | 1.1 | 0.5 | 0.5 |
February is the driest month (0.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 2.9 inches fall in July, the wettest month. The climate in Raton →
Questions about parks and trails in Raton
Where can I hike in Raton?
The longest trail networks: Roundhouse Memorial Park, 1.5 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Raton is conserved land?
7% of its land, against a typical 4% for a New Mexico town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Raton’s trails?
Roundhouse Memorial Park and Romero Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Raton?
1.9 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.9 of painted or protected lanes.
Is there public land near Raton?
31,443 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Raton or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 369 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Raton have?
Ahead of 83% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #19 of 73 in New Mexico. 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 Raton 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 →