Leesylvania has 14 miles of mapped trails, 3.0 for every square mile of land
15% of Leesylvania’s land is conserved, about 444 acres. 96% of residents live within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Julie J. Metz Neabsco Creek Wetlands Preserve (3.2 mi), Rippon Lodge Historic Site (1.6 mi), Port Potomac Park (0.7 mi).
Ahead of 90% of U.S. towns · #37 of 253 in Virginia. What drives it
Conserved land
15%
444 acres · of 4.6 sq mi of land
Trails
14 mi
3.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
209 ac
9.6 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
96%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
8.2 mi
0.2 mi lanes · 8.0 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
5 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Leesylvania?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Leesylvania is ahead of 90% of U.S. towns, #37 of 253 in Virginia. Trail miles hold the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Leesylvania’s overall grade.
Water is 5% of Leesylvania’s area (0 of 5 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 14%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A− 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.
15% of Leesylvania’s land. Water is left out: Leesylvania has 4.6 square miles of land and 0.2 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Leesylvania’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County375 ac
Other state land54 ac
State conservation43 ac
Not recorded431 ac
Local Park · 340 acLocal Recreation Area · 216 acLocal Other or Unknown · 216 acState Park · 77 acHistoric or Cultural Easement · 44 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 2 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 18 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
Parcel (PAD-US)
Managed by
Acres
Public access
Julie J. Metz Wetlands Bank
Local Recreation Area
County
433
Open
Powells Landing Park
Local Park
County
172
Open
Rippon Lodge Historic Site
Local Park
Not recorded
81
Restricted
Leesylvania State Park
State Park
State conservation
77
Open
Rippon Landing Park
Local Park
Not recorded
50
Open
Neabsco Eagles Park
Local Park
Not recorded
19
Open
Neabsco Landing Park
Local Park
County
18
Open
Things to do
53 places to go in Leesylvania
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Leesylvania
42 playgrounds are on OpenStreetMap in all; the list shows named ones from the first 30.
Dog parks in Leesylvania
4 dog parks without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Leesylvania
5 boat launches without a name on the map.
Waterfalls in Leesylvania
1 waterfall without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.2 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
8.0 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
15Tennis
10Basketball
6Baseball
3Soccer
2Football
1Pickleball
1Volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 3 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
The best walking months in Leesylvania: April to 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)
9.7
10.7
11.8
13.2
14.3
14.8
14.6
13.7
12.4
11.1
10.0
9.5
High (°F)
45
48
57
68
76
84
89
87
80
69
58
49
Rain (in)
2.7
2.5
3.5
3.2
3.9
3.9
4.3
3.9
4.2
3.4
2.9
3.4
February is the driest month (2.5 in) and July the warmest (highs of 89 °F). 4.3 inches fall in July, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 89 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Leesylvania →
Next door
Leesylvania and its neighbors
Leesylvania has the second most mapped trails of the 5 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Leesylvania
Where can I hike in Leesylvania?
The longest trail networks: Julie J. Metz Neabsco Creek Wetlands Preserve, 3.2 miles; Rippon Lodge Historic Site, 1.6 miles; Port Potomac Park, 0.7 miles; Powell's Landing Park, 0.5 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Leesylvania is conserved land?
15% 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 Leesylvania’s trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Powell's Landing Park. For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Leesylvania?
8.2 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.2 of painted or protected lanes and 8.0 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Leesylvania?
18,311 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Leesylvania or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 209 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Leesylvania have?
Ahead of 90% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #37 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 Leesylvania neighbors.
Photo: Virginia State Parks staff · CC BY 2.0