West Thompson Dam Recreation Area
Managed by United States Army Corps of Engineers
1,175 acres18.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Ambarenya13 · CC BY-SA 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Thompson
Thompson has 664 acres of parks, 71 for every 1,000 residents
49 miles of mapped trail cross Thompson, 1.1 per square mile of land. 11% of Thompson’s land is conserved, about 3,379 acres. The biggest trail networks: West Thompson Dam Recreation Area (18.8 mi), Bull Hill Preserve (4.2 mi), Quaddick State Park (1.4 mi).
Ahead of 84% of U.S. towns · #68 of 155 in Connecticut. What drives it
Conserved land
11%
3,379 acres · of 46.9 sq mi of land
Trails
49 mi
1.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
664 ac
71 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
53%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
8.3 mi
8.3 mi paths
Highest peak
650 ft
Fort Hill
Lakes & rivers
35
2 beaches · 4 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Thompson?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Thompson have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Thompson is ahead of 84% of U.S. towns, #68 of 155 in Connecticut. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Thompson’s overall grade.
Conserved land11% of the land · typical CT town 15% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (49 mi) · CT 1.4 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land71 acres of park per 1,000 residents (664 acres) · CT 22 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home53% 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 84%
LessMore
Connecticut towns of 2,500+ (155)Ahead of 56%
Connecticut towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 15%; the U.S., 4%), so Thompson’s 11% is ahead of 29% of Connecticut towns, while its trails per square mile lead 36% 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.
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 West Thompson Dam Recreation Area, with 18.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Bull Hill Preserve
Managed by Wyndham Land Trust
819 acres4.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Quaddick State Park
Managed by Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
86 acres1.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Robbins Preserve
Managed by Wyndham Land Trust
124 acres1.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Quaddick State Forest
Managed by State of Connecticut
455 acres1 mi of trail
Border Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Airline State Park Trail (Northern Section)
Managed by Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
162 acres0.4 mi of trail
Tri-State Marker Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailhead
All 27 parks & preserves
West Thompson Dam Recreation Area1,175 acres · 18.8 mi of trail · United States Army Corps of Engineers
DirectionsBull Hill Preserve819 acres · 4.2 mi of trail · Wyndham Land Trust
DirectionsQuaddick State Park86 acres · 1.4 mi of trail · Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
Robbins Preserve124 acres · 1.2 mi of trail · Wyndham Land Trust
DirectionsQuaddick State Forest455 acres · 1 mi of trail · State of Connecticut
Airline State Park Trail (Northern Section)162 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
DirectionsWest Thompson Road Open Space30 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Town of Thompson
Riverside Park19 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Town of Thompson
DirectionsTamler Preserve220 acres · Wyndham Land Trust
Lower Pond Preserve125 acres · Wyndham Land Trust
Long Pond Preserve73 acres · Wyndham Land Trust
Bull Hill Recreation Area69 acres · Town of Thompson
Leclair Preserve55 acres · Wyndham Land Trust
Blain Preserve27 acres · Wyndham Land Trust
McWilliam Preserve22 acres
Wieloch Preserve21 acres · Wyndham Land Trust
Ravenelle Road Open Space21 acres · Town of Thompson
Heritage Way Park15 acres · Town of Thompson
Thompson Little League Complex14 acres · Thompson Parks and Recreation
DirectionsWaldron–French River Preserve11 acres · Wyndham Land Trust
Quaddick Reservoir Water Access7 acres · State of Connecticut
O'Leary Preserve5 acres · Wyndham Land Trust
Thompson Green3 acres
Duhamel Park3 acres · Town of Thompson
DirectionsThompson War Memorial1 acres
DirectionsGrosvenordale Common1 acres · Town of Thompson
Mechanicsville Park1 acres · Town of Thompson
DirectionsWho protects it
3,379 conserved acres
11% of Thompson’s land. Who manages Thompson’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State conservation337 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits237 ac
Town or city232 ac
Private owners228 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)137 ac
Other state land69 ac
Not recorded2,515 ac
Private Other or Unknown · 1,519 acState Resource Management Area · 419 acConservation Easement · 374 acState Recreation Area · 373 acLocal Other or Unknown · 313 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 414 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 42 of 49 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unknown Private Agricultural | Private owners | 1,972 | Unknown |
| Quaddick State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 419 | Unknown |
| Quaddick Reservoir State Recreation Area | Not recorded | 368 | Unknown |
| Quaddick State Park State Park | Not recorded | 96 | Unknown |
| Airline State Park Trail (North Trail) State Park | State conservation | 65 | Open |
| Clemence Unknown | Not recorded | 37 | Unknown |
| Quaddick Reservoir Water Access State Recreation Area | Not recorded | 6 | Unknown |
| Town Common Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
22 places to go in Thompson
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Thompson
2 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in Thompson
6 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Boat launches in Thompson
Little Pond Boat Launch
DirectionsQuaddick Reservoir Boat Launch
DirectionsPlus 2 boat launches without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Thompson
1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Thompson
Fort Hill650 ft elevation
DirectionsBrandy Hill643 ft elevation
DirectionsThompson Hill594 ft elevation · In Thompson Green
DirectionsQuaddick Mountain591 ft elevation
DirectionsBuck Hill581 ft elevation
DirectionsSunset Hill568 ft elevation
DirectionsBull Hill515 ft elevation · In Bull Hill Preserve
DirectionsDepot Hill472 ft elevation
DirectionsPicnic areas in Thompson
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Trails & water
6 named trails and 35 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 21.0 miHorses · 1.7 miUnpaved · 27.0 mi
Border Trail1.5 mi
New Thompson Raceway0.6 mi
Tri-State Marker Loop Trail0.4 mi
Logee Road Extension0.3 mi
Tri-State Marker Trail0.2 mi
Culvert Trail0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Auger PondlakeCoderre PondlakeComan PondlakeDouglas Road PondDuck PondlakeDuhamel PondlakeFenners PondGrosvenordale PondlakeJacobs PondlakeJarvis PondlakeKingsbury PondLangers PondlakeLily PondlakeLittle PondlakeLower PondMansonville PondlakeMavis PondpondMechanicville PondreservoirNorth Grosvenordale PondreservoirPerry PondreservoirQuaddick ReservoirreservoirRavenelle PondspondReams PondSkedgill PondlakeSportsmans PondlakeStump PondreservoirThompson Water Company Pond No. 2reservoirWalker DamlakeWelch PondlakeWest Thompson LakereservoirWhitkowski PondsWhitmans PondlakeFrench RiverLong PondQuinebaug River
Biking & sports
8.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
8.3 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
8Tennis
6Basketball
6Soccer
3Baseball
1Softball
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 Thompson: 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) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 35 | 38 | 46 | 58 | 69 | 77 | 82 | 80 | 73 | 62 | 51 | 40 |
| Rain (in) | 3.9 | 3.4 | 4.5 | 4.4 | 3.6 | 4.3 | 3.8 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 4.7 |
February is the driest month (3.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 5.0 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Thompson →
Next door
Thompson and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Questions about parks and trails in Thompson
Where can I hike in Thompson?
The longest trail networks: West Thompson Dam Recreation Area, 18.8 miles; Bull Hill Preserve, 4.2 miles; Quaddick State Park, 1.4 miles; Robbins Preserve, 1.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Thompson is conserved land?
11% 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 Thompson’s trails?
West Thompson Dam Recreation Area and Bull Hill Preserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Thompson?
8.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 8.3 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Thompson?
23,213 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Thompson or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 664 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Thompson have?
Ahead of 84% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #68 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 Thompson 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 →