Town Forest
Nature preserve
221 acres2.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: John Phelan · CC BY 3.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Franklin Town
Franklin Town has 51 miles of mapped trails, 1.9 for every square mile of land
15% of Franklin Town’s land is conserved, about 2,570 acres. 93% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 1,262 acres are parks and preserves, 38 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 95% of U.S. towns · #167 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it
Conserved land
15%
2,570 acres · of 26.6 sq mi of land
Trails
51 mi
1.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,262 ac
38 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
93%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
3.1 mi
0.5 mi lanes · 1.8 mi paths
Highest peak
476 ft
Bald Hill
Lakes & rivers
10
2 beaches
What kind of outdoors town is Franklin Town?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Franklin Town have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Franklin Town is ahead of 95% of U.S. towns, #167 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 Franklin Town’s overall grade.
Conserved land15% of the land · typical MA town 21% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (51 mi) · MA 1.9 · U.S. 0.4APark land38 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,262 acres) · MA 91 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home93% of residents within a half mile of a park · MA 93% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 95%
LessMore
Massachusetts towns of 2,500+ (283)Ahead of 41%
Massachusetts towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 21%; the U.S., 4%), so Franklin Town’s 15% is ahead of 24% of Massachusetts towns, while its trails per square mile lead 49% 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 Town Forest, with 2.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Riverbend
Managed by Town of Franklin
40 acres1.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Franklin Town Common
Park
4 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Charles River Farms
Nature preserve
21 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 12 parks & preserves
Town Forest221 acres · 2.4 mi of trail
DirectionsRiverbend40 acres · 1.6 mi of trail · Town of Franklin
DirectionsFranklin Town Common4 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
Franklin Sculpture Park3 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Charles River Farms21 acres
King Street Memorial Park19 acres
DirectionsFletcher Field11 acres
DirectionsDawn Marie Circle10 acres
Charles River8 acres
David Road6 acres
Conservation Land4 acres
Theron Metcalf Field3 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
2,570 conserved acres
15% of Franklin Town’s land. Who manages Franklin Town’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Other state land251 ac
Army Corps of Engineers207 ac
Town or city99 ac
Not recorded2,259 ac
State Resource Management Area · 804 acLocal Other or Unknown · 792 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 356 acAgricultural Easement · 251 acWatershed Protection Area · 176 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 221 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 10 of 96 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 804 | Open |
| City of Franklin Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 150 | Open |
| Maplegate Country Club Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 138 | Restricted |
| Well # 1 Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 133 | Open |
| Franklin Country Club Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 119 | Restricted |
| Franklin Reservoirs Conservation Area Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 104 | Open |
| Camp Haiastan Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 97 | Restricted |
| Dacey Community Field Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 95 | Open |
| Well Site Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 70 | Closed |
| Prospect Heights Conservation Area Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 51 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
31 places to go in Franklin Town
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Franklin Town
Chilson Beach
DirectionsPlus 1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Public pools in Franklin Town
Bernon Family Branch Outdoor Pool
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Franklin Town
DelCarte Recreation Area
DirectionsNason Street Playground
DirectionsPlus 17 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Franklin Town
1 dog park without a name on the map.
Peaks in Franklin Town
Bald Hill476 ft elevation
DirectionsOak Hill453 ft elevation
DirectionsMillers Hill397 ft elevation
DirectionsBright Hill394 ft elevation
DirectionsPigeon Hill384 ft elevation
DirectionsMagotty Hill367 ft elevation
DirectionsBenchmark Senior Living at Forge Hill262 ft elevation
DirectionsDisc golf in Franklin Town
Dacey Fields Disc Golf Course
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail and 10 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 2.7 miUnpaved · 3.7 mi
Indian Rock Hiking Trails0.2 mi
Biking & sports
3.1 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
1.8 mi
off-road bike paths
0.8 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
18Baseball
14Soccer
9Tennis
7Basketball
3Softball
2Football
2Multi-sport
1Pickleball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 2 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Franklin Town: 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 | 84 | 82 | 75 | 63 | 52 | 42 |
| Rain (in) | 4.0 | 3.4 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 3.7 | 4.2 | 3.6 | 3.9 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.1 | 4.8 |
February is the driest month (3.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 5.0 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Franklin Town →
Next door
Franklin Town and its neighbors
Franklin Town has the second most mapped trails of the 5 towns around it. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin Town | 15% | 1.9 | 38 | 93% | A+ |
| Medway | 8% | 0.9 | 21 | 90% | A− |
| Norfolk | 16% | 1.6 | 48 | 80% | A |
| Bellingham | 11% | 0.8 | 33 | 77% | A |
| Wrentham | 13% | 4.8 | 192 | 96% | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Franklin Town
Where can I hike in Franklin Town?
The longest trail networks: Town Forest, 2.4 miles; Riverbend, 1.6 miles; Franklin Town Common, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Franklin Town 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 Franklin Town’s trails?
Town Forest and Riverbend don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Franklin Town?
3.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.5 of painted or protected lanes, 1.8 of off-road paths and 0.8 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Franklin Town?
48,205 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Franklin Town or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,002 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Franklin Town have?
Ahead of 95% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #167 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 Franklin Town 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 →