Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Photo: Aaron Jacobs on en.wikipedia · CC BY-SA 2.5The biggest trail networks: Ray Roberts Lake State Park - Greenbelt Corridor (9.3 mi), North Lakes Park (4.9 mi), Lake Forest Park (0.9 mi). 6% of Denton’s land is conserved, about 3,982 acres. 83% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 73% of U.S. towns · #100 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Denton is ahead of 73% of U.S. towns, #100 of 642 in Texas. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; park acres per resident rank highest, trail miles lowest.
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Denton ranks #248 on Outdoors.
Few Texas towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Denton’s 6% is ahead of 82% of Texas towns, while its trails per square mile lead 63% of them.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
The longest trail network is Ray Roberts Lake State Park - Greenbelt Corridor, with 9.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
6% of Denton’s land. Who manages Denton’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 108 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 2 of 123 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lewisville Recreation Area Recreation Management Area | Army Corps of Engineers | 1,559 | Open |
| Ray Roberts Lake State Park State Park | State fish & wildlife | 1,514 | Open |
| Clear Creek Natural Heritage Center Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 1,358 | Open |
| North Lakes Park Local Park | Town or city | 343 | Open |
| Hartlee Field Road Bike Trail Property Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 238 | Open |
| Southwest Park Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 190 | Open |
| South Lakes Park Local Park | Town or city | 184 | Open |
| Pecan Creek Linear Park - Mayhill Road Local Park | Town or city | 159 | Open |
| Ray Roberts Recreation Area Recreation Management Area | Army Corps of Engineers | 130 | Open |
| Cross Timbers Park Local Park | Town or city | 78 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Plus 1 public pool without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
130 playgrounds are on OpenStreetMap in all; the list shows named ones from the first 30.
Plus 14 dog parks without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
5 picnic areas without a name on the map.
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.
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 53 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
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) | 10.2 | 11.0 | 11.9 | 13.0 | 13.9 | 14.3 | 14.1 | 13.4 | 12.3 | 11.3 | 10.4 | 10.0 |
| High (°F) | 55 | 60 | 68 | 75 | 83 | 91 | 96 | 96 | 88 | 78 | 66 | 57 |
| Rain (in) | 2.2 | 2.6 | 3.6 | 3.5 | 4.8 | 4.0 | 2.3 | 2.4 | 3.1 | 4.3 | 2.9 | 2.8 |
January is the driest month (2.2 in) and August the warmest (highs of 96 °F). 4.8 inches fall in May, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 96 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Denton →
Denton has the most mapped trails of the 6 towns around it. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denton | 6% | 0.4 | 25 | 83% | B+ |
| Corinth | 6% | 0.1 | 14 | 98% | B+ |
| Argyle | under 1% | under 0.1 | 8 | 32% | D |
| Shady Shores | 19% | 0.1 | 115 | 95% | A− |
| Northlake | 7% | 0.2 | 99 | 5% | B− |
| Krum | 3% | 0.1 | 13 | 92% | B− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
The longest trail networks: Ray Roberts Lake State Park - Greenbelt Corridor, 9.3 miles; North Lakes Park, 4.9 miles; Lake Forest Park, 0.9 miles; South Lakes Park, 0.8 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
6% of its land, against a typical 2% for a Texas town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Ray Roberts Lake State Park - Greenbelt Corridor (on leash) and Clear Creek Natural Heritage Center (on leash). For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
56 miles of bike routes are on the map: 13 of painted or protected lanes, 31 of off-road paths and 13 of shoulders and shared lanes.
71,452 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Denton or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 4,049 of them inside the city line.
Ahead of 73% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #100 of 642 in Texas. 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.
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Denton neighbors.
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 →