Adams, Frederic C., Public Library · Public domainKingston has 32 miles of mapped trails, 1.7 for every square mile of land
19% of Kingston’s land is conserved, about 2,324 acres. 1,039 acres are parks and preserves, 74 per 1,000 residents. 93% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 97% of U.S. towns · #129 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Kingston?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Kingston have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Kingston is ahead of 97% of U.S. towns, #129 of 283 in Massachusetts. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
Massachusetts towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 21%; the U.S., 4%), so Kingston’s 19% is ahead of 43% of Massachusetts towns, while its trails per square mile lead 40% of them.
Water is 9% of Kingston’s area (2 of 20 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 18%.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Camp Nekon, with 2.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Sampson Forest & Memorial Park
Wildlands Trust - The Nook
Henrich Property
All 14 parks & preserves
2,324 conserved acres
19% of Kingston’s land. Water is left out: Kingston has 18.6 square miles of land and 1.8 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Kingston’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 405 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 15 of 99 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cong Of The Srs Of Divine Prov Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 271 | Unknown |
| Indian Pond Country Club Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 139 | Restricted |
| Sampson Forest And Memorial Park Local Park | Not recorded | 119 | Open |
| Kingston State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 117 | Open |
| Indian Pond Road Conservation Area Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 99 | Open |
| Silver Lake State Resource Management Area | Other state land | 93 | Open |
| Northeast Wilderness Trust Corporation Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 87 | Unknown |
| Hathaway Preserve Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 82 | Restricted |
| Kingston Water Supply Land Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 78 | Unknown |
| Silver Lake Regional School District Athletic Fields Research or Educational Area | Not recorded | 63 | Restricted |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
17 places to go in Kingston
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Plus 12 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
4 named trails and 16 lakes & rivers
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
4 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
The best walking months in Kingston: 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 | 46 | 57 | 67 | 76 | 82 | 80 | 73 | 63 | 52 | 44 |
| Rain (in) | 4.3 | 3.8 | 5.3 | 4.5 | 3.6 | 3.9 | 3.4 | 3.7 | 4.2 | 5.0 | 4.5 | 5.0 |
July is the driest month (3.4 in) and the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 5.3 inches fall in March, the wettest month. The climate in Kingston →
Kingston 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kingston | 19% | 1.7 | 74 | 93% | A+ |
| Duxbury | 28% | 2.3 | 180 | 99% | A+ |
| Plymouth | 37% | 6.0 | 101 | 78% | A+ |
| North Plymouth | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| South Duxbury | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Plympton | 3% | 2.7 | 37 | 38% | B+ |
| Pembroke | 19% | 1.5 | 77 | 87% | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Kingston
Where can I hike in Kingston?
The longest trail networks: Camp Nekon, 2.4 miles; Sampson Forest & Memorial Park, 0.9 miles; Wildlands Trust - The Nook, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Kingston is conserved land?
19% 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 Kingston’s trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Wildlands Trust - The Nook (on leash). For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Kingston?
47,006 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Kingston or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,294 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Kingston have?
Ahead of 97% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #129 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 Kingston neighbors.
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 →