Crestwood Park
Park
55 acres2.6 mi of trail
Crestwood Park Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trail sign
Photo: User:JerAnderson · Public domainA−Outdoors
Outdoors in Cottonwood Heights
7% of Cottonwood Heights’ land is conserved, and 96% of residents live within a half mile of a park
8.3 miles of mapped trail cross Cottonwood Heights, 0.9 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Crestwood Park (2.6 mi), Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest (1 mi), Twin Peaks Wilderness (0.9 mi). 7% of Cottonwood Heights’ land is conserved, about 431 acres.
Ahead of 78% of U.S. towns · #37 of 119 in Utah. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
431 acres · of 9.2 sq mi of land
Trails
8.3 mi
0.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
287 ac
8.7 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
96%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
30 mi
15 mi lanes · 4.7 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Cottonwood Heights?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Cottonwood Heights have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Cottonwood Heights is ahead of 78% of U.S. towns, #37 of 119 in Utah. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Cottonwood Heights’ overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical UT town 3% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (8 mi) · UT 1.1 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land8.7 acres of park per 1,000 residents (287 acres) · UT 7 · U.S. 13C+Parks close to home96% of residents within a half mile of a park · UT 91% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 78%
LessMore
Utah towns of 2,500+ (119)Ahead of 69%
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 Crestwood Park, with 2.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest
Managed by United States Forest Service
182 acres1 mi of trail
Bonneville Shoreline Trail - Ferguson Canyon SectionFerguson Canyon TrailHounds Tooth Trail
Dogs allowed
Directionsto the parking lot
Twin Peaks Wilderness
Managed by United States Forest Service
99 acres0.9 mi of trail
Hounds Tooth TrailFerguson Canyon Trail
Dogs allowed
Directionsto the parking lot
All 14 parks & preserves
Crestwood Park55 acres · 2.6 mi of trail
DirectionsUinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest182 acres · 1 mi of trail · United States Forest Service
DirectionsTwin Peaks Wilderness99 acres · 0.9 mi of trail · United States Forest Service
DirectionsMountview Park11 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsButler Park26 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsFerguson Park8 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Cottonwood Heights Parks and Recreation
DirectionsGolden Hills Park6 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsOld Mill Park16 acres
DirectionsBywater Park11 acres
DirectionsMill Hollow Park7 acres
DirectionsAntczak Park6 acres
DirectionsMount Olympus Wilderness2 acres
Union Pioneer Memorial Park2 acres
DirectionsBerry Hill Park2 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
431 conserved acres
7% of Cottonwood Heights’ land. Who manages Cottonwood Heights’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
U.S. Forest Service171 ac
Town or city150 ac
County100 ac
Bureau of Land Management11 ac
Local Park · 250 acNational Forest · 171 acNational Public Lands · 11 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wasatch National Forest National Forest | U.S. Forest Service | 171 | Open |
| Crestwood Park Local Park | County | 45 | Open |
| Cottonwood Heights Park Local Park | Town or city | 35 | Open |
| Pinnacle Highland Apartments Local Park | Town or city | 31 | Open |
| Santa Fe Apartments Local Park | Town or city | 20 | Open |
| Royal Farms Apartments Local Park | Town or city | 16 | Open |
| Butler Park Local Park | County | 12 | Open |
| Mill Hollow Local Park | County | 11 | Open |
| Mountview Park Local Park | Town or city | 11 | Open |
| Salt Lake Field Office National Public Lands | Bureau of Land Management | 11 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
32 places to go in Cottonwood Heights
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Cottonwood Heights
19 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Cottonwood Heights
1 dog park without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Picnic areas in Cottonwood Heights
12 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Trails & water
5 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 2.3 miHorses · 1.2 miUnpaved · 4.7 mi
Crestwood Park Trail1.1 mi
Hounds Tooth Trail0.8 mi
Ferguson Canyon Trail0.8 mi
Bonneville Shoreline Trail - Ferguson Canyon Section0.5 mi
Deaf Smith Trail0.4 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
30 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
4.7 mi
off-road bike paths
11 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
31Tennis
10Pickleball
10Baseball
9Basketball
8Soccer
2Beach volleyball
1Multi-sport
1Softball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →4 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Cottonwood Heights: May and June
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) | 9.6 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.1 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 38 | 44 | 53 | 60 | 71 | 82 | 91 | 88 | 79 | 64 | 50 | 38 |
| Rain (in) | 1.8 | 1.7 | 2.2 | 2.7 | 2.6 | 1.2 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 1.5 | 1.9 | 1.6 | 1.8 |
July is the driest month (0.6 in) and the warmest (highs of 91 °F). 2.7 inches fall in April, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 91 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Cottonwood Heights →
Next door
Cottonwood Heights and its neighbors
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cottonwood Heights | 7% | 0.9 | 9 | 96% | A− |
| Sandy | 8% | 2.2 | 13 | 98% | A |
| Granite | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Holladay | 4% | 0.2 | 7 | 61% | C+ |
| Midvale | 2% | 0.2 | 3 | 93% | C+ |
| Murray | 4% | 1.5 | 9 | 77% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Cottonwood Heights
Where can I hike in Cottonwood Heights?
The longest trail networks: Crestwood Park, 2.6 miles; Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest, 1 miles; Twin Peaks Wilderness, 0.9 miles; Mountview Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Cottonwood Heights is conserved land?
7% of its land, against a typical 3% for an Utah town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Cottonwood Heights’ trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest and Twin Peaks Wilderness. For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Cottonwood Heights?
30 miles of bike routes are on the map: 15 of painted or protected lanes, 4.7 of off-road paths and 11 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Cottonwood Heights?
31,928 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Cottonwood Heights or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 311 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Cottonwood Heights have?
Ahead of 78% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #37 of 119 in Utah. 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 Cottonwood Heights 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 →