Mountain Creek Lake Park
Park
83 acres3 mi of trail
Back Woods Path
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Grand Prairie
24% of Grand Prairie’s land is conserved: 11,812 acres
The biggest trail networks: Mountain Creek Lake Park (3 mi), Grand Central Park (0.6 mi). 6,633 acres are parks and preserves, 33 per 1,000 residents. 80% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 82% of U.S. towns · #53 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
Conserved land
24%
11,812 acres · of 76.5 sq mi of land
Trails
25 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
6,633 ac
33 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
80%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
29 mi
0.5 mi lanes · 29 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
20
2 beaches · 4 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Grand Prairie?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Grand Prairie have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Grand Prairie is ahead of 82% of U.S. towns, #53 of 642 in Texas. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; conserved land ranks highest, trail miles lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Grand Prairie’s overall grade.
Conserved land24% of the land · typical TX town 2% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (25 mi) · TX 0.2 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land33 acres of park per 1,000 residents (6,633 acres) · TX 9 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home80% of residents within a half mile of a park · TX 69% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 82%
LessMore
Texas towns of 2,500+ (642)Ahead of 92%
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Grand Prairie ranks #172 on Outdoors.
Few Texas towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Grand Prairie’s 24% is ahead of 96% of Texas towns, while its trails per square mile lead 58% of them.
Water is 11% of Grand Prairie’s area (9 of 85 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 22%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to 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 Mountain Creek Lake Park, with 3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Grand Central Park
Managed by City of Grand Prairie
100 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Freedom Park
Park
10 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 34 parks & preserves
Mountain Creek Lake Park83 acres · 3 mi of trail
DirectionsGrand Central Park100 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · City of Grand Prairie
DirectionsJennifer McFalls Park62 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsTurner Park40 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsFreedom Park10 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
High Hawk Martin Meadows Entrance Park4 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Lynn Creek Park790 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsLoyd Park757 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsPleasant Valley Park249 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
City Hall Plaza2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsEstes Park1,014 acres
Fish Creek Linear Park157 acres · CIty of Arlington, TX
DirectionsMike Lewis Park109 acres
DirectionsC.P. Waggoner Park39 acres
DirectionsFish Creek Forest Preserve39 acres
DirectionsKirby Creek Nature Education Center37 acres
DirectionsBowles Park24 acres
DirectionsTyre Park24 acres
Parkhill Park23 acres
Hill Street Park19 acres
Jennifer McFalls Park East18 acres
DirectionsCharley Taylor Park11 acres
DirectionsLyndon Baines Johnson Park7 acres
DirectionsFriendship Park7 acres
DirectionsValley Park6 acres
Winsom Park6 acres
Bradshaw Park6 acres
DirectionsCedar Hill State Park3 acres · Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
Nance-James Park2 acres
DirectionsLive Oak Park2 acres
Holland Street Park2 acres
DirectionsHendrix Park2 acres
Britton Park1 acres
Veterans Memorial Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
11,812 conserved acres
24% of Grand Prairie’s land. Water is left out: Grand Prairie has 76.5 square miles of land and 9.0 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Grand Prairie’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Army Corps of Engineers21,493 ac
Town or city5,342 ac
Joint12 ac
Not recorded257 ac
Recreation or Education Easement · 10,665 acRecreation Management Area · 10,436 acLocal Park · 3,883 acConservation Easement · 1,197 acOther Easement · 339 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 29 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joe Pool Recreation Area Recreation Management Area | Army Corps of Engineers | 10,436 | Open |
| Estes Park Local Park | Town or city | 1,006 | Open |
| Lynn Creek Park Local Park | Town or city | 774 | Open |
| Loyd Park Local Park | Town or city | 754 | Open |
| Central Park Local Park | Town or city | 308 | Open |
| Pleasant Valley Park Local Other or Unknown | Army Corps of Engineers | 279 | Open |
| Tangle Ridge Golf Course Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 245 | Open |
| Fish Creek Linear Park Local Park | Town or city | 130 | Open |
| Low Branch Park Local Park | Town or city | 119 | Open |
| Mike Lewis Park Local Park | Town or city | 106 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
48 places to go in Grand Prairie
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Grand Prairie
Lynn Creek Park BeachIn Lynn Creek Park
DirectionsPlus 1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Public pools in Grand Prairie
Heritage Towne Community Pool
DirectionsKirby Creek Natatorium
DirectionsShotwell Outdoor PoolIn Bowles Park
DirectionsTyre Outdoor PoolIn Tyre Park
DirectionsPlus 1 public pool without a name on the map.
Playgrounds in Grand Prairie
Bowie Elementary Playground
DirectionsBowles PlaygroundIn Bowles Park
DirectionsBradshaw PlaygroundIn Bradshaw Park
DirectionsC.P. Waggoner PlaygroundIn C.P. Waggoner Park
DirectionsCharley Taylor Park PlaygroundIn Charley Taylor Park
DirectionsMcFalls PlaygroundIn Jennifer McFalls Park
DirectionsMike Lewis PlaygroundIn Mike Lewis Park
DirectionsNance-James PlaygroundIn Nance-James Park
Directions1 more playground
Turner Park PlaygroundIn Turner Park
Directions32 playgrounds are on OpenStreetMap in all; the list shows named ones from the first 30.
Dog parks in Grand Prairie
Central Bark Dog Park
DirectionsHeritage Towne Dog Park
DirectionsPlus 1 dog park without a name on the map.
Boat launches in Grand Prairie
Lynn Creek Marina SlipwayIn Lynn Creek Park
DirectionsPlus 3 boat launches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Disc golf in Grand Prairie
Mountain Creek Disc Golf CourseHours: sunrise-sunset · In Mountain Creek Lake Park
DirectionsPlus 1 disc golf course without a name on the map.
Trails & water
2 named trails and 20 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.9 miUnpaved · 6.3 mi
Old Bankhead Highway0.4 mi
Back Woods Path0.3 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Bluebonnet LakesConover LakeCottonwood Creek PondreservoirGopher PondpondJoe Pool LakereservoirSoil Conservation Service Site 11 ReservoirreservoirBear CreekBowman BranchCottonwood CreekFish CreekHollings BranchJohnson CreekKirby CreekLynn CreekMountain CreekNewton BranchSoap CreekWalnut CreekWest Fork Trinity RiverWest Soap Creek
Biking & sports
29 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.5 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
29 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
28Baseball
22Tennis
14Soccer
8Basketball
6Football
4Softball
3Multi-sport
2Beach volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The walking year in Grand Prairie
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 | 12.9 | 13.8 | 14.3 | 14.1 | 13.3 | 12.3 | 11.3 | 10.4 | 10.0 |
| High (°F) | 57 | 62 | 69 | 77 | 84 | 92 | 96 | 96 | 89 | 79 | 67 | 59 |
| Rain (in) | 2.4 | 2.7 | 3.6 | 3.5 | 4.7 | 3.9 | 2.0 | 2.2 | 2.9 | 4.4 | 2.8 | 2.8 |
July is the driest month (2.0 in) and August the warmest (highs of 96 °F). 4.7 inches fall in May, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 96 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Grand Prairie →
Next door
Grand Prairie and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Dallas243 miFort Worth217 miArlington46 miIrving31 miCedar Hill31 miGrand Prairie25 miMansfield24 miMidlothian5.5 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Prairie | 24% | 0.3 | 33 | 80% | A− |
| Cedar Hill | 16% | 0.9 | 73 | 93% | A |
| Dallas | 9% | 0.7 | 15 | 88% | A− |
| Arlington | 8% | 0.5 | 10 | 85% | B+ |
| Mansfield | 3% | 0.6 | 11 | 61% | B |
| Irving | 5% | 0.5 | 9 | 86% | B |
| Fort Worth | 6% | 0.6 | 10 | 85% | B+ |
| Midlothian | 1% | 0.1 | 7 | 49% | C− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Grand Prairie
Where can I hike in Grand Prairie?
The longest trail networks: Mountain Creek Lake Park, 3 miles; Grand Central Park, 0.6 miles; Jennifer McFalls Park, 0.4 miles; Turner Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Grand Prairie is conserved land?
24% 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.
Are dogs allowed on Grand Prairie’s trails?
Mountain Creek Lake Park and Grand Central Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Grand Prairie?
29 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.5 of painted or protected lanes and 29 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Grand Prairie?
32,585 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Grand Prairie or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 6,677 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Grand Prairie have?
Ahead of 82% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #53 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.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Grand Prairie 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 →