Photo: Famartin · CC BY-SA 4.025% of Appalachia’s land is conserved: 535 acres
1.8 miles of mapped trail cross Appalachia, 0.5 per square mile of land. 5 acres are parks and preserves, 3.7 per 1,000 residents. 69% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 64% of U.S. towns. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Appalachia?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Appalachia have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Appalachia is ahead of 64% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Island Park, with 0.1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Washington Rock Recreation Area
535 conserved acres
25% of Appalachia’s land. Who manages Appalachia’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson National Forest National Forest | U.S. Forest Service | 532 | Open |
| Island Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
1 named trail
1.6 miles of bike routes
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.
1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
The best walking months in Appalachia: April to June and August
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) | 9.9 | 10.8 | 11.9 | 13.1 | 14.1 | 14.7 | 14.5 | 13.6 | 12.4 | 11.2 | 10.1 | 9.6 |
| High (°F) | 43 | 48 | 56 | 67 | 74 | 80 | 83 | 82 | 78 | 67 | 56 | 47 |
| Rain (in) | 4.3 | 4.4 | 4.9 | 4.6 | 4.9 | 4.9 | 5.4 | 4.1 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 3.6 | 5.2 |
October is the driest month (3.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 5.4 inches fall in July, the wettest month. The climate in Appalachia →
Questions about parks and trails in Appalachia
Where can I hike in Appalachia?
The longest trail networks: Island Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Appalachia is conserved land?
25% of its land, against a typical 4% for a Virginia town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Appalachia’s trails?
Island Park and Washington Rock Recreation Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Appalachia?
1.6 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.6 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Appalachia?
49,767 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Appalachia or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 539 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Appalachia have?
Ahead of 64% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Appalachia neighbors.
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 →