Armand Bayou Nature Center
Nature preserve
843 acres7.7 mi of trail
Long LoopKarankawa TrailLady Bird TrailPrairie Interpretive Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Pasadena
12% of Pasadena’s land is conserved: 3,261 acres
The biggest trail networks: Armand Bayou Nature Center (7.7 mi), Partnership Park (1.4 mi), Crenshaw Park (1.2 mi). 85% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 24 miles of mapped trail cross Pasadena, 0.5 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns · #63 of 642 in Texas. What drives it
Conserved land
12%
3,261 acres · of 43.7 sq mi of land
Trails
24 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
2,699 ac
18 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
85%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
34 mi
15 mi lanes · 20 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
5
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Pasadena?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Pasadena have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Pasadena is ahead of 80% of U.S. towns, #63 of 642 in Texas. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; conserved land ranks highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Pasadena’s overall grade.
Conserved land12% of the land · typical TX town 2% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (24 mi) · TX 0.2 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land18 acres of park per 1,000 residents (2,699 acres) · TX 9 · U.S. 13BParks close to home85% 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 80%
LessMore
Texas towns of 2,500+ (642)Ahead of 90%
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Pasadena ranks #197 on Outdoors.
Few Texas towns conserve much land (a typical one, 2%; the U.S., 4%), so Pasadena’s 12% is ahead of 91% of Texas towns, while its trails per square mile lead 74% of them.
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 Armand Bayou Nature Center, with 7.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Partnership Park
Managed by Harris County Precinct 2
32 acres1.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Strawberry Park
Managed by Pasadena Parks & Recreation
50 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Sunset Park
Park
6 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Red Bluff Park
Park
6 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 31 parks & preserves
Armand Bayou Nature Center843 acres · 7.7 mi of trail
DirectionsPartnership Park32 acres · 1.4 mi of trail · Harris County Precinct 2
Crenshaw Park76 acres · 1.2 mi of trail
DirectionsClear Lake Park54 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsStrawberry Park50 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · Pasadena Parks & Recreation
DirectionsBay Area Park52 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsSunset Park6 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
Red Bluff Park6 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
Satsuma Gardens Park5 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Memorial Park27 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsHolly Bay Park26 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsEl Jardin Beach Park11 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Pasadena Parks and Recreation
DirectionsBliss Meadows Park5 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Brookwood Park3 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsYellowstone Park3 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Rusk Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · City of Pasadena
Liberty Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsAlumni Plaza1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsCascade Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Pasadena Fairgrounds and Convention Center131 acres · City of Pasadena
DirectionsSouthmore Park13 acres
Fairmont Park12 acres
Ben Briar Park9 acres
Community Park6 acres
DirectionsPath and Wendell Wilson Park6 acres
DirectionsQueens Park2 acres
Parklane Park2 acres · City of Pasadena
Pine Brook Pocket Park1 acres
Gardens Park1 acres
Vermillion Park1 acres · Pasadena Parks and Recreation
DirectionsLight Company Park1 acres · Pasadena Parks and Recreation
DirectionsWho protects it
3,261 conserved acres
12% of Pasadena’s land. Who manages Pasadena’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County2,573 ac
Private owners1,937 ac
Town or city709 ac
Joint441 ac
State parks316 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits91 ac
Regional agency2 ac
Conservation Easement · 3,159 acLocal Recreation Area · 1,752 acLocal Park · 809 acState Conservation Area · 316 acRecreation or Education Easement · 47 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 702 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 2 of 97 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Armand Bayou Nature Center Local Recreation Area | Private owners | 1,739 | Open |
| Armand Bayou Coastal Preserve State Conservation Area | State parks | 316 | Restricted |
| Roy D. "Kipper" Mease Park Local Park | County | 282 | Open |
| Burke/Crenshaw Park Local Park | Town or city | 79 | Open |
| Armand Bayou Park Local Park | County | 69 | Open |
| Bay Area Park Local Park | County | 54 | Open |
| Clear Lake Park Local Park | County | 52 | Open |
| Strawberry Park Local Park | Town or city | 50 | Open |
| Holly Bay Court Park Local Park | Town or city | 34 | Open |
| Partnership Park Local Park | Town or city | 30 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
41 places to go in Pasadena
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Pasadena
Strawberry SplashIn Strawberry Park
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Pasadena
McGovern Children's Discovery AreaIn Armand Bayou Nature Center
Directions34 playgrounds are on OpenStreetMap in all; the list shows named ones from the first 30.
Dog parks in Pasadena
4 dog parks without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Pasadena
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Picnic areas in Pasadena
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Trails & water
7 named trails and 5 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 1.9 mi
Long Loop1.0 mi
Karankawa Trail0.9 mi
Lady Bird Trail0.2 mi
Prairie Interpretive Trail0.2 mi
UHCL Nature Trail0.1 mi
foot path0.1 mi
Short Loop0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
34 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
15 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
20 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
55Tennis
42Baseball
14Basketball
5Soccer
4Football
3Beach volleyball
1Equestrian
1Multi-sport
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 places on the National Register
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
April is the best month for walking in Pasadena
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) | 10.4 | 11.1 | 11.9 | 12.9 | 13.6 | 14.0 | 13.9 | 13.2 | 12.3 | 11.4 | 10.6 | 10.2 |
| High (°F) | 63 | 67 | 72 | 78 | 85 | 90 | 92 | 93 | 89 | 82 | 72 | 65 |
| Rain (in) | 4.3 | 3.0 | 3.4 | 3.9 | 5.1 | 5.6 | 4.4 | 5.4 | 5.8 | 5.2 | 4.2 | 4.4 |
February is the driest month (3.0 in) and August the warmest (highs of 93 °F). 5.8 inches fall in September, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 93 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Pasadena →
Next door
Pasadena and its neighbors
Pasadena has the second most mapped trails of the 8 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Houston444 miPasadena24 miLa Porte13 miDeer Park5.9 miNassau Bay1.4 miTaylor Lake Village1.2 miSouth Houston0.8 miSeabrook0.7 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pasadena | 12% | 0.5 | 18 | 85% | A− |
| Houston | 11% | 0.7 | 12 | 80% | A− |
| Taylor Lake Village | 6% | 1.1 | 12 | 99%+ | A |
| Deer Park | 5% | 0.6 | 10 | 99%+ | B+ |
| La Porte | 2% | 0.7 | 7 | 86% | B |
| Seabrook | 7% | 0.1 | 21 | 90% | B+ |
| South Houston | 2% | 0.3 | 2 | 74% | C+ |
| Nassau Bay | 14% | 1.2 | 8 | 99%+ | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Pasadena
Where can I hike in Pasadena?
The longest trail networks: Armand Bayou Nature Center, 7.7 miles; Partnership Park, 1.4 miles; Crenshaw Park, 1.2 miles; Clear Lake Park, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Pasadena is conserved land?
12% 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 Pasadena’s trails?
Armand Bayou Nature Center and Partnership Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Pasadena?
34 miles of bike routes are on the map: 15 of painted or protected lanes and 20 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Pasadena?
18,719 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Pasadena or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,715 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Pasadena have?
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #63 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 Pasadena 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 →