Pootatuck State Forest
Managed by Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
744 acres4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: User:Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in New Fairfield
15% of New Fairfield’s land is conserved: 1,992 acres
The biggest trail networks: Pootatuck State Forest (4 mi), Great Hollow (3.3 mi), Squantz Pond State Park (2.1 mi). 12 miles of mapped trail cross New Fairfield, 0.6 per square mile of land. 287 acres are parks and preserves, 21 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 75% of U.S. towns · #107 of 155 in Connecticut. What drives it
Conserved land
15%
1,992 acres · of 20.4 sq mi of land
Trails
12 mi
0.6 per sq mi of land
Park land
287 ac
21 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
57%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,175 ft
Beaver Bog Mountain
Lakes & rivers
17
6 beaches · 6 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is New Fairfield?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does New Fairfield have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, New Fairfield is ahead of 75% of U.S. towns, #107 of 155 in Connecticut. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of New Fairfield’s overall grade.
Conserved land15% of the land · typical CT town 15% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.6 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (12 mi) · CT 1.4 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land21 acres of park per 1,000 residents (287 acres) · CT 22 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home57% of residents within a half mile of a park · CT 57% · U.S. 72%B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 75%
LessMore
Connecticut towns of 2,500+ (155)Ahead of 31%
Connecticut towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 15%; the U.S., 4%), so New Fairfield’s 15% is ahead of 52% of Connecticut towns, while its trails per square mile lead 12% of them.
Water is 19% of New Fairfield’s area (5 of 25 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 12%.
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 Pootatuck State Forest, with 4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Great Hollow
Nature preserve
243 acres3.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailhead
Squantz Pond State Park
Managed by Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
162 acres2.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Sweetcake Mountain Preserve
Park
36 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 9 parks & preserves
Pootatuck State Forest744 acres · 4 mi of trail · Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
DirectionsGreat Hollow243 acres · 3.3 mi of trail
DirectionsSquantz Pond State Park162 acres · 2.1 mi of trail · Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
DirectionsSweetcake Mountain Preserve36 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsHidden Valley Nature Center10 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsConn. Light & Power Company (Leased By Town)75 acres
New Fairfield Town Park59 acres
New Farfield Town Beach2 acres
Ball Pond Town Park1 acres
Who protects it
1,992 conserved acres
15% of New Fairfield’s land. Water is left out: New Fairfield has 20.4 square miles of land and 4.7 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages New Fairfield’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits729 ac
State conservation179 ac
Town or city69 ac
Other state land1 ac
Not recorded1,015 ac
State Resource Management Area · 1,007 acConservation Easement · 729 acState Park · 169 acLocal Park · 64 acForest Stewardship Easement · 10 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 739 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 9 of 14 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pootatuck State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 581 | Unknown |
| Pootatuck State Forest (Old Forest Management Area) State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 426 | Unknown |
| Squantz Pond State Park State Park | State conservation | 169 | Open |
| New Fairfield Town Park Local Park | Town or city | 59 | Open |
| Hidden Valley Nature Center Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 10 | Open |
| Ball Pond Water Access State Recreation Area | Not recorded | 4 | Unknown |
| Memorial Field Local Park | Not recorded | 2 | Unknown |
| New Farfield Town Beach Local Park | Not recorded | 2 | Unknown |
| Ball Pond Town Park Local Park | Not recorded | 1 | Unknown |
Things to do
23 places to go in New Fairfield
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in New Fairfield
North Beach
DirectionsSouth Beach
DirectionsPlus 4 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in New Fairfield
2 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Boat launches in New Fairfield
Ball Pond Boat Launch
DirectionsSquantz Pond Boat LaunchIn Squantz Pond State Park
DirectionsSquantz Pond Boat LaunchIn Squantz Pond State Park
DirectionsPlus 3 boat launches without a name on the map.
Waterfalls in New Fairfield
Lower FallsIn Great Hollow
DirectionsScenic views in New Fairfield
2 scenic views without a name on the map.
Peaks in New Fairfield
Beaver Bog Mountain1,175 ft elevation
DirectionsTiticus Mountain1,027 ft elevation
DirectionsSweet Cake Mountain869 ft elevation
DirectionsBogus Hill541 ft elevation
DirectionsPond MountainIn Pootatuck State Forest
DirectionsCampgrounds in New Fairfield
Southwestern Ct. Girl Scouts Council-Camp Topside
DirectionsTrails & water
17 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Ball PondDisbrow PondFeldman PondpondForest LakereservoirGerow Brook PondpondGerow MillpondreservoirGillotti PondHermansen DamLake CandlewoodreservoirManlapaz PondMargerie Lake ReservoirreservoirMerritts PondMerton Mill PondreservoirNarrow PondSaw Mill Road PondpondSquantz PondreservoirTwin Pondpond
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
11Tennis
7Baseball
3Multi-sport
2Soccer
1Football
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The best walking months in New Fairfield: 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) | 35 | 38 | 46 | 59 | 70 | 78 | 83 | 81 | 73 | 62 | 50 | 40 |
| Rain (in) | 3.5 | 2.9 | 4.1 | 4.1 | 3.9 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 4.5 | 4.6 | 4.8 | 4.0 | 4.2 |
February is the driest month (2.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.8 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in New Fairfield →
Next door
New Fairfield and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Danbury48 miNew Milford45 miPatterson31 miSherman30 miBrookfield20 miNew Fairfield12 miPutnam Lake0.4 miCandlewood Shores0.1 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Fairfield | 15% | 0.6 | 21 | 57% | A− |
| Brookfield | 12% | 1.0 | 18 | 57% | A− |
| Candlewood Shores | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Danbury | 15% | 1.1 | 15 | 69% | A− |
| New Milford | 18% | 0.7 | 26 | 48% | A− |
| Sherman | 18% | 1.4 | 54 | 34% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in New Fairfield
Where can I hike in New Fairfield?
The longest trail networks: Pootatuck State Forest, 4 miles; Great Hollow, 3.3 miles; Squantz Pond State Park, 2.1 miles; Sweetcake Mountain Preserve, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of New Fairfield is conserved land?
15% 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 New Fairfield’s trails?
Pootatuck State Forest and Great Hollow don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near New Fairfield?
23,369 acres of parks and open public land lie inside New Fairfield or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 287 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does New Fairfield have?
Ahead of 75% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #107 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 New Fairfield 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 →