Woods Creek Park
Park
10 acres0.5 mi of trail
Woods Creek Trail
Dogs on leash
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Lexington
8% of Lexington’s land is conserved, and 98% of residents live within a half mile of a park
3.3 miles of mapped trail cross Lexington, 1.3 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Woods Creek Park (0.5 mi). 8% of Lexington’s land is conserved, about 128 acres.
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns · #81 of 253 in Virginia. What drives it
Conserved land
8%
128 acres · of 2.5 sq mi of land
Trails
3.3 mi
1.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
46 ac
6.2 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
98%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.1 mi
0.1 mi lanes
What kind of outdoors town is Lexington?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Lexington have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Lexington is ahead of 80% of U.S. towns, #81 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 Lexington’s overall grade.
Conserved land8% of the land · typical VA town 4% · U.S. 4%B+Trails1.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (3 mi) · VA 0.7 · U.S. 0.4APark land6.2 acres of park per 1,000 residents (46 acres) · VA 8 · U.S. 13CParks close to home98% of residents within a half mile of a park · VA 76% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 80%
LessMore
Virginia towns of 2,500+ (253)Ahead of 68%
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 Woods Creek Park, with 0.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
M. Leroy Richardson Park
Park
3 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Morgan Park
Park
2 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Woods Creek Park10 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
DirectionsJordan's Point10 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsM. Leroy Richardson Park3 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Morgan Park2 acres
Lexington City Pool1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
128 conserved acres
8% of Lexington’s land. Who manages Lexington’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city78 ac
Other state land61 ac
State conservation39 ac
Not recorded78 ac
Local Park · 156 acConservation Easement · 49 acUnknown Easement · 42 acHistoric or Cultural Easement · 10 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 49 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 2 of 27 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maury River Middle School Local Park | Town or city | 33 | Open |
| Brewbaker Field Local Park | Not recorded | 31 | Open |
| Jordan's Point Local Park | Town or city | 19 | Open |
| Waddell School Local Park | Not recorded | 18 | Open |
| Central Elementary Local Park | Town or city | 16 | Open |
| Woods Creek Park & Lime Kiln Bridge Park Local Park | Town or city | 13 | Open |
| Lylburn Downing School Local Park | Town or city | 10 | Open |
| Richardson Park Local Park | Not recorded | 8 | Open |
| Woods Creek Trail Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Fairwinds Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
Things to do
8 places to go in Lexington
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Lexington
7 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Lexington
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
1 named trail
Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.5 miUnpaved · 2.5 mi
Woods Creek Trail1.7 mi
Biking & sports
0.1 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.1 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
Courts & fields
12Tennis
7Soccer
3Football
2Baseball
2Basketball
1Skate park
1Multi-sport
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →21 places on the National Register, 4 of them National Historic Landmarks
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 22 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
★
Lee Chapel, Washington and Lee UniversityNational Historic Landmark · Building · listed 1966
About it★
Washington and Lee University Historic DistrictNational Historic Landmark · District · listed 1971
About it★
Virginia Military Institute Historic DistrictNational Historic Landmark · District · listed 1974
About itAlexander-Withrow HouseBuilding · listed 1971
About itLexington Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1972
About itStonewall Jackson HouseBuilding · listed 1973
About itStonoBuilding · listed 1975
About itThorn HillBuilding · listed 1975
About itLexington Presbyterian ChurchBuilding · listed 1979
About itStone HouseBuilding · listed 1979
About itMulberry HillBuilding · listed 1982
About it9 more on the History page.
When to get out
The best walking months in Lexington: 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 | 14.5 | 13.6 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.1 | 9.6 |
| High (°F) | 45 | 49 | 57 | 68 | 76 | 83 | 87 | 85 | 78 | 68 | 57 | 48 |
| Rain (in) | 3.2 | 2.7 | 3.6 | 3.6 | 4.0 | 4.4 | 4.1 | 3.3 | 4.0 | 3.1 | 3.2 | 3.4 |
February is the driest month (2.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 87 °F). 4.4 inches fall in June, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 87 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Lexington →
Questions about parks and trails in Lexington
Where can I hike in Lexington?
The longest trail networks: Woods Creek Park, 0.5 miles; Jordan's Point, 0.3 miles; M. Leroy Richardson Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Lexington is conserved land?
8% 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 Lexington’s trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Woods Creek Park (on leash). For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Lexington?
0.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.1 of painted or protected lanes.
Is there public land near Lexington?
42,856 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Lexington or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 46 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Lexington have?
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #81 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 Lexington 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 →