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Goodell Lincoln General Store, Chaplin CTPhoto: John Phelan · CC BY-SA 4.0
AOutdoors
Outdoors in Chaplin

38% of Chaplin’s land is conserved: 4,749 acres

293 acres are parks and preserves, 141 per 1,000 residents. 30 miles of mapped trail cross Chaplin, 1.5 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: James L. Goodwin State Forest (9.1 mi), Natchaug State Forest (8.4 mi), Edward Garrison Park (1.1 mi).

Ahead of 92% of U.S. towns. What drives it

Conserved land
38%
4,749 acres · of 19.4 sq mi of land
Trails
30 mi
1.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
293 ac
141 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
49%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
3.3 mi
3.3 mi paths
Highest peak
771 ft
Clark Hill
Lakes & rivers
13

What kind of outdoors town is Chaplin?

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

Land that stays wild38% of the land is conserved; a typical Connecticut town, 15%.A trail town1.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 89% of U.S. towns.Room to roam141 acres of park per 1,000 residents; the typical U.S. town has 13.
Outdoors grade

How much outdoors does Chaplin have?

On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Chaplin is ahead of 92% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.

A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Chaplin’s overall grade.
Conserved land38% of the land · typical CT town 15% · U.S. 4%A+Trails1.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (30 mi) · CT 1.4 · U.S. 0.4APark land141 acres of park per 1,000 residents (293 acres) · CT 22 · U.S. 13AParks close to home49% 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 92%
LessMore

Connecticut towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 15%; the U.S., 4%), so Chaplin’s 38% is ahead of 97% of Connecticut towns, while its trails per square mile lead 60% of them.

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.

1234567
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 James L. Goodwin State Forest, with 9.1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.

James L. Goodwin State Forest

Managed by Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
710 acres9.1 mi of trail
Goodwin Forest Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot

Natchaug State Forest

Managed by Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
1,919 acres8.4 mi of trail
CCC Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot

Edward Garrison Park

Park
37 acres1.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot

Bernard Church Woods

Managed by Joshua's Trust
37 acres1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trail signWebsite ↗

Hubbard Sanctuary

Managed by Joshua's Trust
34 acres0.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗

Mansfield Hollow Lake Recreation Area

Managed by United States Army Corps of Engineers
501 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗

Agnes' Pasture

Managed by Joshua's Trust
12 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 16 parks & preserves
James L. Goodwin State Forest710 acres · 9.1 mi of trail · Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
Directions
Natchaug State Forest1,919 acres · 8.4 mi of trail · Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
Directions
Edward Garrison Park37 acres · 1.1 mi of trail
Directions
Bernard Church Woods37 acres · 1 mi of trail · Joshua's Trust
Directions
Hubbard Sanctuary34 acres · 0.9 mi of trail · Joshua's Trust
Directions
Mansfield Hollow Lake Recreation Area501 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · United States Army Corps of Engineers
Directions
Agnes' Pasture12 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Joshua's Trust
Two Sister's Preserve40 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Joshua's Trust
Directions
Airline State Park Trail (Northern Section)96 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
Directions
Diana's Pool29 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
Directions
Fin, Fur, and Feather Club251 acres · Fin, Fur & Feather Club, Inc.
Harvey Preserve87 acres · Joshua's Trust
Beaver Brook State Park70 acres
Mansfield Hollow State Park46 acres · State of Connecticut
Natchaug Property20 acres · Joshua's Tract Conservation & Historic Trust, Inc.
Natchaug River Water Access20 acres · State of Connecticut
Directions
Who protects it

4,749 conserved acres

38% of Chaplin’s land. Who manages Chaplin’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.

Private owners719 ac
Other state land684 ac
State conservation110 ac
Not recorded3,938 ac
State Resource Management Area · 2,617 acConservation Easement · 755 acForest Stewardship Easement · 684 acState Conservation Area · 568 acPrivate Conservation · 380 ac
Good to know

Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 764 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 69 of 77 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.

The biggest protected parcels
Parcel (PAD-US)Managed byAcresPublic access
Natchaug State Forest
State Resource Management Area
Not recorded1,873Unknown
James L. Goodwin State Forest
State Resource Management Area
Not recorded691Unknown
Mansfield Hollow Wildlife Management Area
State Conservation Area
Not recorded568Unknown
Unknown
State Other or Unknown
Not recorded422Unknown
Airline State Park Trail (North Trail)
State Park
Not recorded155Unknown
Beaver Brook State Park Scenic Reserve
State Park
Not recorded66Unknown
James L. Goodwin State Forest (Old Forest Management Area)
State Resource Management Area
Not recorded53Unknown
Bernard Church Woods
Private Conservation
Not recorded37Unknown
Two Sister's Tract
Private Conservation
Not recorded35Unknown
Hubbard Santuary
Private Conservation
Not recorded34Unknown

3 smaller protected places aren’t shown.

Things to do

9 places to go in Chaplin

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

Peaks in Chaplin
Clark Hill771 ft elevation
Directions
Bear Hill761 ft elevation · In James L. Goodwin State Forest
Directions
Rattlesnake Hill715 ft elevation
Directions
Snow Hill715 ft elevation
Directions
Tower Hill607 ft elevation · In Harvey Preserve
Directions
Trails & water

3 named trails and 13 lakes & rivers

Named trails
Open to bikes · 3.6 miUnpaved · 6.7 mi
Goodwin Forest Trail0.3 mi
CCC Trail0.3 mi
Natchaug Forest Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Black Spruce PondBujack Road PondCavanaughs PondlakeDarling PondHubbard PondLower Colts PondLynch PondlakeReeds PondpondStevensons PondTucker PondlakeUpson LakeWild Life Marsh ReservoirreservoirNatchaug River
Biking & sports

3.3 miles of bike routes

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

3.3 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
2Baseball

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

History along the way

2 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.

History →
Witter HouseBuilding · listed 1970
About it
Chaplin Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1978
About it
When to get out

The best walking months in Chaplin: 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.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)9.510.511.813.314.515.214.913.812.411.09.89.2
High (°F)363947597078838174635242
Rain (in)3.63.04.44.33.74.33.94.24.34.74.04.5

February is the driest month (3.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.7 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Chaplin →

Next door

Chaplin and its neighbors

Tap a town to see its outdoors.

Mansfield127 miAshford55 miWindham45 miHampton39 miChaplin30 miScotland14 mi
TownConserved
of land		Trail mi
per sq mi		Park acres
per 1,000		Near a park
½ mile		Outdoors
Chaplin38%1.514149%A
Ashford32%1.42118%A−
Mansfield29%2.82647%A
Hampton29%1.69751%A
Windham15%1.72279%A
Scotland33%0.71212%B

The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.

Questions about parks and trails in Chaplin

Where can I hike in Chaplin?

The longest trail networks: James L. Goodwin State Forest, 9.1 miles; Natchaug State Forest, 8.4 miles; Edward Garrison Park, 1.1 miles; Bernard Church Woods, 1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.

How much of Chaplin is conserved land?

38% 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 Chaplin’s trails?

James L. Goodwin State Forest and Natchaug State Forest don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.

Where can I bike in Chaplin?

3.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 3.3 of off-road paths.

Is there public land near Chaplin?

5,493 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Chaplin or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 293 of them inside the town line.

How much outdoors does Chaplin have?

Ahead of 92% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Chaplin 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 →