George Washington National Forest
Managed by United States Forest Service
5,584 acres4.6 mi of trail
Appalachian TrailStoney Creek Walking Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Mojo Hand · CC BY-SA 3.0B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Nellysford
22% of Nellysford’s land is conserved: 1,340 acres
The biggest trail networks: George Washington National Forest (4.6 mi). 4.8 miles of mapped trail cross Nellysford, 0.5 per square mile of land. 25 acres are parks and preserves, 16 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 55% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
22%
1,340 acres · of 9.6 sq mi of land
Trails
4.8 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
25 ac
16 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
under 1%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
3,012 ft
Crawford Knob
Lakes & rivers
2
1 beach
What kind of outdoors town is Nellysford?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Nellysford have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Nellysford is ahead of 55% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Nellysford’s overall grade.
Conserved land22% of the land · typical VA town 4% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (5 mi) · VA 0.7 · U.S. 0.4BPark land16 acres of park per 1,000 residents (25 acres) · VA 8 · U.S. 13BParks 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 55%
LessMore
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C 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 George Washington National Forest, with 4.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
1,340 conserved acres
22% of Nellysford’s land. Who manages Nellysford’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State conservation994 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits831 ac
National Park Service320 ac
Other state land174 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government41 ac
Not recorded871 ac
Other Easement · 980 acPrivate Conservation · 871 acState Conservation Area · 871 acNational Scenic or Historic Trail · 319 acConservation Easement · 189 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 148 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 2 of 12 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crawford's Knob State Natural Area Preserve Private Conservation | Not recorded | 1,743 | Restricted |
| Appalachian National Scenic Trail National Scenic or Historic Trail | National Park Service | 319 | Open |
| Blue Ridge Parkway Special Designation Area | National Park Service | 1 | Restricted |
Things to do
3 places to go in Nellysford
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Nellysford
Lake Monocan BeachIn George Washington National Forest
DirectionsPeaks in Nellysford
Crawford Knob3,012 ft elevation · In George Washington National Forest
DirectionsCampgrounds in Nellysford
1 campground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
2 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Appalachian Trail1.0 mi
Stoney Creek Walking Trail0.5 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
History along the way
History →4 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The best walking months in Nellysford: April, July 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 | 9.5 |
| High (°F) | 40 | 44 | 51 | 62 | 70 | 76 | 80 | 79 | 72 | 63 | 52 | 44 |
| Rain (in) | 3.6 | 2.7 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 5.2 | 4.0 | 3.8 | 3.8 |
February is the driest month (2.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 80 °F). 5.2 inches fall in September, the wettest month. The climate in Nellysford →
Next door
Nellysford and its neighbors
Nellysford has the second most mapped trails of the 2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nellysford | 22% | 0.5 | 16 | under 1% | B− |
| Wintergreen | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Nellysford
Where can I hike in Nellysford?
The longest trail networks: George Washington National Forest, 4.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Nellysford is conserved land?
22% 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 Nellysford’s trails?
George Washington National Forest doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Nellysford?
24,063 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Nellysford or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 345 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Nellysford have?
Ahead of 55% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Nellysford 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 →