City of New Britain Public Watershed Lands
Managed by City of New Britain Water Department
131 acres3.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Kenneth C. Zirkel · CC BY-SA 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Plainville
Plainville has 18 miles of mapped trails, 1.9 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: City of New Britain Public Watershed Lands (3.8 mi), Trumbull Park (0.6 mi), Tomasso Nature Park (0.6 mi). 89% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 8% of Plainville’s land is conserved, about 507 acres.
Ahead of 82% of U.S. towns · #76 of 155 in Connecticut. What drives it
Conserved land
8%
507 acres · of 9.7 sq mi of land
Trails
18 mi
1.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
172 ac
9.8 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
89%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
7.6 mi
0.2 mi lanes · 2.2 mi paths
Highest peak
679 ft
Bradley Mountain
Lakes & rivers
4
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Plainville?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Plainville have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Plainville is ahead of 82% of U.S. towns, #76 of 155 in Connecticut. Trail miles hold the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Plainville’s overall grade.
Conserved land8% of the land · typical CT town 15% · U.S. 4%B+Trails1.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (18 mi) · CT 1.4 · U.S. 0.4APark land9.8 acres of park per 1,000 residents (172 acres) · CT 22 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home89% 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 82%
LessMore
Connecticut towns of 2,500+ (155)Ahead of 51%
Connecticut towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 15%; the U.S., 4%), so Plainville’s 8% is ahead of 16% of Connecticut towns, while its trails per square mile lead 72% 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 City of New Britain Public Watershed Lands, with 3.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Tomasso Nature Park
Nature preserve
11 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 9 parks & preserves
City of New Britain Public Watershed Lands131 acres · 3.8 mi of trail · City of New Britain Water Department
Trumbull Park20 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsTomasso Nature Park11 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsNorton Park65 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsNorthwest Park6 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsIgnacy Jan Paderewski Park36 acres
Sunset Rock State Park Scenic Reserve17 acres
Hamlin Pond Park13 acres · Town of Plainville
DirectionsFarmington Canal Line State Park Trail1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
507 conserved acres
8% of Plainville’s land. Who manages Plainville’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city133 ac
State conservation71 ac
Not recorded301 ac
Local Other or Unknown · 266 acLocal Park · 122 acUnknown Easement · 71 acWatershed Protection Area · 18 acState Park · 16 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 71 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 26 of 31 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unknown Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 266 | Unknown |
| Norton Park Local Park | Town or city | 65 | Open |
| Padarewski Park Local Park | Town or city | 37 | Open |
| Hamlin Pond Watershed Protection Area | Town or city | 18 | Closed |
| Northwest Park Local Park | Not recorded | 16 | Unknown |
| Sunset Rock State Park Scenic Reserve State Park | Not recorded | 16 | Unknown |
| Tomasso Nature Park Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 13 | Open |
| Trumbull Park Local Park | Not recorded | 4 | Unknown |
| Crescent Lake Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
12 places to go in Plainville
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Plainville
Norton Park PoolIn Norton Park
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Plainville
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Boat launches in Plainville
1 boat launch without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Plainville
7 scenic views without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Peaks in Plainville
Bradley Mountain679 ft elevation · In City of New Britain Public Watershed Lands
DirectionsCampground Hill433 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
4 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
7.6 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.2 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
2.2 mi
off-road bike paths
5.2 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
10Baseball
7Tennis
4Basketball
3Soccer
1Skate park
1Football
1Softball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →4 places on the National Register, one a National Historic Landmark
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 2 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Plainville: 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 | 48 | 60 | 71 | 79 | 85 | 83 | 75 | 63 | 51 | 41 |
| Rain (in) | 3.6 | 3.2 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 3.8 | 4.6 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 4.5 | 5.3 | 4.0 | 4.5 |
February is the driest month (3.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 5.3 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Plainville →
Next door
Plainville and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plainville | 8% | 1.9 | 10 | 89% | A− |
| Bristol | 6% | 1.1 | 10 | 71% | B+ |
| Farmington | 27% | 2.4 | 71 | 88% | A+ |
| New Britain | 7% | 1.2 | 8 | 89% | A− |
| Southington | 9% | 1.9 | 11 | 36% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Plainville
Where can I hike in Plainville?
The longest trail networks: City of New Britain Public Watershed Lands, 3.8 miles; Trumbull Park, 0.6 miles; Tomasso Nature Park, 0.6 miles; Norton Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Plainville is conserved land?
8% 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 Plainville’s trails?
City of New Britain Public Watershed Lands and Trumbull Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Plainville?
7.6 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.2 of painted or protected lanes, 2.2 of off-road paths and 5.2 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Plainville?
14,454 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Plainville or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 172 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Plainville have?
Ahead of 82% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #76 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 Plainville 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 →