Peters River Park
Managed by Town of Bellingham Conservation Commission
111 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: John Phelan · CC BY 3.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Bellingham
11% of Bellingham’s land is conserved: 1,328 acres
15 miles of mapped trail cross Bellingham, 0.8 per square mile of land. 577 acres are parks and preserves, 33 per 1,000 residents. 77% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 85% of U.S. towns · #253 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it
Conserved land
11%
1,328 acres · of 18.3 sq mi of land
Trails
15 mi
0.8 per sq mi of land
Park land
577 ac
33 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
77%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
2.8 mi
2.8 mi paths
Highest peak
351 ft
Scott Hill
Lakes & rivers
9
2 beaches
What kind of outdoors town is Bellingham?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Bellingham have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Bellingham is ahead of 85% of U.S. towns, #253 of 283 in Massachusetts. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; conserved land ranks highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Bellingham’s overall grade.
Conserved land11% of the land · typical MA town 21% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (15 mi) · MA 1.9 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land33 acres of park per 1,000 residents (577 acres) · MA 91 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home77% 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 85%
LessMore
Massachusetts towns of 2,500+ (283)Ahead of 11%
Massachusetts towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 21%; the U.S., 4%), so Bellingham’s 11% is ahead of 12% of Massachusetts towns, while its trails per square mile lead 13% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be 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
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
R.Belanger Drive
Nature preserve
39 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Charles River Land
Nature preserve
29 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
John Alden Circle
Nature preserve
20 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 7 parks & preserves
Peters River Park111 acres · Town of Bellingham Conservation Commission
DirectionsR.Belanger Drive39 acres
Charles River Land29 acres
John Alden Circle20 acres
Rosenfeld Way9 acres
Bellingham Town Common8 acres
DirectionsSouth Bellingham Common1 acres
Who protects it
1,328 conserved acres
11% of Bellingham’s land. Who manages Bellingham’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city437 ac
Other state land190 ac
Army Corps of Engineers130 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits26 ac
Not recorded755 ac
Local Other or Unknown · 363 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 257 acConservation Easement · 245 acAgricultural Easement · 190 acWatershed Protection Area · 141 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 231 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 4 of 68 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| New England Country Club Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 194 | Restricted |
| Pulaski Blvd. Local Park | Town or city | 101 | Open |
| Anp Gift Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 88 | Open |
| Wells #1 & #2 Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 66 | Closed |
| Saint Jean the Baptist Cemetery Private Historic or Cultural | Not recorded | 63 | Unknown |
| Bungay Brook Golf Club Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 56 | Restricted |
| High Street Fields Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 54 | Open |
| Keough/Pinecrest School Research or Educational Area | Not recorded | 47 | Open |
| Bellingham Estates Conservation Area Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 34 | Open |
| Bellingham Water Supply Land Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 33 | Closed |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
15 places to go in Bellingham
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Bellingham
2 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Public pools in Bellingham
Pool
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Bellingham
N. Bellingham Playground
DirectionsPlus 10 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Peaks in Bellingham
Scott Hill351 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail and 9 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 0.8 mi
Southern New England Trunkline Trail0.3 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
2.8 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.8 mi
off-road bike paths
Southern New England Trunkline TrailBike route
0.3 miCourts & fields
12Baseball
5Basketball
2Tennis
1Pickleball
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
North Bellingham Cemetery and Oak Hill CemeteryDistrict · listed 2012
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Bellingham: April 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 | 15.2 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 37 | 39 | 47 | 59 | 70 | 78 | 83 | 82 | 75 | 63 | 52 | 41 |
| Rain (in) | 4.0 | 3.5 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 3.6 | 4.2 | 3.6 | 3.9 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 4.8 |
February is the driest month (3.5 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 5.0 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Bellingham →
Next door
Bellingham and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Franklin Town51 miMilford34 miMendon29 miBlackstone24 miBellingham15 miMedway10 miHopedale10 miWoonsocket6.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bellingham | 11% | 0.8 | 33 | 77% | A |
| Mendon | 10% | 1.7 | 139 | 55% | A |
| Hopedale | 23% | 2.0 | 86 | 83% | A+ |
| Blackstone | 9% | 2.2 | 41 | 79% | A |
| Franklin Town | 15% | 1.9 | 38 | 93% | A+ |
| Medway | 8% | 0.9 | 21 | 90% | A− |
| Milford | 11% | 2.3 | 16 | 86% | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Bellingham
How much of Bellingham is conserved land?
11% 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 Bellingham’s trails?
Peters River Park and R.Belanger Drive don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Bellingham?
2.8 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.8 of off-road paths. Named routes: Southern New England Trunkline Trail.
Is there public land near Bellingham?
39,599 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Bellingham or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 606 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Bellingham have?
Ahead of 85% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #253 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 Bellingham 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 →