Mount Watatic Reservation
Nature preserve
235 acres2.7 mi of trail
Lower Little DipperCascade TrailLiftline TrailSpruce Glade
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Ashby1495 · CC BY-SA 4.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Ashby
Ashby has 2,543 acres of parks, 792 for every 1,000 residents
32% of Ashby’s land is conserved, about 4,831 acres. 24 miles of mapped trail cross Ashby, 1.0 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Mount Watatic Reservation (2.7 mi), Jewell Hill (0.7 mi).
Ahead of 96% of U.S. towns · #141 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it
Conserved land
32%
4,831 acres · of 23.7 sq mi of land
Trails
24 mi
1.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
2,543 ac
792 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
82%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,512 ft
Blood Hill
Lakes & rivers
6
What kind of outdoors town is Ashby?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Ashby have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Ashby is ahead of 96% of U.S. towns, #141 of 283 in Massachusetts. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; park acres per resident rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Ashby’s overall grade.
Conserved land32% of the land · typical MA town 21% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (24 mi) · MA 1.9 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land792 acres of park per 1,000 residents (2,543 acres) · MA 91 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home82% of residents within a half mile of a park · MA 93% · U.S. 72%B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 96%
LessMore
Massachusetts towns of 2,500+ (283)Ahead of 50%
Massachusetts towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 21%; the U.S., 4%), so Ashby’s 32% is ahead of 77% of Massachusetts towns, while its trails per square mile lead 21% 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 Mount Watatic Reservation, with 2.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Jewell Hill
Nature preserve
74 acres0.7 mi of trail
Willard TrailFox PastureTrailCrocker Farm Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Ashby Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Massachusetts Department of Fish & Game
910 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Northern Watershed
Nature preserve
875 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 12 parks & preserves
Mount Watatic Reservation235 acres · 2.7 mi of trail
DirectionsJewell Hill74 acres · 0.7 mi of trail
DirectionsAshby Wildlife Management Area910 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Massachusetts Department of Fish & Game
DirectionsAshby Wildlife Conservation Easement120 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Northern Watershed875 acres
Trapfall Brook Access51 acres
Willard Brook State Forest31 acres
Scripture Hill Wildlife Management Area19 acres
Kater Fields13 acres
Watatic Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary10 acres · Massachusetts Department of Fish & Game
Squannacook River Wildlife Management Area3 acres
Morrison Conservation Land2 acres
Who protects it
4,831 conserved acres
32% of Ashby’s land. Who manages Ashby’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city987 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits954 ac
State natural resources801 ac
State fish & wildlife667 ac
State parks348 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government147 ac
Not recorded2,696 ac
Conservation Easement · 3,428 acState Conservation Area · 2,215 acState Resource Management Area · 360 acWatershed Protection Area · 170 acForest Stewardship Easement · 147 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 1,944 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 9 of 129 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Willard Brook State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 1,305 | Open |
| Ashby Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 858 | Open |
| Mount Watatic Reservation State Resource Management Area | Land trusts & nonprofits | 235 | Open |
| Fitchburg Water Supply Land Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 170 | Unknown |
| Camp Lapham Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 99 | Restricted |
| Nashua River Greenway Unknown | Not recorded | 80 | Unknown |
| 4-H Camp Middlesex Private Conservation | Not recorded | 75 | Restricted |
| Trapfall Brook Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 45 | Open |
| Caton Hill North Conservation Area Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 42 | Open |
| Locke Brook Conservation Area State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 23 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
11 places to go in Ashby
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Ashby
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Waterfalls in Ashby
Trap Falls
DirectionsPeaks in Ashby
Blood Hill1,512 ft elevation
DirectionsJones Hill1,302 ft elevation
DirectionsJuniper Hill912 ft elevation
DirectionsRattlesnake Hill837 ft elevation
DirectionsFort Hill791 ft elevation
DirectionsPicnic areas in Ashby
Trap Falls
DirectionsCampgrounds in Ashby
Damon Pond Campground
DirectionsTrails & water
23 named trails and 6 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.6 miUnpaved · 5.3 mi
Friends Loop Trail (Orange)1.6 mi
Rattlesnake1.4 mi
Brook Trail1.2 mi
Friends Trail (Yellow)0.9 mi
Blood Mt Trail0.8 mi
Rock and Roll0.5 mi
Wares Waldo East0.4 mi
Pearl Hill Brook Trail0.4 mi
Wares Waldo West0.4 mi
Lower Little Dipper0.4 mi
13 more trails
Lichen Garden
0.3 miCascade Trail
0.3 miLiftline Trail
0.3 miButterscotch
0.3 miBypass
0.3 miWillard Trail
0.2 miFox PastureTrail
0.2 miFriends Trail (Yellow) Dow
0.2 miSpruce Glade
0.2 miFriends (Yellow) Downhill
0.1 miBeginner MTB Trail
0.1 miMid State Trail
0.1 miCrocker Farm Trail
0.1 miBiking & 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
4Baseball
3Basketball
1Equestrian
1Tennis
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Ashby: 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) | 32 | 35 | 43 | 57 | 68 | 76 | 81 | 79 | 72 | 60 | 48 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 3.5 | 3.3 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 3.9 | 4.3 | 4.0 | 3.9 | 4.2 | 5.2 | 4.0 | 4.4 |
February is the driest month (3.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 5.2 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Ashby →
Next door
Ashby 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ashby | 32% | 1.0 | 792 | 82% | A+ |
| Ashburnham | 33% | 0.9 | 361 | 65% | A |
| Fitchburg | 20% | 1.5 | 33 | 93% | A+ |
| Townsend | 24% | 2.4 | 555 | 89% | A+ |
| Lunenburg | 23% | 2.4 | 228 | 93% | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Ashby
Where can I hike in Ashby?
The longest trail networks: Mount Watatic Reservation, 2.7 miles; Jewell Hill, 0.7 miles; Ashby Wildlife Management Area, 0.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Ashby is conserved land?
32% 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 Ashby’s trails?
Mount Watatic Reservation and Jewell Hill don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Ashby?
51,599 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Ashby or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 3,828 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Ashby have?
Ahead of 96% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #141 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 Ashby 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 →