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MillersRiverMAPhoto: Richard B. Johnson · CC BY-SA 3.0
A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Athol

Athol has 4,932 acres of parks, 411 for every 1,000 residents

29% of Athol’s land is conserved, about 6,019 acres. 38 miles of mapped trail cross Athol, 1.2 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Bearsden Conservation Area (15.3 mi), Millers River Wildlife Management Area (5.4 mi), South Athol Conservation Area (3.1 mi).

Ahead of 96% of U.S. towns · #148 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it

Conserved land
29%
6,019 acres · of 32.3 sq mi of land
Trails
38 mi
1.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
4,932 ac
411 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
80%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.5 mi
0.5 mi lanes
Highest peak
1,293 ft
Pratt Hill
Lakes & rivers
14
3 beaches

What kind of outdoors town is Athol?

Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.

Room to roam411 acres of park per 1,000 residents; the typical U.S. town has 13.Land that stays wild29% of the land is conserved; a typical Massachusetts town, 21%.A trail town1.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 84% of U.S. towns.
Outdoors grade

How much outdoors does Athol have?

On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Athol is ahead of 96% of U.S. towns, #148 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 Athol’s overall grade.
Conserved land29% of the land · typical MA town 21% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (38 mi) · MA 1.9 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land411 acres of park per 1,000 residents (4,932 acres) · MA 91 · U.S. 13AParks close to home80% 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 48%

Massachusetts towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 21%; the U.S., 4%), so Athol’s 29% is ahead of 71% of Massachusetts towns, while its trails per square mile lead 26% 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.

12345
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 Bearsden Conservation Area, with 15.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.

Bearsden Conservation Area

Nature preserve
1,599 acres15.3 mi of trail
Round Top TrailDeep Cut Bypass TrailMandell Road TrailThousand Acre Brook Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗

Millers River Wildlife Management Area

Nature preserve
2,151 acres5.4 mi of trail
Thousand Acre Brook TrailObservation Hill TrailPaine Swamp Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailhead

South Athol Conservation Area

Nature preserve
214 acres3.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet

Skyfields Arboretum

Managed by Mount Grace Conservation Trust
37 acres1.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot

Tully River Reservation

Nature preserve
74 acres0.7 mi of trail
Tully Lake Loop Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 16 parks & preserves
Bearsden Conservation Area1,599 acres · 15.3 mi of trail
Directions
Millers River Wildlife Management Area2,151 acres · 5.4 mi of trail
Directions
South Athol Conservation Area214 acres · 3.1 mi of trail
Skyfields Arboretum37 acres · 1.3 mi of trail · Mount Grace Conservation Trust
Directions
Tully River Reservation74 acres · 0.7 mi of trail
Neale Conservation Area29 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Silver Lake Park25 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Directions
Uptown Common1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Petersham State Forest163 acres
Cass Meadow Conservation Area21 acres
Tully Brook Conservation Area21 acres
Minnie French Cons. Area18 acres
Fish Park5 acres
Directions
Little League Park3 acres
Tully Mountain Wildlife Management Area1 acres
Lake Park1 acres
Directions
Who protects it

6,019 conserved acres

29% of Athol’s land. Who manages Athol’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.

State fish & wildlife1,062 ac
State natural resources516 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits427 ac
Other or Unknown Federal Land290 ac
Other state land226 ac
State parks165 ac
Town or city158 ac
State Conservation Area · 2,138 acConservation Easement · 1,636 acLocal Other or Unknown · 1,485 acState Resource Management Area · 778 acForest Stewardship Easement · 508 ac
Good to know

Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 1,436 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 4 of 118 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.

The biggest protected parcels
Parcel (PAD-US)Managed byAcresPublic access
Millers River Wildlife Management Area
State Conservation Area
Not recorded2,673Open
Bearsden Forest Conservation Area
Local Other or Unknown
Not recorded646Open
Bearsden Forest Cons Area
Local Other or Unknown
Not recorded311Open
South Athol Conservation Area
Local Other or Unknown
Not recorded199Open
Ellinwood Country Club
Private Other or Unknown
Not recorded176Restricted
Petersham State Forest
State Resource Management Area
Not recorded163Open
New England Equestrian Center
Local Other or Unknown
Not recorded149Open
Athol Sportsmens Club
Private Conservation
Not recorded143Restricted
Pequoig Bowmen Club
Private Other or Unknown
Not recorded113Restricted
Beardsen Forest Conservation Area
Local Other or Unknown
Not recorded81Open

5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.

Things to do

26 places to go in Athol

Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.

Peaks in Athol
Pratt Hill1,293 ft elevation · In Millers River Wildlife Management Area
Directions
Round Top1,273 ft elevation · In Bearsden Conservation Area
Directions
Cobb Hill1,234 ft elevation
Directions
Bemis Hill1,181 ft elevation · In Bearsden Conservation Area
Directions
Pierce Hill1,145 ft elevation · In Bearsden Conservation Area
Directions
Little Round Top1,119 ft elevation
Directions
Chestnut Hill1,010 ft elevation
Directions
High Knob984 ft elevation
Directions
4 more peaks
Sheep Rock965 ft elevation
Directions
Conant Hill935 ft elevation
Directions
Kelton Hill823 ft elevation
Directions
Rice Hill705 ft elevation · In South Athol Conservation Area
Directions
Trails & water

10 named trails and 14 lakes & rivers

Named trails
Open to bikes · 5.3 miHorses · 1.9 miUnpaved · 9.3 mi
Thousand Acre Brook Trail1.9 mi
Round Top Trail1.7 mi
Observation Hill Trail1.1 mi
Deep Cut Bypass Trail1.1 mi
Mandell Road Trail1.0 mi
Pipeline Trail0.9 mi
Tully Lake Loop Trail0.7 mi
Bemis Hill Trail0.6 mi
Sheep Rock Trail0.5 mi
Red Dot Trail0.4 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Davenport PondreservoirLake EllislakeMillers River ReservoirreservoirNewton ReservoirreservoirPaige PondpondReservoir Number 1reservoirSouth Athol PondpondSportsmans PondreservoirSummer Street ReservoirreservoirThousand Acre ReservoirreservoirWard PondpondWhite PondreservoirMillers RiverTully River
Biking & sports

0.5 miles of bike routes

Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.

0.5 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
Courts & fields
5Equestrian
3Baseball
3Softball
2Tennis
2Basketball
1Soccer
1Football
1Pickleball

Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.

History along the way

3 places on the National Register

The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 25 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.

History →
Pequoig HotelBuilding · listed 1978
About it
Old Town HallBuilding · listed 1987
About it
Athol High SchoolBuilding · listed 2011
About it
When to get out

The best walking months in Athol: May and July 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.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)9.410.511.813.314.615.315.013.912.411.09.79.1
High (°F)333644576977828073604838
Rain (in)3.43.03.73.73.74.54.24.54.34.83.64.1

February is the driest month (3.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.8 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Athol →

Next door

Athol and its neighbors

Athol has the second most mapped trails of the 6 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.

Petersham74 miAthol38 miRoyalston38 miNew Salem17 miPhillipston16 miOrange14 mi
TownConserved
of land		Trail mi
per sq mi		Park acres
per 1,000		Near a park
½ mile		Outdoors
Athol29%1.241180%A+
Orange34%0.476379%A
Phillipston41%0.72,11571%A
Royalston37%0.96,51999%+A+
Petersham77%1.44,59074%A+
New Salem81%0.427749%A−

The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.

Questions about parks and trails in Athol

Where can I hike in Athol?

The longest trail networks: Bearsden Conservation Area, 15.3 miles; Millers River Wildlife Management Area, 5.4 miles; South Athol Conservation Area, 3.1 miles; Skyfields Arboretum, 1.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.

How much of Athol is conserved land?

29% 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 Athol’s trails?

Bearsden Conservation Area and Millers River Wildlife Management Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.

Where can I bike in Athol?

0.5 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.5 of painted or protected lanes.

Is there public land near Athol?

71,685 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Athol or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 5,024 of them inside the town line.

How much outdoors does Athol have?

Ahead of 96% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #148 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 Athol neighbors.

Town Square →
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 →