Wilson Mountain Reservation
Nature preserve
198 acres3.8 mi of trail
Blue Blazed Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Kenneth C. Zirkel · CC BY 4.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Dedham
22% of Dedham’s land is conserved, and virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 21 miles of mapped trail cross Dedham, 2.0 per square mile of land. 22% of Dedham’s land is conserved, about 1,446 acres.
Ahead of 98% of U.S. towns · #99 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it
Conserved land
22%
1,446 acres · of 10.3 sq mi of land
Trails
21 mi
2.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,077 ac
43 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
3.8 mi
2.1 mi lanes
Highest peak
285 ft
Wilson Mountain
Lakes & rivers
7
What kind of outdoors town is Dedham?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Dedham have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Dedham is ahead of 98% of U.S. towns, #99 of 283 in Massachusetts. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Dedham’s overall grade.
Conserved land22% of the land · typical MA town 21% · U.S. 4%ATrails2.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (21 mi) · MA 1.9 · U.S. 0.4APark land43 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,077 acres) · MA 91 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · MA 93% · U.S. 72%A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 98%
LessMore
Massachusetts towns of 2,500+ (283)Ahead of 65%
Massachusetts towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 21%; the U.S., 4%), so Dedham’s 22% is ahead of 52% of Massachusetts towns, while its trails per square mile lead 53% 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 Wilson Mountain Reservation, with 3.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Cutler Park
Managed by Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation
178 acres3.7 mi of trail
Blue Heron Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Dedham Town Forest
Nature preserve
76 acres1.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Whitcomb Woods
Nature preserve
31 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Dedham Parks & Recreation Complex
Park
11 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 24 parks & preserves
Wilson Mountain Reservation198 acres · 3.8 mi of trail
DirectionsCutler Park178 acres · 3.7 mi of trail · Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation
DirectionsDedham Town Forest76 acres · 1.1 mi of trail
Whitcomb Woods31 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsDedham Parks & Recreation Complex11 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsMother Brook Reservation6 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsCondon Park6 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsWigwam Pond Conservation Land59 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Riverdale Park6 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsNeponset River Reservation219 acres · Division of State Parks and Recreation
DirectionsCharles River Wildlife Management Area81 acres
DirectionsEndicott Wetlands49 acres · Dedham Land Trust
DirectionsCharles River Reservation19 acres
Endicott Estate19 acres
DirectionsBarnes Memorial Park15 acres
DirectionsStony Brook Reservation14 acres
Fairbanks Park14 acres
DirectionsWeld Pond Wildlife Sanctuary12 acres · Mass Audubon
Gonzalez Field6 acres
DirectionsForested Wetlands5 acres
Town Conservation Land5 acres
Paul Park3 acres
Churchill Park2 acres
William B. Gould Park2 acres · Town of Dedham
DirectionsWho protects it
1,446 conserved acres
22% of Dedham’s land. Who manages Dedham’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits285 ac
Army Corps of Engineers258 ac
Town or city179 ac
State parks160 ac
Other state land17 ac
Regional agency14 ac
State conservation13 ac
Conservation Easement · 563 acState Park · 436 acState Conservation Area · 292 acLocal Other or Unknown · 137 acState Resource Management Area · 123 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 249 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 19 of 105 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wilson Mountain Reservation State Resource Management Area | State parks | 334 | Open |
| Neponset River Reservation State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 219 | Unknown |
| Cutler Park Reservation State Park | Not recorded | 182 | Open |
| Dedham Town Forest Local Resource Management Area | Town or city | 67 | Open |
| Charles River Watershed Watershed Protection Area | Army Corps of Engineers | 62 | Closed |
| Town Of Dedham Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 52 | Unknown |
| Wetlands Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 49 | Open |
| Brookdale Cemetery Local Historic or Cultural Area | Not recorded | 42 | Open |
| Wigwam Pond Conservation Area Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 33 | Open |
| Mother Brook Reservation Unknown | State parks | 28 | Unknown |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
27 places to go in Dedham
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Dedham
Playgrounds in Dedham
Gregory M. Riley Memorial PlaygroundIn Paul Park
DirectionsGus Toomey Playground
DirectionsManor Playground
DirectionsMemorial playgroundIn Barnes Memorial Park
DirectionsMother Brook PlaygroundIn Condon Park
DirectionsPlus 16 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Dedham
Dedham Dog ParkIn Dedham Parks & Recreation Complex
DirectionsPeaks in Dedham
Wilson Mountain285 ft elevation · In Wilson Mountain Reservation
DirectionsTrails & water
8 named trails and 7 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 8.2 miUnpaved · 4.4 mi
Blue Blazed Trail1.8 mi
Blue Heron Trail1.2 mi
Proposed Dedham Heritage Rail Trail0.9 mi
Turf Trail0.4 mi
Keller Loop0.3 mi
The Horseshoe0.2 mi
Congregation Chai Odom Cemetery0.1 mi
Anshe Dowig Cemetery0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
3.8 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.1 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
1.6 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
23Tennis
19Baseball
14Soccer
10Basketball
4Football
2Field hockey
2Lacrosse
1Multi-sport
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →8 places on the National Register, 2 of them National Historic Landmarks
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 3 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Joshua Lewis HouseBuilding · listed 1982
About itAmes SchoolhouseBuilding · listed 1983
About itBrandeis University President's HouseBuilding · listed 1998
About itEndicott EstateBuilding · listed 2002
About itDedham Village Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2006
About itMother Brook Lower Mill Pond Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2025
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Dedham: 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 | 40 | 47 | 59 | 70 | 78 | 84 | 82 | 75 | 63 | 52 | 42 |
| Rain (in) | 3.8 | 3.4 | 4.7 | 4.3 | 3.7 | 4.2 | 3.5 | 3.7 | 4.0 | 4.9 | 4.1 | 4.8 |
February is the driest month (3.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 4.9 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Dedham →
Next door
Dedham and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Questions about parks and trails in Dedham
Where can I hike in Dedham?
The longest trail networks: Wilson Mountain Reservation, 3.8 miles; Cutler Park, 3.7 miles; Dedham Town Forest, 1.1 miles; Whitcomb Woods, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Dedham is conserved land?
22% 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 Dedham’s trails?
Wilson Mountain Reservation and Cutler Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Dedham?
3.8 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.1 of painted or protected lanes and 1.6 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Dedham?
51,906 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Dedham or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,104 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Dedham have?
Ahead of 98% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #99 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 Dedham 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 →