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Hanford B ReactorHanford B Reactor · Photo: Billatq · CC BY-SA 4.0
COutdoors
Outdoors in Desert Aire

Desert Aire has 7.0 miles of mapped trails, 2.1 for every square mile of land

9% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 13 acres are parks and preserves, 4.5 per 1,000 residents.

Ahead of 26% of U.S. towns · #253 of 285 in Washington. What drives it

Conserved land
under 1%
0 acres · of 3.4 sq mi of land
Trails
7.0 mi
2.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
13 ac
4.5 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
9%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
3.1 mi
3.1 mi paths

What kind of outdoors town is Desert Aire?

Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.

A trail town2.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 94% of U.S. towns.
Outdoors grade

How much outdoors does Desert Aire have?

On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Desert Aire is ahead of 26% of U.S. towns, #253 of 285 in Washington. Trail miles hold the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.

C
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Desert Aire’s overall grade.
Conserved landunder 1% of the land · typical WA town 4% · U.S. 4%DTrails2.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (7 mi) · WA 0.8 · U.S. 0.4APark land4.5 acres of park per 1,000 residents (13 acres) · WA 11 · U.S. 13CParks close to home9% of residents within a half mile of a park · WA 92% · U.S. 72%D
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 26%
LessMore
Washington towns of 2,500+ (285)Ahead of 11%

Water is 44% of Desert Aire’s area (3 of 6 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read under 1%.

How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from D to C+. 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.

1
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 Priest Rapids Recreation Area, with 0.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.

Priest Rapids Recreation Area

Managed by Grant County Public Utility District
12 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dogs on leash
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Things to do

11 places to go in Desert Aire

Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.

Playgrounds in Desert Aire
Desert Aire Park Playground
Directions

Plus 3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.

Biking & sports

3.1 miles of bike routes

Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.

3.1 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
2Tennis
1Basketball

Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.

When to get out

The best walking months in Desert Aire: 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.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)8.910.211.813.515.015.815.514.212.510.89.38.6
High (°F)404758667682919080655039
Rain (in)1.00.70.60.50.50.50.20.10.20.50.81.2

August is the driest month (0.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 91 °F). 1.2 inches fall in December, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 91 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Desert Aire →

Questions about parks and trails in Desert Aire

Where can I hike in Desert Aire?

The longest trail networks: Priest Rapids Recreation Area, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.

How much of Desert Aire is conserved land?

under 1% 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 Desert Aire’s trails?

OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Priest Rapids Recreation Area (on leash). For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.

Where can I bike in Desert Aire?

3.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 3.1 of off-road paths.

Is there public land near Desert Aire?

21,919 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Desert Aire or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 14 of them inside the town line.

How much outdoors does Desert Aire have?

Ahead of 26% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #253 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 Desert Aire neighbors.

Town Square →
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 →