Den Rock Park
Park
78 acres3.5 mi of trail
Great Blue Heron TrailKing Fisher TrailRed Tail Hawk TrailNut Hatch Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Lawrence
Lawrence has 15 miles of mapped trails, 2.2 for every square mile of land
99% of residents live within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Den Rock Park (3.5 mi), Campagnone Common (1.7 mi), Riverfront State Park (0.8 mi). 9% of Lawrence’s land is conserved, about 412 acres.
Ahead of 83% of U.S. towns · #262 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it
Conserved land
9%
412 acres · of 6.9 sq mi of land
Trails
15 mi
2.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
337 ac
3.8 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.0 mi
0.7 mi lanes · 0.3 mi paths
Highest peak
256 ft
Tower Hill
Lakes & rivers
7
2 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Lawrence?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Lawrence have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Lawrence is ahead of 83% of U.S. towns, #262 of 283 in Massachusetts. Trail miles hold the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Lawrence’s overall grade.
Conserved land9% of the land · typical MA town 21% · U.S. 4%B+Trails2.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (15 mi) · MA 1.9 · U.S. 0.4APark land3.8 acres of park per 1,000 residents (337 acres) · MA 91 · U.S. 13CParks close to home99% 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 83%
LessMore
Massachusetts towns of 2,500+ (283)Ahead of 7%
Massachusetts towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 21%; the U.S., 4%), so Lawrence’s 9% is ahead of 5% of Massachusetts towns, while its trails per square mile lead 57% of them.
Water is 7% of Lawrence’s area (0 of 7 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 9%.
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 Den Rock Park, with 3.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Campagnone Common
Managed by City of Lawrence
18 acres1.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Riverfront State Park
Nature preserve
28 acres0.8 mi of trail
Merrimac River Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
O'Connell South Common
Park
11 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Pemberton State Park
Park
6 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Ferrous Site Park
Managed by City of Lawrence
5 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Mount Vernon Park
Managed by City of Lawrence
12 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 33 parks & preserves
Den Rock Park78 acres · 3.5 mi of trail
DirectionsCampagnone Common18 acres · 1.7 mi of trail · City of Lawrence
DirectionsRiverfront State Park28 acres · 0.8 mi of trail
Reservoir Park19 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
O'Connell South Common11 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsPemberton State Park6 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsFerrous Site Park5 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · City of Lawrence
DirectionsMount Vernon Park12 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · City of Lawrence
Storrow Park11 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · City of Lawrence
DirectionsO"Neill Park7 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsDen Rock Park (ECGA Land)16 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsHoward Playstead6 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsManchester Street Park4 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsCostello Park10 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsJohn P Kane Park3 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsOxford Paper Mill Site3 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsDr. Nina Scarito Park2 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsImmigrant Place2 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsMisserville Park1 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsShawsheen Park23 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsHayden Schofield Playstead4 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsWilliam Kennedy Community Park3 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Lindquist Playstead1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsPlainsman Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsCronin Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Rowell Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Coyne Park5 acres
DirectionsBailey Reservation4 acres
Sullivan Park4 acres
DirectionsDonovan Park3 acres
Bourgoin Square Park2 acres
Gagnon Park1 acres
DirectionsLawrence Heritage State Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
412 conserved acres
9% of Lawrence’s land. Water is left out: Lawrence has 6.9 square miles of land and 0.5 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Lawrence’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city254 ac
State parks5 ac
Not recorded164 ac
Local Park · 205 acPrivate Historic or Cultural · 133 acConservation Easement · 32 acLocal Other or Unknown · 28 acResearch or Educational Area · 10 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 17 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 48 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bellevue Cemetery Private Historic or Cultural | Not recorded | 87 | Unknown |
| Den Rock Park Local Park | Town or city | 78 | Open |
| Shawsheen Park Local Park | Town or city | 40 | Open |
| St Marys Cemetery Private Historic or Cultural | Not recorded | 24 | Restricted |
| Immaculate Conception Cemetery Private Historic or Cultural | Not recorded | 22 | Restricted |
| Campagnone Common Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 17 | Open |
| Mt. Vernon Park Local Park | Town or city | 12 | Open |
| Oconnell South Common Local Park | Town or city | 11 | Open |
| Costello Park Local Park | Town or city | 11 | Open |
| Veterans Memorial Stadium Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 7 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
27 places to go in Lawrence
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Lawrence
22 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Lawrence
2 boat launches without a name on the map.
Peaks in Lawrence
Tower Hill256 ft elevation
DirectionsProspect Hill187 ft elevation
DirectionsDen RockIn Den Rock Park
DirectionsTrails & water
7 named trails and 7 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 5.0 miUnpaved · 5.1 mi
Great Blue Heron Trail1.0 mi
King Fisher Trail0.8 mi
Red Tail Hawk Trail0.5 mi
Nut Hatch Trail0.4 mi
Spicket River Greenway0.3 mi
Merrimac River Trail0.2 mi
Spicket River Greenway Off-Street Path0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
1.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.7 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
0.3 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
28Baseball
15Basketball
14Tennis
4Soccer
2Football
1Pickleball
1Tracks
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →24 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 8 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Essex Company Machine ShopBuilding · listed 1972
About itMechanics Block Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1973
About itNorth CanalStructure · listed 1975
About itGrace Episcopal ChurchBuilding · listed 1976
About itGreat Stone DamStructure · listed 1977
About itHigh Service Water Tower and ReservoirStructure · listed 1978
About itOld Public LibraryBuilding · listed 1978
About itEssex Company Offices and YardBuilding · listed 1979
About itDowntown Lawrence Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1979
About itAmerican Woolen Mill Housing DistrictDistrict · listed 1982
About itGleason BuildingBuilding · listed 1982
About itEmerson HouseBuilding · listed 1984
About it12 more on the History page.
When to get out
The best walking months in Lawrence: 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) | 35 | 38 | 46 | 58 | 69 | 78 | 83 | 82 | 74 | 62 | 51 | 40 |
| Rain (in) | 3.3 | 3.2 | 4.2 | 4.0 | 3.7 | 4.1 | 3.6 | 3.5 | 3.8 | 4.7 | 3.7 | 4.3 |
February is the driest month (3.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.7 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Lawrence →
Next door
Lawrence 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lawrence | 9% | 2.2 | 4 | 99% | A− |
| North Andover | 21% | 3.7 | 73 | 96% | A+ |
| Methuen | 7% | 0.7 | 8 | 71% | B |
| Andover | 17% | 4.4 | 68 | 99%+ | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Lawrence
Where can I hike in Lawrence?
The longest trail networks: Den Rock Park, 3.5 miles; Campagnone Common, 1.7 miles; Riverfront State Park, 0.8 miles; Reservoir Park, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Lawrence 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 Lawrence’s trails?
Den Rock Park and Campagnone Common don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Lawrence?
1.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.7 of painted or protected lanes and 0.3 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Lawrence?
29,666 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Lawrence or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 340 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Lawrence have?
Ahead of 83% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #262 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 Lawrence 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 →