Laurel Hill Park
Managed by Fairfax County Park Authority
54 acres1.8 mi of trail
Apple Orchard Loop
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Ser Amantio di Nicolao · CC BY-SA 4.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Lorton
5% of Lorton’s land is conserved, and 96% of residents live within a half mile of a park
The biggest trail networks: Laurel Hill Park (1.8 mi). 3.9 miles of mapped trail cross Lorton, 0.7 per square mile of land. 5% of Lorton’s land is conserved, about 180 acres.
Ahead of 72% of U.S. towns · #101 of 253 in Virginia. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
180 acres · of 5.3 sq mi of land
Trails
3.9 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
167 ac
7.9 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
96%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
12 mi
4.3 mi lanes · 7.2 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Lorton?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Lorton have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Lorton is ahead of 72% of U.S. towns, #101 of 253 in Virginia. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Lorton’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical VA town 4% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (4 mi) · VA 0.7 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land7.9 acres of park per 1,000 residents (167 acres) · VA 8 · U.S. 13C+Parks close to home96% 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 72%
LessMore
Virginia towns of 2,500+ (253)Ahead of 60%
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 Laurel Hill Park, with 1.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Lower Potomac Park
Managed by Fairfax County Park Authority
27 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Mason Neck West Park
Managed by Fairfax County Park Authority
26 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Accotink Stream Valley Park
Managed by Fairfax County Park Authority
18 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 10 parks & preserves
Laurel Hill Park54 acres · 1.8 mi of trail · Fairfax County Park Authority
DirectionsMason Neck West Park26 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Fairfax County Park Authority
Pohick Estates Park16 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Fairfax County Park Authority
Lorton Park4 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Fairfax County Park Authority
DirectionsLower Potomac Park27 acres · Fairfax County Park Authority
DirectionsAccotink Stream Valley Park18 acres · Fairfax County Park Authority
Old Colchester Park & Preserve11 acres · Fairfax County Park Authority
Pohick Stream Valley Park7 acres · Fairfax County Park Authority
DirectionsSouthgate Park3 acres · Fairfax County Park Authority
Meadowood Recreation Area1 acres · Bureau of Land Management
Who protects it
180 conserved acres
5% of Lorton’s land. Who manages Lorton’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County169 ac
Other state land18 ac
Bureau of Land Management1 ac
Not recorded126 ac
Local Park · 295 acUnknown Easement · 18 acNational Public Lands · 1 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 13 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 30 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lower Potomac Local Park | Not recorded | 55 | Open |
| Laurel Hill Local Park | County | 48 | Open |
| Accotink Stream Valley Park Local Park | Not recorded | 37 | Open |
| Pohick Estates Local Park | County | 32 | Open |
| Mason Neck West Park Local Park | Not recorded | 28 | Open |
| Old Colchester Preserve and Park Local Park | County | 24 | Open |
| Pohick Stream Valley Park Local Park | Not recorded | 16 | Open |
| Mason Neck West City Park Local Park | County | 15 | Open |
| Mason Neck West Local Park | County | 11 | Open |
| Lorton City Park Local Park | County | 9 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
17 places to go in Lorton
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Lorton
17 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Trails & water
2 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.8 miUnpaved · 2.6 mi
Apple Orchard Loop1.7 mi
(rough)0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
12 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
4.3 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
7.2 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
14Tennis
7Baseball
5Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →2 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 Lorton: April and May
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 | 14.9 | 14.6 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.5 |
| High (°F) | 44 | 48 | 56 | 68 | 76 | 84 | 88 | 87 | 80 | 69 | 58 | 48 |
| Rain (in) | 2.9 | 2.6 | 3.5 | 3.3 | 4.0 | 4.1 | 4.4 | 3.8 | 4.2 | 3.5 | 2.9 | 3.5 |
February is the driest month (2.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 88 °F). 4.4 inches fall in July, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 88 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Lorton →
Next door
Lorton 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lorton | 5% | 0.7 | 8 | 96% | B+ |
| Newington | 10% | 0.4 | 22 | 99%+ | A |
| Laurel Hill | 46% | 4.1 | 178 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Mason Neck | 73% | 2.7 | 1,832 | 58% | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Lorton
Where can I hike in Lorton?
The longest trail networks: Laurel Hill Park, 1.8 miles; Mason Neck West Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Lorton is conserved land?
5% 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 Lorton’s trails?
Laurel Hill Park and Lower Potomac Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Lorton?
12 miles of bike routes are on the map: 4.3 of painted or protected lanes and 7.2 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Lorton?
28,910 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Lorton or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 168 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Lorton have?
Ahead of 72% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #101 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 Lorton 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 →