South Run District Park
Managed by Fairfax County Park Authority
190 acres3 mi of trail
Coach K. Spartian TrailGrass TrackPowerLineTrail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Ser Amantio di Nicolao · CC BY-SA 4.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in South Run
29% of South Run’s land is conserved, and virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 8.3 miles of mapped trail cross South Run, 3.3 per square mile of land. 29% of South Run’s land is conserved, about 471 acres.
Among the top 1% of U.S. towns · #3 of 253 in Virginia. What drives it
Conserved land
29%
471 acres · of 2.5 sq mi of land
Trails
8.3 mi
3.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
480 ac
73 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
11 mi
11 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is South Run?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does South Run have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, South Run is among the top 1% of U.S. towns, #3 of 253 in Virginia. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of South Run’s overall grade.
Conserved land29% of the land · typical VA town 4% · U.S. 4%ATrails3.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (8 mi) · VA 0.7 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land73 acres of park per 1,000 residents (480 acres) · VA 8 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · VA 76% · U.S. 72%A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Among the top 1%
LessMore
Virginia towns of 2,500+ (253)#3 of 253
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be 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 South Run District Park, with 3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Lake Mercer Park
Managed by Fairfax County Park Authority
158 acres2.6 mi of trail
deadend trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Lake Mercer Parking
Burke Lake Park
Managed by Fairfax County Park Authority
7 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Who protects it
471 conserved acres
29% of South Run’s land. Who manages South Run’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County485 ac
Not recorded295 ac
Local Park · 780 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Mercer City Park Local Park | Not recorded | 316 | Open |
| South Run Stream Valley Park Local Park | Not recorded | 199 | Open |
| South Run District Park Local Park | County | 190 | Open |
| Eagle Park Local Park | County | 69 | Open |
| Burke Lake and Golf Course Local Park | Not recorded | 6 | Open |
Things to do
6 places to go in South Run
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in South Run
South Run Swimming Pool
DirectionsSouth Run Swimming Pool
DirectionsPlaygrounds in South Run
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Dog parks in South Run
South Run Dog ParkIn South Run District Park
DirectionsScenic views in South Run
Viewing areaIn Lake Mercer Park
DirectionsViewing area
DirectionsTrails & water
5 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 3.1 miUnpaved · 4.8 mi
Coach K. Spartian Trail0.8 mi
PowerLineTrail0.5 mi
Grass Track0.2 mi
Gravel0.1 mi
deadend trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
11 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
11 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
4Basketball
4Tennis
3Soccer
3Baseball
2Multi-sport
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in South Run: April to June 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) | 9.7 | 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 | 47 | 56 | 67 | 75 | 83 | 88 | 86 | 79 | 68 | 57 | 48 |
| Rain (in) | 2.9 | 2.6 | 3.5 | 3.3 | 4.1 | 4.1 | 4.4 | 3.7 | 4.3 | 3.6 | 3.0 | 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 South Run →
Next door
South Run and its neighbors
South Run has the second most mapped trails of the 4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Run | 29% | 3.3 | 73 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Crosspointe | 3% | 2.4 | 9 | 88% | A− |
| Burke | 12% | 1.5 | 15 | 98% | A |
| Newington Forest | 32% | 0.9 | 57 | 99%+ | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in South Run
Where can I hike in South Run?
The longest trail networks: South Run District Park, 3 miles; Lake Mercer Park, 2.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of South Run is conserved land?
29% 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 South Run’s trails?
South Run District Park and Lake Mercer Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in South Run?
11 miles of bike routes are on the map: 11 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near South Run?
27,178 acres of parks and open public land lie inside South Run or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 480 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does South Run have?
Among the top 1% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #3 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 South Run 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 →