Iwetemlaykin State Heritage Site
Managed by Oregon Parks and Recreation Department
9 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trail signWebsite ↗
Photo: Sam Beebe · CC BY 2.0BOutdoors
Outdoors in Joseph
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park in Joseph
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 20 acres are parks and preserves, 19 per 1,000 residents. 2% of Joseph’s land is conserved, about 10 acres.
Ahead of 61% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
2%
10 acres · of 0.9 sq mi of land
Trails
0.1 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
20 ac
19 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.2 mi
0.2 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Joseph?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Joseph have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Joseph is ahead of 61% of U.S. towns. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
B
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Joseph’s overall grade.
Conserved land2% of the land · typical OR town 4% · U.S. 4%C+Trails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (0 mi) · OR 0.8 · U.S. 0.4CPark land19 acres of park per 1,000 residents (20 acres) · OR 7 · U.S. 13BParks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · OR 96% · U.S. 72%A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 61%
LessMore
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Joseph. 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
10 conserved acres
2% of Joseph’s land. Who manages Joseph’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city10 ac
State Historic or Cultural Area · 7 acLocal Park · 4 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iwetemlaykin State Heritage Site State Historic or Cultural Area | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Joseph City Park Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
Biking & sports
0.2 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.2 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
2Tennis
1Baseball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 places on the National Register, one a National Historic Landmark
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 9 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Joseph: May to September
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) | 9.1 | 10.3 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 14.9 | 15.6 | 15.3 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.4 | 8.7 |
| High (°F) | 35 | 39 | 47 | 54 | 63 | 70 | 82 | 82 | 72 | 58 | 43 | 35 |
| Rain (in) | 1.1 | 1.1 | 1.6 | 1.9 | 2.4 | 2.0 | 0.8 | 0.6 | 0.9 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 1.4 |
August is the driest month (0.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 2.4 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Joseph →
Questions about parks and trails in Joseph
How much of Joseph is conserved land?
2% of its land, against a typical 4% for an Oregon town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Joseph’s trails?
Iwetemlaykin State Heritage Site doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Joseph?
0.2 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.2 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Joseph?
8,904 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Joseph or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 20 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Joseph have?
Ahead of 61% 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 Joseph 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 →