Nathan Hale State Forest
Managed by Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
547 acres10.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: John Phelan · CC BY-SA 4.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Andover
23% of Andover’s land is conserved: 2,227 acres
15 miles of mapped trail cross Andover, 1.0 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Nathan Hale State Forest (10.3 mi), Doris Chamberlain Pond Nature Preserve (2.2 mi), Bishop Swamp Wildlife Management Area (1.4 mi). 74 acres are parks and preserves, 23 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 74% of U.S. towns · #113 of 155 in Connecticut. What drives it
Conserved land
23%
2,227 acres · of 15.4 sq mi of land
Trails
15 mi
1.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
74 ac
23 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
21%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
5.3 mi
5.3 mi paths
Highest peak
712 ft
New Boston Hill
Lakes & rivers
6
What kind of outdoors town is Andover?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Andover have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Andover is ahead of 74% of U.S. towns, #113 of 155 in Connecticut. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Andover’s overall grade.
Conserved land23% of the land · typical CT town 15% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (15 mi) · CT 1.4 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land23 acres of park per 1,000 residents (74 acres) · CT 22 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home21% of residents within a half mile of a park · CT 57% · U.S. 72%C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 74%
LessMore
Connecticut towns of 2,500+ (155)Ahead of 27%
Connecticut towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 15%; the U.S., 4%), so Andover’s 23% is ahead of 72% of Connecticut towns, while its trails per square mile lead 33% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B 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 Nathan Hale State Forest, with 10.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Doris Chamberlain Pond Nature Preserve
Managed by Town of Andover
69 acres2.2 mi of trail
MTB OrangeMTB Orange/Yellow
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Bishop Swamp Wildlife Management Area
Managed by State of Connecticut
748 acres1.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Long Hill Road Open Space
Managed by Town of Andover
31 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 20 parks & preserves
Nathan Hale State Forest547 acres · 10.3 mi of trail · Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
DirectionsDoris Chamberlain Pond Nature Preserve69 acres · 2.2 mi of trail · Town of Andover
DirectionsBishop Swamp Wildlife Management Area748 acres · 1.4 mi of trail · State of Connecticut
DirectionsLong Hill Road Open Space31 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Town of Andover
DirectionsHop River State Park Trail51 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsUS-6 Corridor180 acres · State of Connecticut;Town of Coventry;Town of Andover;Town of Bolton
Andover Sportsmens Club108 acres
Shoddy Mill Road Open Space83 acres · Town of Andover
Boston Hill Road Open Space50 acres · Town of Andover
Skinner Hill Preserve33 acres · Joshua's Tract Conservation and Historic Trust
Windrush Lane Open Space18 acres · Town of Andover
Bear Swamp Road Open Space18 acres · Town of Andover
DirectionsEstonia Club17 acres
Jonathan Trumbull Highway Open Space15 acres · Town of Andover
DirectionsPolomski Parcel7 acres · Joshua's Tract Conservation and Historic Trust
Ridge Road Open Space5 acres · Town of Andover
Rockledge Drive Open Space2 acres · Town of Andover
Lake Road Open Space1 acres · Town of Andover
Willimantic Road Open Space1 acres · State of Connecticut
Andover Veterans Monument Park1 acres
Who protects it
2,227 conserved acres
23% of Andover’s land. Who manages Andover’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
USDA easements (NRCS)187 ac
Other state land121 ac
Not recorded1,918 ac
State Conservation Area · 935 acState Resource Management Area · 540 acPrivate Conservation · 222 acAgricultural Easement · 187 acLocal Other or Unknown · 148 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 308 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 36 of 40 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bishop Swamp Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 935 | Unknown |
| Nathan Hale State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 449 | Unknown |
| Unknown Private Conservation | Not recorded | 207 | Unknown |
| Andover Sportsmen Club Hunting Private Conservation | Not recorded | 124 | Unknown |
| Nathan Hale State Forest (Old Forest Management Area) State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 91 | Unknown |
| Doris Chamberlain Nature Pond Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 72 | Unknown |
| Channel 3 Country Kids Camp Private Conservation | Not recorded | 27 | Unknown |
| UNKNOWN - picnic grounds Private Conservation | Not recorded | 12 | Unknown |
Things to do
4 places to go in Andover
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Peaks in Andover
New Boston Hill712 ft elevation
DirectionsMonument Hill653 ft elevation
DirectionsBunker Hill574 ft elevation
DirectionsCampgrounds in Andover
Camp Hi HotiHartford Neighborhood Centers Inc.
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails and 6 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 5.7 mi
MTB Orange1.3 mi
MTB Orange/Yellow0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
5.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
5.3 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
1Softball
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 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 Andover: April 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) | 9.5 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 36 | 39 | 47 | 59 | 70 | 78 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 63 | 51 | 41 |
| Rain (in) | 3.5 | 2.9 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 3.7 | 4.4 | 4.0 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.7 | 3.9 | 4.4 |
February is the driest month (2.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.7 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Andover →
Next door
Andover and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Questions about parks and trails in Andover
Where can I hike in Andover?
The longest trail networks: Nathan Hale State Forest, 10.3 miles; Doris Chamberlain Pond Nature Preserve, 2.2 miles; Bishop Swamp Wildlife Management Area, 1.4 miles; Long Hill Road Open Space, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Andover is conserved land?
23% of its land, against a typical 15% for a Connecticut town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Andover’s trails?
Nathan Hale State Forest and Doris Chamberlain Pond Nature Preserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Andover?
5.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 5.3 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Andover?
9,882 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Andover or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 74 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Andover have?
Ahead of 74% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #113 of 155 in Connecticut. 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 Andover 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 →