Hugh Ramsey Nature Park
Park
49 acres1.6 mi of trail
Arroyo TrailEbony LoopRetama TrailLower Indigo+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Theunderratedtaco · CC BY 4.0B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Harlingen
Harlingen has 27 miles of mapped trails, 0.7 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Hugh Ramsey Nature Park (1.6 mi), Harlingen Soccer Complex (1.4 mi), Harlingen Thicket World Birding Center (1.3 mi). 2% of Harlingen’s land is conserved, about 613 acres. 722 acres are parks and preserves, 10 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 54% of U.S. towns · #231 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
Conserved land
2%
613 acres · of 40.3 sq mi of land
Trails
27 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
722 ac
10 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
64%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
6.0 mi
6.0 mi lanes
Lakes & rivers
4
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Harlingen have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Harlingen is ahead of 54% of U.S. towns, #231 of 642 in Texas. Trail miles hold the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Harlingen’s overall grade.
Conserved land2% of the land · typical TX town 2% · U.S. 4%C+Trails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (27 mi) · TX 0.2 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land10 acres of park per 1,000 residents (722 acres) · TX 9 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home64% 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 54%
LessMore
Texas towns of 2,500+ (642)Ahead of 64%
Few Texas towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Harlingen’s 2% is ahead of 60% of Texas towns, while its trails per square mile lead 80% of 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
The longest trail network is Hugh Ramsey Nature Park, with 1.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Harlingen Soccer Complex
Park
85 acres1.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Harlingen Thicket World Birding Center
Park
53 acres1.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Harlingen City Lake Park
Park
7 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 23 parks & preserves
Hugh Ramsey Nature Park49 acres · 1.6 mi of trail
DirectionsHarlingen Soccer Complex85 acres · 1.4 mi of trail
DirectionsHarlingen Thicket World Birding Center53 acres · 1.3 mi of trail
DirectionsArroyo Park68 acres · 0.9 mi of trail
DirectionsPendleton Park54 acres · 0.8 mi of trail
DirectionsHarlingen City Lake Park7 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsLon C. Hill Park34 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
DirectionsLiberty Gardens Park3 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsVictor Park44 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsCB Wood Park16 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Lt. George Gutierrez Jr. Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Rangerville Park24 acres
DirectionsDixieland Park20 acres
DirectionsMcKelvey Park15 acres
DirectionsVestal Park14 acres · Harlingen Parks and Recreation
DirectionsMcCullough Park12 acres
Fair Park11 acres
DirectionsHarlingen Field7 acres
Windsor Park3 acres
Bonham Park3 acres
Harlingen Rotary Bark Park3 acres
DirectionsHunter Park1 acres · City of Harlingen Parks and Recreation Department
DirectionsCentennial Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
613 conserved acres
2% of Harlingen’s land. Who manages Harlingen’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city1,150 ac
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service39 ac
Conservation Easement · 467 acLocal Park · 374 acRecreation or Education Easement · 143 acLocal Recreation Area · 143 acLocal Conservation Area · 61 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 34 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 47 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harlingen Soccer Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 72 | Open |
| Tom Wilson Sports Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 71 | Open |
| Lon C. Hill Park Local Park | Town or city | 62 | Open |
| Ramsey Park Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 61 | Open |
| Pendleton Park Local Park | Town or city | 54 | Open |
| Victor Park Local Park | Town or city | 50 | Open |
| C. B. Wood Park Local Park | Town or city | 38 | Open |
| Dixieland Park Local Park | Town or city | 36 | Open |
| Arroyo Park Local Park | Town or city | 31 | Open |
| Rangerville Road Park Local Park | Town or city | 23 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
31 places to go in Harlingen
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Harlingen
Gracey Swimming Pool
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Harlingen
30 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Trails & water
5 named trails and 4 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 0.9 miUnpaved · 3.4 mi
Arroyo Trail0.5 mi
Ebony Loop0.4 mi
Retama Trail0.3 mi
Lower Indigo0.2 mi
Indigo Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
6.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
6.0 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
Courts & fields
72Tennis
37Baseball
24Basketball
17Soccer
10Football
4Golf
1Skate park
1Volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 8 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Baxter BuildingBuilding · listed 2019
About itWhen to get out
April is the best month for walking in Harlingen
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) | 10.7 | 11.2 | 11.9 | 12.7 | 13.4 | 13.8 | 13.6 | 13.1 | 12.3 | 11.5 | 10.8 | 10.5 |
| High (°F) | 71 | 76 | 81 | 86 | 91 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 92 | 87 | 79 | 73 |
| Rain (in) | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.4 | 1.4 | 2.2 | 2.9 | 2.0 | 1.9 | 5.2 | 3.1 | 1.6 | 1.2 |
February is the driest month (1.0 in) and August the warmest (highs of 97 °F). 5.2 inches fall in September, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 97 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Harlingen →
Next door
Harlingen and its neighbors
Harlingen has the most mapped trails of the 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harlingen | 2% | 0.7 | 10 | 64% | B− |
| San Benito | 2% | 0.4 | 2 | 63% | C |
| Combes | 1% | 0.4 | 5 | 46% | C |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Harlingen
Where can I hike in Harlingen?
The longest trail networks: Hugh Ramsey Nature Park, 1.6 miles; Harlingen Soccer Complex, 1.4 miles; Harlingen Thicket World Birding Center, 1.3 miles; Arroyo Park, 0.9 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Harlingen is conserved land?
2% 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 Harlingen’s trails?
Hugh Ramsey Nature Park and Harlingen Soccer Complex don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Harlingen?
6.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 6.0 of painted or protected lanes.
Is there public land near Harlingen?
1,064 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Harlingen or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 722 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Harlingen have?
Ahead of 54% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #231 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 Harlingen 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 →