Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park
Managed by National Park Service
167 acres2.2 mi of trail
Federal Line Trail
Dogs usually limited
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Oakley · Photo: Wikipelli · CC BY-SA 3.0C+Outdoors
Outdoors in Lake Wilderness
14% of Lake Wilderness’ land is conserved: 183 acres
2.3 miles of mapped trail cross Lake Wilderness, 1.1 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park (2.2 mi).
Ahead of 38% of U.S. towns · #192 of 253 in Virginia. What drives it
Conserved land
14%
183 acres · of 2.1 sq mi of land
Trails
2.3 mi
1.1 per sq mi of land
Near a park
under 1%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
3
What kind of outdoors town is Lake Wilderness?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Lake Wilderness have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Lake Wilderness is ahead of 38% of U.S. towns, #192 of 253 in Virginia. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
C+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Lake Wilderness’ overall grade.
Conserved land14% of the land · typical VA town 4% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (2 mi) · VA 0.7 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land0.0 acres of park per 1,000 residents (0 acres) · VA 8 · U.S. 13DParks close to home0% of residents within a half mile of a park · VA 76% · U.S. 72%D−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 38%
LessMore
Virginia towns of 2,500+ (253)Ahead of 24%
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 Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park, with 2.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
183 conserved acres
14% of Lake Wilderness’ land. Who manages Lake Wilderness’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
National Park Service205 ac
Other or Unknown Federal Land22 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits1 ac
Not recorded1 ac
Historic or Cultural Area · 159 acHistoric or Cultural Easement · 45 acConservation Easement · 23 acPrivate Conservation · 1 acPrivate Historic or Cultural · 1 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 23 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County Battlefields Memorial National Military Park Historic or Cultural Area | National Park Service | 159 | Restricted |
| CVBT Holding Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 1 | Closed |
Trails & water
1 named trail and 3 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 2.1 mi
Federal Line Trail2.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
1Basketball
1Tennis
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Lake Wilderness: April 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) | 9.8 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.1 | 14.2 | 14.8 | 14.6 | 13.6 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.5 |
| High (°F) | 45 | 49 | 57 | 68 | 76 | 84 | 88 | 86 | 79 | 69 | 58 | 48 |
| Rain (in) | 3.1 | 2.7 | 3.6 | 3.3 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 4.1 | 4.0 | 4.4 | 3.6 | 3.3 | 3.4 |
February is the driest month (2.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 88 °F). 4.4 inches fall in September, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 88 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Lake Wilderness →
Questions about parks and trails in Lake Wilderness
Where can I hike in Lake Wilderness?
The longest trail networks: Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park, 2.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Lake Wilderness is conserved land?
14% 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 Lake Wilderness’ trails?
Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Lake Wilderness?
8,302 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Lake Wilderness or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), almost none of it inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Lake Wilderness have?
Ahead of 38% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #192 of 253 in Virginia. 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 Lake Wilderness 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 →