Mount Vernon Manor Park
Managed by Fairfax County Park Authority
14 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: The original uploader was Ser Amantio di Nicolao at English Wikipedia. · CC BY 3.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Mount Vernon
10% of Mount Vernon’s land is conserved, and 98% of residents live within a half mile of a park
4.7 miles of mapped trail cross Mount Vernon, 0.9 per square mile of land. 10% of Mount Vernon’s land is conserved, about 338 acres. The biggest trail networks: Mount Vernon Manor Park (0.5 mi).
Ahead of 86% of U.S. towns · #58 of 253 in Virginia. What drives it
Conserved land
10%
338 acres · of 5.2 sq mi of land
Trails
4.7 mi
0.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
176 ac
13 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
98%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
9.1 mi
0.9 mi lanes · 4.5 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Mount Vernon?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Mount Vernon have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Mount Vernon is ahead of 86% of U.S. towns, #58 of 253 in Virginia. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of residents near a park ranks highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Mount Vernon’s overall grade.
Conserved land10% of the land · typical VA town 4% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (5 mi) · VA 0.7 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land13 acres of park per 1,000 residents (176 acres) · VA 8 · U.S. 13B−Parks 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 86%
LessMore
Virginia towns of 2,500+ (253)Ahead of 77%
Water is 14% of Mount Vernon’s area (1 of 6 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 9%.
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.
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 Mount Vernon Manor Park, with 0.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Washington Mill Park
Managed by Fairfax County Park Authority
10 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Grist Mill Park
Managed by Fairfax County Park Authority
76 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Grist Mill Parking
Little Hunting Creek Park
Managed by Fairfax County Park Authority
19 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 11 parks & preserves
Mount Vernon Manor Park14 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · Fairfax County Park Authority
DirectionsWashington Mill Park10 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Fairfax County Park Authority
DirectionsGrist Mill Park76 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Fairfax County Park Authority
DirectionsWalt Whitman School Site14 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Fairfax County Park Authority
Little Hunting Creek Park19 acres · Fairfax County Park Authority
George Washington Park18 acres · Fairfax County Park Authority
DirectionsDogue Creek Stream Valley Park16 acres · Fairfax County Park Authority
Woodley Hills Park8 acres · Fairfax County Park Authority
Vernon Heights Park3 acres · Fairfax County Park Authority
Martin Luther King Junior Park2 acres · Fairfax County Park Authority
DirectionsMount Zephyr Park2 acres · Fairfax County Park Authority
Who protects it
338 conserved acres
10% of Mount Vernon’s land. Water is left out: Mount Vernon has 5.2 square miles of land and 0.8 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Mount Vernon’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County168 ac
National Park Service147 ac
Other or Unknown Federal Land31 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits22 ac
Not recorded84 ac
Local Park · 230 acSpecial Designation Area · 117 acRecreation or Education Easement · 61 acPrivate Conservation · 22 acNot Designated · 22 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 31 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| George Washington Memorial Parkway Special Designation Area | National Park Service | 117 | Restricted |
| Grist Mill Park Local Park | County | 81 | Open |
| George Washington Grist Mill State Park Not Designated | Land trusts & nonprofits | 38 | Open |
| Dogue Creek Stream Valley Park Local Park | Not recorded | 31 | Open |
| Walt Whitman School Site Local Park | Not recorded | 28 | Open |
| Mt. Vernon Manor Park Local Park | County | 27 | Open |
| George Washington Park Local Park | County | 18 | Open |
| Woodley Hills Local Park | County | 16 | Open |
| Washington Mill Park Local Park | County | 10 | Open |
| George Washington Grist Mill Private Conservation | Not recorded | 7 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
12 places to go in Mount Vernon
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Mount Vernon
Community Kiddy Pool
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Mount Vernon
Woodlawn Townhome playground
DirectionsPlus 5 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Mount Vernon
Grist Mill Dog ParkIn Grist Mill Park
DirectionsBoat launches in Mount Vernon
3 boat launches without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Mount Vernon
Patriots Path: A Revolutionary War Encampment
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail
Named trails
Unpaved · 2.5 mi
Forest Trail0.1 mi
Biking & sports
9.1 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.9 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
4.5 mi
off-road bike paths
3.7 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
15Tennis
5Baseball
4Basketball
4Soccer
2Multi-sport
2Pickleball
1Softball
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →4 places on the National Register, 2 of them National Historic Landmarks
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 4 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Mount Vernon: 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 | 14.9 | 14.6 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.5 |
| High (°F) | 45 | 48 | 56 | 68 | 76 | 84 | 89 | 87 | 80 | 69 | 58 | 48 |
| Rain (in) | 2.9 | 2.6 | 3.7 | 3.4 | 4.0 | 4.2 | 4.5 | 3.7 | 4.3 | 3.7 | 3.0 | 3.6 |
February is the driest month (2.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 89 °F). 4.5 inches fall in July, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 89 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Mount Vernon →
Next door
Mount Vernon and its neighbors
Mount Vernon has the second most mapped trails of the 5 towns around it. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Vernon | 10% | 0.9 | 13 | 98% | A |
| Hybla Valley | 10% | 0.4 | 6 | 99%+ | A− |
| Fort Belvoir | under 1% | 1.0 | 1 | 65% | C |
| Fort Hunt | 24% | 0.7 | 25 | 99% | A |
| Woodlawn | 12% | 0.5 | 9 | 99%+ | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Mount Vernon
Where can I hike in Mount Vernon?
The longest trail networks: Mount Vernon Manor Park, 0.5 miles; Washington Mill Park, 0.3 miles; Grist Mill Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Mount Vernon is conserved land?
10% 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 Mount Vernon’s trails?
Mount Vernon Manor Park and Washington Mill Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Mount Vernon?
9.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.9 of painted or protected lanes, 4.5 of off-road paths and 3.7 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Mount Vernon?
27,072 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Mount Vernon or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 176 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Mount Vernon have?
Ahead of 86% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #58 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 Mount Vernon 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 →