Menotomy Rocks Park
Managed by Town of Arlington Parks Department
34 acres2 mi of trail
Ring PathPond Loop
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Tim Pierce · CC BY 3.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Arlington
10% of Arlington’s land is conserved, and virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 9.4 miles of mapped trail cross Arlington, 1.8 per square mile of land. 10% of Arlington’s land is conserved, about 320 acres.
Ahead of 87% of U.S. towns · #242 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it
Conserved land
10%
320 acres · of 5.1 sq mi of land
Trails
9.4 mi
1.8 per sq mi of land
Park land
277 ac
6.0 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
14 mi
5.6 mi lanes · 6.5 mi paths
Highest peak
351 ft
Turkey Hill
Lakes & rivers
6
1 beach · 4 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Arlington?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Land that stays wild10% of the land is conserved; a typical Massachusetts town, 21%.Parks close to homeVirtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park.A trail town1.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 92% of U.S. towns.History along the way57 places on the National Register.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Arlington have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Arlington is ahead of 87% of U.S. towns, #242 of 283 in Massachusetts. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Arlington’s overall grade.
Conserved land10% of the land · typical MA town 21% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (9 mi) · MA 1.9 · U.S. 0.4APark land6.0 acres of park per 1,000 residents (277 acres) · MA 91 · U.S. 13CParks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · MA 93% · U.S. 72%A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 87%
LessMore
Massachusetts towns of 2,500+ (283)Ahead of 15%
Massachusetts towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 21%; the U.S., 4%), so Arlington’s 10% is ahead of 6% of Massachusetts towns, while its trails per square mile lead 44% of them.
Water is 6% of Arlington’s area (0 of 5 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 9%.
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 Menotomy Rocks Park, with 2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
McClennen Park
Managed by Arlington Recreation
23 acres0.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Crusher Lot
Managed by Town of Arlington Recreation Department
6 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Turkey Hill Reservation
Managed by City of Arlington Park and Recreation Commission
14 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 31 parks & preserves
Menotomy Rocks Park34 acres · 2 mi of trail · Town of Arlington Parks Department
McClennen Park23 acres · 0.8 mi of trail · Arlington Recreation
DirectionsMt. Gilboa10 acres · 0.8 mi of trail
DirectionsCrusher Lot6 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · Town of Arlington Recreation Department
DirectionsTurkey Hill Reservation14 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · City of Arlington Park and Recreation Commission
Hill's Hill5 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsArlington Reservoir Area25 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsRobbins Farm Park11 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Minuteman Bikeway8 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsBuzzell Field4 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsFlorence Field4 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsWellington Park3 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Town of Arlington Parks Department
DirectionsCrosby School Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Waldo Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsMystic River Reservation12 acres
DirectionsThorndike Field9 acres
DirectionsMystic Valley Parkway8 acres
DirectionsSpy Pond Field7 acres
DirectionsSpy Pond Park6 acres
DirectionsNorth Union Playground5 acres
DirectionsMeadowbrook Park4 acres
DirectionsMagnolia Park4 acres
DirectionsPoet's Corner Park4 acres
Arlington Catholic High School Field3 acres
DirectionsArlington Town Hall Park3 acres
DirectionsPark Circle2 acres
Parallel Park1 acres
Forest St Conservation1 acres · Town of Arlington
Cooke's Hollow1 acres
DirectionsSymmes Hospital Memorial Park1 acres
DirectionsNora A. Brown Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
320 conserved acres
10% of Arlington’s land. Water is left out: Arlington has 5.1 square miles of land and 0.3 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Arlington’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city106 ac
Joint35 ac
Other state land1 ac
Not recorded189 ac
Local Other or Unknown · 78 acLocal Park · 69 acLocal Historic or Cultural Area · 45 acState Park · 43 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 36 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 11 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 58 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mt Pleasant Cemetery Local Historic or Cultural Area | Not recorded | 42 | Open |
| Winchester Country Club Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 36 | Restricted |
| Menotomy Rocks Playground Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 35 | Open |
| Mcclennen Park Local Park | Joint | 25 | Open |
| Mystic River Reservation State Park | Not recorded | 22 | Open |
| Alewife Brook Reservation State Park | Not recorded | 20 | Open |
| Saint Paul's Catholic Cemetery Private Historic or Cultural | Not recorded | 14 | Unknown |
| Turkey Hill Reservation Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 11 | Open |
| W A Peirce Fields Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 10 | Open |
| Mount Gilboa Local Park | Town or city | 9 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
59 places to go in Arlington
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Arlington
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Swimming spots in Arlington
1 swimming spot without a name on the map.
Playgrounds in Arlington
Magnolia PlaygroundIn Magnolia Park
DirectionsMcClennen Park PlaygroundIn McClennen Park
DirectionsNicole L. Reinhart Memorial Playground at Cutter ParkIn Cutter/Reinhart Park
DirectionsRobbins Farm PlaygroundHours: sunrise-sunset · In Robbins Farm Park
DirectionsWhittemore-Robbins PlaygroundIn Arlington Town Hall Park
Directions40 playgrounds are on OpenStreetMap in all; the list shows named ones from the first 30.
Dog parks in Arlington
Thorndike Dog ParkIn Thorndike Field
DirectionsBoat launches in Arlington
Spy Pond Boat Launch
DirectionsPlus 3 boat launches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Scenic views in Arlington
7 scenic views without a name on the map.
Peaks in Arlington
Turkey Hill351 ft elevation · In Turkey Hill Reservation
DirectionsMount Gilboa312 ft elevation · In Mt. Gilboa
DirectionsArlington Heights Hills279 ft elevation
DirectionsCommunity gardens in Arlington
Wildlife Habitat GardenIn Arlington Reservoir Area
DirectionsPlus 1 community garden without a name on the map.
Trails & water
2 named trails and 6 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 2.7 miUnpaved · 4.7 mi
Ring Path0.5 mi
Pond Loop0.3 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
14 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
5.6 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
6.5 mi
off-road bike paths
2.0 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
21Basketball
16Baseball
14Soccer
13Tennis
3Pickleball
2Multi-sport
1Skate park
1Lacrosse
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →57 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 14 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Old Schwamb MillBuilding · listed 1971
About itArlington Center Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1974
About itRussell, Jason HouseBuilding · listed 1974
About itFowle-Reed-Wyman HouseBuilding · listed 1975
About itEphraim Cutter HouseBuilding · listed 1978
About itButterfield-Whittemore HouseBuilding · listed 1978
About itCapt. Benjamin Locke HouseBuilding · listed 1978
About itCalvary Methodist ChurchBuilding · listed 1983
About itGreek Orthodox ChurchBuilding · listed 1983
About itPleasant Street Congregational ChurchBuilding · listed 1983
About itAlfred E. Robindreau HouseBuilding · listed 1985
About itArlington Coal & LumberBuilding · listed 1985
About it45 more on the History page.
When to get out
The best walking months in Arlington: 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 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 36 | 39 | 46 | 58 | 68 | 77 | 83 | 82 | 74 | 62 | 52 | 42 |
| Rain (in) | 3.6 | 3.4 | 4.4 | 4.1 | 3.6 | 4.2 | 3.6 | 3.6 | 3.8 | 4.6 | 3.9 | 4.6 |
February is the driest month (3.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.6 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Arlington →
Next door
Arlington 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arlington | 10% | 1.8 | 6 | 99%+ | A |
| Belmont | 17% | 3.5 | 14 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Medford | 30% | 5.5 | 24 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Cambridge | 15% | 1.7 | 5 | 99%+ | A |
| Somerville | 5% | 0.5 | 2 | 99%+ | B |
| Lexington | 22% | 4.0 | 61 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Winchester | 20% | 3.5 | 22 | 99%+ | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Arlington
Where can I hike in Arlington?
The longest trail networks: Menotomy Rocks Park, 2 miles; McClennen Park, 0.8 miles; Mt. Gilboa, 0.8 miles; Crusher Lot, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Arlington is conserved land?
10% of its land, against a typical 21% for a Massachusetts town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Arlington’s trails?
Menotomy Rocks Park and McClennen Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Arlington?
14 miles of bike routes are on the map: 5.6 of painted or protected lanes, 6.5 of off-road paths and 2.0 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Arlington?
36,498 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Arlington or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 283 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Arlington have?
Ahead of 87% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #242 of 283 in Massachusetts. 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 Arlington 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 →