Walnut Hill Woods
Nature preserve
109 acres1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Photo: ToddC4176 · CC BY-SA 3.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Buckland
Buckland has 268 acres of parks, 131 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Walnut Hill Woods (1 mi). 9% of Buckland’s land is conserved, about 1,133 acres. 15 miles of mapped trail cross Buckland, 0.7 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 81% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
9%
1,133 acres · of 19.7 sq mi of land
Trails
15 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
268 ac
131 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
52%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,594 ft
Hog Mountain
Lakes & rivers
6
What kind of outdoors town is Buckland?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Buckland have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Buckland is ahead of 81% of U.S. towns. 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 Buckland’s overall grade.
Conserved land9% of the land · typical MA town 21% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (15 mi) · MA 1.9 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land131 acres of park per 1,000 residents (268 acres) · MA 91 · U.S. 13AParks close to home52% of residents within a half mile of a park · MA 93% · U.S. 72%C+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 81%
LessMore
Massachusetts towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 21%; the U.S., 4%), so Buckland’s 9% is ahead of 5% of Massachusetts towns, while its trails per square mile lead 11% of them.
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 Walnut Hill Woods, with 1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Kenneth Dubuque Memorial State Forest
Nature preserve
37 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Veterans Memorial Field
Park
4 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
1,133 conserved acres
9% of Buckland’s land. Who manages Buckland’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State parks498 ac
State conservation414 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits310 ac
Town or city152 ac
State natural resources119 ac
Not recorded329 ac
Conservation Easement · 982 acRecreation or Education Easement · 318 acState Resource Management Area · 135 acPrivate Conservation · 112 acAgricultural Easement · 83 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 693 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 4 of 59 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lucky Dog Woods Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 112 | Closed |
| Buckland State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 91 | Open |
| Mohawk Trail Regional School Athletic Fields Research or Educational Area | Not recorded | 50 | Open |
| Gardner Falls Recreation Area Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 49 | Restricted |
| Kenneth Dubuque Memorial State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 44 | Open |
| Buckland Historical Society Local Historic or Cultural Area | Not recorded | 42 | Open |
| Buckland Recreation Area Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 18 | Open |
| Stone Road Ice Pond Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 14 | Closed |
| Mary Lyon Birthplace Private Historic or Cultural | Not recorded | 13 | Restricted |
| Veterans Memorial Field Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 4 | Open |
1 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
13 places to go in Buckland
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Buckland
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Buckland
Hog Mountain1,594 ft elevation
DirectionsMary Lyon Hill1,581 ft elevation
DirectionsDrake Hill1,535 ft elevation
DirectionsMoonshine Hill1,503 ft elevation
DirectionsLone Tree Hill1,437 ft elevation
DirectionsSnow Mountain1,270 ft elevation
DirectionsPutnam Hill1,198 ft elevation
DirectionsGoodnow Hill1,181 ft elevation
Directions4 more peaks
Walnut Hill1,181 ft elevation
DirectionsOrcutt Hill1,106 ft elevation
DirectionsJohnson Hill1,007 ft elevation
DirectionsWest Mountain804 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails and 6 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 2.6 mi
Cross Country Running Course0.8 mi
Big Trees0.2 mi
Biking & 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
4Tennis
2Baseball
1Football
1Field hockey
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →4 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The best walking months in Buckland: 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 | 36 | 44 | 58 | 70 | 78 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 61 | 49 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 3.6 | 3.2 | 3.9 | 4.2 | 4.0 | 4.7 | 4.4 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.8 | 3.7 | 4.5 |
February is the driest month (3.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.8 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Buckland →
Next door
Buckland 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buckland | 9% | 0.7 | 131 | 52% | A− |
| Shelburne | 23% | 0.6 | 684 | 72% | A |
| Charlemont | 23% | 1.6 | 137 | 24% | A |
| Shelburne Falls | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Conway | 32% | 1.6 | 2,118 | 47% | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Buckland
Where can I hike in Buckland?
The longest trail networks: Walnut Hill Woods, 1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Buckland is conserved land?
9% 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 Buckland’s trails?
Walnut Hill Woods and Kenneth Dubuque Memorial State Forest don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Buckland?
54,412 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Buckland or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 337 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Buckland have?
Ahead of 81% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Buckland 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 →