Kernstown Battlefield Park
Park
54 acres1.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: APK · CC BY-SA 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Winchester
Winchester has 8.9 miles of mapped trails, 1.0 for every square mile of land
93% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 10% of Winchester’s land is conserved, about 581 acres. The biggest trail networks: Kernstown Battlefield Park (1.7 mi), Jim Barnett Park (1.2 mi).
Ahead of 82% of U.S. towns · #72 of 253 in Virginia. What drives it
Conserved land
10%
581 acres · of 9.2 sq mi of land
Trails
8.9 mi
1.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
315 ac
11 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
93%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
4.5 mi
4.5 mi paths
Highest peak
860 ft
Bowers Hill
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Winchester?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Winchester have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Winchester is ahead of 82% of U.S. towns, #72 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 Winchester’s overall grade.
Conserved land10% of the land · typical VA town 4% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (9 mi) · VA 0.7 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land11 acres of park per 1,000 residents (315 acres) · VA 8 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home93% 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 82%
LessMore
Virginia towns of 2,500+ (253)Ahead of 72%
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 Kernstown Battlefield Park, with 1.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Frederick Douglass Park
Park
5 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Friendship Park
Park
7 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 11 parks & preserves
Kernstown Battlefield Park54 acres · 1.7 mi of trail
DirectionsJim Barnett Park166 acres · 1.2 mi of trail
DirectionsFrederick Douglass Park5 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
Overlook5 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Friendship Park7 acres
Whittier Park6 acres
DirectionsPark Place5 acres · Winchester Parks and Rec Department
Harvest Ridge Park2 acres · Winchester Parks and Rec Department
Rolling Hills Green Space2 acres · Winchester Parks and Rec Department
DirectionsTimbrook Park1 acres
DirectionsNESW Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
581 conserved acres
10% of Winchester’s land. Who manages Winchester’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits326 ac
Town or city252 ac
Other state land115 ac
Not recorded464 ac
Private Conservation · 538 acLocal Park · 505 acOther Easement · 114 acConservation Easement · 1 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Glen Burnie Private Conservation | Not recorded | 424 | Closed |
| Jim Barnett Park Local Park | Town or city | 334 | Open |
| KBA Holding Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 114 | Restricted |
| Abrams Creek Wetland Preserve Local Park | Not recorded | 50 | Open |
| Shawnee Springs Preserve Local Park | Not recorded | 21 | Open |
| Friendship Park Local Park | Town or city | 21 | Open |
| Frederick Douglass Park Local Park | Not recorded | 18 | Open |
| Whittier Park Local Park | Not recorded | 13 | Open |
| Weaver Park Local Park | Town or city | 13 | Open |
| Park Place Local Park | Town or city | 10 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
48 places to go in Winchester
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Winchester
Kids PoolIn Jim Barnett Park
DirectionsPlus 2 public pools without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in Winchester
Daniel Morgan Intermediate School Playground
DirectionsPlus 23 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Peaks in Winchester
Bowers Hill860 ft elevation
DirectionsPicnic areas in Winchester
19 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Community gardens in Winchester
1 community garden without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
7 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 6.4 mi
Sycamore Trail0.6 mi
Meadow Trail0.4 mi
Pasture Trail0.3 mi
Shawnee Springs Trail0.3 mi
Forest Loop Trail0.3 mi
Ridge Trail0.3 mi
Valley Trail0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
4.5 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
4.5 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
14Soccer
12Tennis
10Basketball
8Baseball
6Pickleball
3Football
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →27 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 9 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Handley LibraryBuilding · listed 1969
About itAbram's DelightBuilding · listed 1973
About itAdam Kurtz HouseBuilding · listed 1976
About itOld Stone ChurchBuilding · listed 1977
About itGlen BurnieBuilding · listed 1979
About itWinchester Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1980
About itHexagon HouseBuilding · listed 1987
About itWinchester National CemeterySite · listed 1996
About itRose Hill FarmBuilding · listed 1997
About itHandley, John, High SchoolBuilding · listed 1998
About it15 more on the History page.
When to get out
The best walking months in Winchester: 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) | 9.7 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 14.9 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 42 | 45 | 53 | 65 | 74 | 82 | 86 | 84 | 78 | 67 | 55 | 45 |
| Rain (in) | 2.8 | 2.2 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 3.4 | 4.3 | 3.1 | 2.9 | 3.0 |
February is the driest month (2.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 86 °F). 4.4 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Winchester →
Questions about parks and trails in Winchester
Where can I hike in Winchester?
The longest trail networks: Kernstown Battlefield Park, 1.7 miles; Jim Barnett Park, 1.2 miles; Frederick Douglass Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Winchester 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 Winchester’s trails?
Kernstown Battlefield Park and Jim Barnett Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Winchester?
4.5 miles of bike routes are on the map: 4.5 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Winchester?
2,115 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Winchester or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 315 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Winchester have?
Ahead of 82% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #72 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 Winchester 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 →