Terrace Creek "Candy Cane Park"
Managed by City of Mountlake Terrace
52 acres1.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: ECTran71 · Public domainAOutdoors
Outdoors in Mountlake Terrace
7% of Mountlake Terrace’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. 7.7 miles of mapped trail cross Mountlake Terrace, 1.9 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Terrace Creek "Candy Cane Park" (1.2 mi), Ballinger Park (0.7 mi).
Ahead of 88% of U.S. towns · #64 of 285 in Washington. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
193 acres · of 4.1 sq mi of land
Trails
7.7 mi
1.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
192 ac
8.3 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
7.9 mi
4.9 mi lanes · 2.8 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
2 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Mountlake Terrace?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Mountlake Terrace have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Mountlake Terrace is ahead of 88% of U.S. towns, #64 of 285 in Washington. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Mountlake Terrace’s overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical WA town 4% · U.S. 4%B+Trails1.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (8 mi) · WA 0.8 · U.S. 0.4APark land8.3 acres of park per 1,000 residents (192 acres) · WA 11 · U.S. 13C+Parks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · WA 92% · U.S. 72%A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 88%
LessMore
Washington towns of 2,500+ (285)Ahead of 78%
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 Terrace Creek "Candy Cane Park", with 1.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Veterans Memorial Park
Park
9 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Mountlake Terrace Park & Ride
Recreation Pavilion
Managed by City of Mountlake Terrace
13 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 15 parks & preserves
Terrace Creek "Candy Cane Park"52 acres · 1.2 mi of trail · City of Mountlake Terrace
DirectionsBallinger Park49 acres · 0.7 mi of trail
DirectionsVeterans Memorial Park9 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsRecreation Pavilion13 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · City of Mountlake Terrace
DirectionsInterurban Trail12 acres · City of lynnwood
DirectionsEvergreen Playfield9 acres · City of Mountlake Terrace
DirectionsTerrace Ridge Park8 acres · City of Mountlake Terrace
DirectionsForest Crest Playfield5 acres · City of Mountlake Terrace
DirectionsMatt Hirvela Bicentennial Park4 acres · City of Mountlake Terrace
DirectionsJack Long Park2 acres · City of Mountlake Terrace
DirectionsMontesa Open Space2 acres · City of Mountlake Terrace
Open Space2 acres
Terrace Creek Overlook Open Space1 acres · City of Mountlake Terrace
Firefighters Memorial Park1 acres
DirectionsAtworth Commons Park1 acres · Atworth Commons Homeowner's Association
DirectionsWho protects it
193 conserved acres
7% of Mountlake Terrace’s land. Who manages Mountlake Terrace’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city316 ac
County13 ac
Local Park · 184 acLocal Other or Unknown · 145 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Loth101 Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 144 | Open |
| Terrace Creek Park Local Park | Town or city | 52 | Open |
| Ballinger Park Local Park | Town or city | 48 | Open |
| Recreation Pavilion Local Park | Town or city | 14 | Open |
| Interurban Trail Local Park | County | 13 | Open |
| Veterans Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| Evergreen Playfield Local Park | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| Terrace Ridge Park Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Ballinger Playfield Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Forest Crest Playfileld Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
32 places to go in Mountlake Terrace
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Mountlake Terrace
Mountlake Terrace PoolIn Recreation Pavilion
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Mountlake Terrace
Evergreen Playfield ParkIn Evergreen Playfield
DirectionsHazel Miller Universally Accessible PlaygroundHours: sunrise-sunset · In Ballinger Park
DirectionsPlus 21 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Mountlake Terrace
Mountlake Terrace Off-Leash Dog Park
DirectionsBoat launches in Mountlake Terrace
Lake Ballinger Boat LaunchIn Ballinger Park
DirectionsPlus 1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Picnic areas in Mountlake Terrace
4 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Disc golf in Mountlake Terrace
Terrace Creek Disc Golf CourseHours: Open 24 hours · In Terrace Creek "Candy Cane Park"
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 2.6 mi
220th Street Southwest0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
7.9 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
4.9 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
2.8 mi
off-road bike paths
0.2 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
19Tennis
8Baseball
6Basketball
5Soccer
2Pickleball
2Football
1Multi-sport
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Mountlake Terrace: May to 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 | 11.8 | 13.6 | 15.1 | 16.0 | 15.6 | 14.3 | 12.5 | 10.7 | 9.2 | 8.4 |
| High (°F) | 46 | 49 | 53 | 58 | 64 | 69 | 75 | 75 | 70 | 59 | 51 | 45 |
| Rain (in) | 4.9 | 3.6 | 4.2 | 3.0 | 2.2 | 1.7 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 1.7 | 3.8 | 5.3 | 5.4 |
July is the driest month (0.8 in) and August the warmest (highs of 75 °F). 5.4 inches fall in December, the wettest month. The climate in Mountlake Terrace →
Next door
Mountlake Terrace and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Questions about parks and trails in Mountlake Terrace
Where can I hike in Mountlake Terrace?
The longest trail networks: Terrace Creek "Candy Cane Park", 1.2 miles; Ballinger Park, 0.7 miles; Veterans Memorial Park, 0.3 miles; Recreation Pavilion, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Mountlake Terrace is conserved land?
7% 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 Mountlake Terrace’s trails?
Terrace Creek "Candy Cane Park" and Ballinger Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Mountlake Terrace?
7.9 miles of bike routes are on the map: 4.9 of painted or protected lanes, 2.8 of off-road paths and 0.2 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Mountlake Terrace?
13,078 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Mountlake Terrace or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 192 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Mountlake Terrace have?
Ahead of 88% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #64 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 Mountlake Terrace 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 →