Mattatuck State Forest
Managed by Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
282 acres1.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
East Plymouth Historic District · Photo: JERRYE & ROY KLOTZ, M.D. · CC BY-SA 4.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Plymouth
9% of Plymouth’s land is conserved: 1,304 acres
The biggest trail networks: Mattatuck State Forest (1.8 mi). 17 miles of mapped trail cross Plymouth, 0.8 per square mile of land. 131 acres are parks and preserves, 11 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 68% of U.S. towns · #126 of 155 in Connecticut. What drives it
Conserved land
9%
1,304 acres · of 21.9 sq mi of land
Trails
17 mi
0.8 per sq mi of land
Park land
131 ac
11 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
60%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
968 ft
Pine Hill
Lakes & rivers
33
3 beaches · 1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Plymouth?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Plymouth have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Plymouth is ahead of 68% of U.S. towns, #126 of 155 in Connecticut. Conserved land holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Plymouth’s overall grade.
Conserved land9% of the land · typical CT town 15% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (17 mi) · CT 1.4 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land11 acres of park per 1,000 residents (131 acres) · CT 22 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home60% 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 68%
LessMore
Connecticut towns of 2,500+ (155)Ahead of 19%
Connecticut towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 15%; the U.S., 4%), so Plymouth’s 9% is ahead of 19% of Connecticut towns, while its trails per square mile lead 20% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B to B+. 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 Mattatuck State Forest, with 1.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Lake Winfield Recreation Area
Nature preserve
22 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Buttermilk Falls Nature Preserve
Park
16 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 9 parks & preserves
Mattatuck State Forest282 acres · 1.8 mi of trail · Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
DirectionsButtermilk Falls Nature Preserve16 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Lake Winfield Recreation Area22 acres
Veterans Memorial Playground4 acres
DirectionsThomaston Dam3 acres · United States Army Corps of Engineers
Baldwin Park3 acres
DirectionsCity of Bristol Watershed Lands2 acres · City of Bristol
City of Bristol Land1 acres
Town Hall Field1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
1,304 conserved acres
9% of Plymouth’s land. Who manages Plymouth’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State conservation175 ac
Town or city32 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits29 ac
Not recorded1,218 ac
State Resource Management Area · 897 acConservation Easement · 194 acLocal Other or Unknown · 166 acLocal Conservation Area · 69 acLocal Resource Management Area · 45 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 42 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 25 of 30 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mattatuck State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 897 | Unknown |
| Plymouth Reservoir Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 163 | Unknown |
| Lyga Parcel Local Conservation Area | Not recorded | 49 | Unknown |
| Plymouth Town Forest Local Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 45 | Unknown |
| Lake Winfield Recreation Area Local Park | Town or city | 22 | Open |
| Unknown Local Conservation Area | Not recorded | 15 | Unknown |
| Kleindienst Family Preserve (Armbruster Road) Private Conservation | Not recorded | 12 | Unknown |
| Kleindienst Family Preserve (Washington Road) Private Conservation | Not recorded | 11 | Unknown |
| Buttermilk Falls Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 10 | Unknown |
| Town Open Space (judd Road) Local Park | Not recorded | 8 | Unknown |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
32 places to go in Plymouth
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Plymouth
Boating Side
DirectionsWaterfront
DirectionsPlus 1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Boat launches in Plymouth
1 boat launch without a name on the map.
Waterfalls in Plymouth
Buttermilk FallsIn Buttermilk Falls Nature Preserve
DirectionsCascadeIn Mattatuck State Forest
DirectionsScenic views in Plymouth
1 scenic view without a name on the map.
Peaks in Plymouth
Pine Hill968 ft elevation
DirectionsHolt Hill945 ft elevation
DirectionsFall Mountain932 ft elevation
DirectionsTown Hill915 ft elevation
DirectionsMount Tobe876 ft elevation
DirectionsWood Key Hill814 ft elevation
DirectionsLane Hill787 ft elevation
DirectionsBirch Hill755 ft elevation
Directions1 more peak
Plymouth Hill702 ft elevation
DirectionsPicnic areas in Plymouth
Picnic Grove
DirectionsCampgrounds in Plymouth
49er's
DirectionsArrow North
DirectionsArrow South
DirectionsCamp MattatuckConnecticut Rivers Council, Boy Scouts of America (Scouting America)
DirectionsCedar
DirectionsCougar
DirectionsHawthorne
DirectionsLower Den
Directions7 more campgrounds
Maple
DirectionsMohawk
DirectionsPolaris
DirectionsScoutcraft Area
DirectionsTopside
DirectionsTrapper (DISUSED)
DirectionsUpper Den
DirectionsTrails & water
4 named trails and 33 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 4.1 mi
The Lake Trail0.8 mi
Gosinski Park0.1 mi
The Nature Trail0.1 mi
Maple Shortcut0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Alfieri PondreservoirBait PondpondBristol Reservoir Number 3reservoirBrophy PondlakeButtermilk PondEugene Park PondFall Mountain LakeGaylords PondGreystone PondreservoirHancock Brook LakereservoirHancock PondHidden LakereservoirIndian Heaven PondpondJohnson Brothers PondMarino PondpondMasterbone PondpondMcCoy PondreservoirMiddle PondreservoirMinor PondreservoirPlymouth LakereservoirPlymouth ReservoirreservoirPratt PondpondScott PondSeymours PondTerry Co PondTerryville Reservoir No 2Terryville Reservoir Number 3reservoirTomlinson PondlakeUpper PondreservoirVocarros PondreservoirWilton PondZeiner PondreservoirPequabuck River
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
2Softball
1Beach volleyball
1Soccer
1Basketball
1Baseball
1Football
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 2 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Plymouth: 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) | 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 | 69 | 77 | 82 | 80 | 73 | 62 | 50 | 39 |
| Rain (in) | 3.8 | 3.3 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 4.0 | 4.7 | 4.4 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 5.3 | 4.1 | 4.6 |
February is the driest month (3.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 5.3 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Plymouth →
Next door
Plymouth 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plymouth | 9% | 0.8 | 11 | 60% | B+ |
| Bristol | 6% | 1.1 | 10 | 71% | B+ |
| Thomaston | 19% | 1.0 | 37 | 82% | A |
| Harwinton | 14% | 1.5 | 38 | 17% | A− |
| Terryville | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Wolcott | 2% | 1.0 | 5 | 30% | C+ |
| Waterbury | 5% | 0.9 | 5 | 83% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Plymouth
Where can I hike in Plymouth?
The longest trail networks: Mattatuck State Forest, 1.8 miles; Buttermilk Falls Nature Preserve, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Plymouth is conserved land?
9% 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 Plymouth’s trails?
Mattatuck State Forest and Lake Winfield Recreation Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Plymouth?
11,034 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Plymouth or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 154 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Plymouth have?
Ahead of 68% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #126 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 Plymouth 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 →