Don Morse Memorial Park
Park
19 acres0.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Joe Mabel · CC BY-SA 3.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Chelan
Chelan has 9.9 miles of mapped trails, 1.4 for every square mile of land
207 acres are parks and preserves, 48 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: Don Morse Memorial Park (0.8 mi), Chelan Riverwalk Park (0.8 mi). 77% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 85% of U.S. towns · #81 of 285 in Washington. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
220 acres · of 6.8 sq mi of land
Trails
9.9 mi
1.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
207 ac
48 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
77%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.6 mi
0.2 mi lanes · 1.4 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
2 beaches · 3 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Chelan?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Chelan have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Chelan is ahead of 85% of U.S. towns, #81 of 285 in Washington. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, conserved land lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Chelan’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical WA town 4% · U.S. 4%BTrails1.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (10 mi) · WA 0.8 · U.S. 0.4APark land48 acres of park per 1,000 residents (207 acres) · WA 11 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home77% of residents within a half mile of a park · WA 92% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 85%
LessMore
Washington towns of 2,500+ (285)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 Don Morse Memorial Park, with 0.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Chelan Riverwalk Park
Park
14 acres0.8 mi of trail
Chelan Riverwalk Loop
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 6 parks & preserves
Don Morse Memorial Park19 acres · 0.8 mi of trail
DirectionsChelan Riverwalk Park14 acres · 0.8 mi of trail
DirectionsLakeside Park8 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsVineyard Park1 acres
DirectionsLookout Park1 acres
Division 2 Park1 acres
Who protects it
220 conserved acres
5% of Chelan’s land. Who manages Chelan’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city185 ac
County35 ac
U.S. Forest Service1 ac
Local Other or Unknown · 145 acLocal Park · 64 acLocal Recreation Area · 10 acNational Forest · 1 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 2 of 11 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Loth35 Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 111 | Open |
| Lakeshore Park Local Park | Town or city | 46 | Open |
| Loth189 Local Other or Unknown | County | 24 | Unknown |
| Lakeside City Park Local Park | County | 11 | Open |
| Chelan Ranger Station Local Other or Unknown | County | 11 | Unknown |
| Ballfield Complex Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 10 | Open |
| Chelan River Park Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Wenatchee National Forest National Forest | U.S. Forest Service | 1 | Open |
Things to do
27 places to go in Chelan
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Chelan
2 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Swimming spots in Chelan
Swim Area
DirectionsWading AreaIn Don Morse Memorial Park
DirectionsPlus 1 swimming spot without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Public pools in Chelan
Activity Pool
DirectionsAqua Zoo
DirectionsCitywave USA
DirectionsHot Tub
DirectionsSurfer Hot Tub
DirectionsPlus 1 public pool without a name on the map.
Playgrounds in Chelan
9 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Boat launches in Chelan
3 boat launches without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Chelan
3 scenic views without a name on the map.
Picnic areas in Chelan
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Trails & water
3 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 1.9 mi
Chelan Butte Trail1.0 mi
Chelan Riverwalk Loop0.3 mi
Reach 1 Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
1.6 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.2 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
1.4 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
16Tennis
10Pickleball
8Baseball
7Beach volleyball
6Basketball
3Soccer
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →5 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 Chelan: April to June and September
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) | 8.8 | 10.2 | 11.7 | 13.6 | 15.1 | 16.0 | 15.6 | 14.3 | 12.5 | 10.7 | 9.2 | 8.4 |
| High (°F) | 33 | 41 | 52 | 61 | 71 | 78 | 87 | 87 | 77 | 61 | 44 | 33 |
| Rain (in) | 1.6 | 1.1 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 1.0 | 1.4 | 2.0 |
August is the driest month (0.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 87 °F). 2.0 inches fall in December, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 87 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Chelan →
Questions about parks and trails in Chelan
Where can I hike in Chelan?
The longest trail networks: Don Morse Memorial Park, 0.8 miles; Chelan Riverwalk Park, 0.8 miles; Lakeside Park, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Chelan is conserved land?
5% of its land, against a typical 4% for a Washington town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Chelan’s trails?
Don Morse Memorial Park and Chelan Riverwalk Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Chelan?
1.6 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.2 of painted or protected lanes and 1.4 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Chelan?
75,418 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Chelan or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 208 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Chelan have?
Ahead of 85% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #81 of 285 in Washington. 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 Chelan 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 →