Myles Standish State Forest
Nature preserve
1,868 acres22.9 mi of trail
Dunham TrailEast Head Loop
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: John Phelan · CC BY-SA 3.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Carver
Carver has 93 miles of mapped trails, 2.5 for every square mile of land
905 acres are parks and preserves, 77 per 1,000 residents. 15% of Carver’s land is conserved, about 3,586 acres. The biggest trail networks: Myles Standish State Forest (22.9 mi).
Ahead of 91% of U.S. towns · #215 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it
Conserved land
15%
3,586 acres · of 37.3 sq mi of land
Trails
93 mi
2.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
905 ac
77 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
55%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.2 mi
1.1 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
27
What kind of outdoors town is Carver?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Carver have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Carver is ahead of 91% of U.S. towns, #215 of 283 in Massachusetts. Trail miles hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Carver’s overall grade.
Conserved land15% of the land · typical MA town 21% · U.S. 4%A−Trails2.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (93 mi) · MA 1.9 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land77 acres of park per 1,000 residents (905 acres) · MA 91 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home55% 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 91%
LessMore
Massachusetts towns of 2,500+ (283)Ahead of 24%
Massachusetts towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 21%; the U.S., 4%), so Carver’s 15% is ahead of 24% of Massachusetts towns, while its trails per square mile lead 65% of them.
Water is 6% of Carver’s area (2 of 40 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 14%.
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 Myles Standish State Forest, with 22.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Muddy Pond
Nature preserve
72 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Griffith Cr
Nature preserve
39 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Savory Ave Historical Site
Nature preserve
17 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 8 parks & preserves
Myles Standish State Forest1,868 acres · 22.9 mi of trail
DirectionsMuddy Pond72 acres
Griffith Cr39 acres
Savory Ave Historical Site17 acres
DirectionsPurchase Street11 acres
King Property10 acres
Shurtleff Park5 acres · Town of Carver
Johns Pond Beach1 acres
Who protects it
3,586 conserved acres
15% of Carver’s land. Water is left out: Carver has 37.3 square miles of land and 2.4 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Carver’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits518 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)74 ac
State fish & wildlife72 ac
Town or city34 ac
Not recorded3,139 ac
State Resource Management Area · 1,853 acState Conservation Area · 589 acConservation Easement · 371 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 293 acLocal Other or Unknown · 231 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 340 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 3 of 50 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Myles Standish State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 1,853 | Open |
| Atwood Reservoir Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 517 | Open |
| Carver Sportmans Club Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 215 | Restricted |
| South Meadow Great Cedar Swamp Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 148 | Open |
| Carver High School Research or Educational Area | Not recorded | 96 | Unknown |
| King Richards Faire Grounds Private Historic or Cultural | Not recorded | 80 | Open |
| Muddy Pond Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 72 | Restricted |
| Shady Acres Campground Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 54 | Open |
| Savery Meadows Conservation Area Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 34 | Open |
| Indian Street Conservation Area Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 30 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
9 places to go in Carver
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Carver
George Williams Playground
DirectionsPlus 6 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Campgrounds in Carver
Pinewood Way Campground
DirectionsPlus 1 campground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
2 named trails and 27 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 2.6 miUnpaved · 15.0 mi
East Head Loop1.1 mi
Dunham Trail1.0 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
A Godfrey Bog ReservoirreservoirAtwood Lower ReservoirreservoirAtwood Upper ReservoirreservoirBarrett PondBates PondBuccaneer's BaypondBumpus Bog ReservoirreservoirClear Bottom PondCole Mill PondreservoirCooper PondCrane Brook Bog ReservoirreservoirDunham PondEast Head Bog ReservoirreservoirGolden Field PondreservoirHarwich ReservoirreservoirJohns PondLower Sampson PondreservoirMuddy PondreservoirPlymouth Road PondreservoirRocky Meadow Brook PondreservoirSampson PondShaw Bog ReservoirreservoirSouth Meadow Brook ReservoirreservoirSouth Meadow PondreservoirVaughn PondWeweantic River ReservoirreservoirWeweantic River
Biking & sports
1.2 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.1 mi
off-road bike paths
0.1 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
9Baseball
5Basketball
5Tennis
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Carver: 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 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 39 | 40 | 47 | 57 | 68 | 76 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 63 | 53 | 43 |
| Rain (in) | 4.2 | 3.7 | 5.4 | 4.5 | 3.6 | 3.8 | 3.2 | 3.7 | 4.2 | 5.0 | 4.5 | 4.9 |
July is the driest month (3.2 in) and the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 5.4 inches fall in March, the wettest month. The climate in Carver →
Next door
Carver 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carver | 15% | 2.5 | 77 | 55% | A |
| Middleborough | 21% | 1.4 | 267 | 64% | A |
| Plymouth | 37% | 6.0 | 101 | 78% | A+ |
| Plympton | 3% | 2.7 | 37 | 38% | B+ |
| Wareham | 20% | 3.2 | 114 | 95% | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Carver
Where can I hike in Carver?
The longest trail networks: Myles Standish State Forest, 22.9 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Carver is conserved land?
15% 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 Carver’s trails?
Myles Standish State Forest and Muddy Pond don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Carver?
1.2 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.1 of off-road paths and 0.1 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Carver?
57,293 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Carver or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 3,007 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Carver have?
Ahead of 91% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #215 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 Carver 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 →