Middleton Pond
Nature preserve
539 acres10.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Fletcher6 · CC BY-SA 3.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Middleton
Middleton has 40 miles of mapped trails, 3.0 for every square mile of land
1,742 acres are parks and preserves, 178 per 1,000 residents. 21% of Middleton’s land is conserved, about 1,813 acres. 99% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Among the top 1% of U.S. towns · #42 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it
Conserved land
21%
1,813 acres · of 13.4 sq mi of land
Trails
40 mi
3.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,742 ac
178 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
246 ft
Wills Hill
Lakes & rivers
7
1 beach
What kind of outdoors town is Middleton?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
A trail town3.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 97% of U.S. towns.Land that stays wild21% of the land is conserved; a typical Massachusetts town, 21%.Room to roam178 acres of park per 1,000 residents; the typical U.S. town has 13.History along the way5 places on the National Register.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Middleton have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Middleton is among the top 1% of U.S. towns, #42 of 283 in Massachusetts. All four inputs put Middleton near the top nationally; trail miles rank highest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Middleton’s overall grade.
Conserved land21% of the land · typical MA town 21% · U.S. 4%ATrails3.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (40 mi) · MA 1.9 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land178 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,742 acres) · MA 91 · U.S. 13AParks 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)Among the top 1%
LessMore
Massachusetts towns of 2,500+ (283)Ahead of 85%
Massachusetts towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 21%; the U.S., 4%), so Middleton’s 21% is ahead of 50% of Massachusetts towns, while its trails per square mile lead 75% of them.
Water is 7% of Middleton’s area (1 of 14 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 20%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be 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 Middleton Pond, with 10.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Prichard Memorial Forest
Nature preserve
138 acres1.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Town Conservation Land
Nature preserve
266 acres1.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Emerson Brook Reservoir Land
Nature preserve
358 acres1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Pike Messenger Conservation Park
Nature preserve
35 acres0.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Lost 50
Nature preserve
51 acres0.8 mi of trail
Lost 50 Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Prichard Woodlot
Nature preserve
131 acres0.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Barett Reservation
Nature preserve
95 acres0.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 36 parks & preserves
Middleton Pond539 acres · 10.4 mi of trail
DirectionsPrichard Memorial Forest138 acres · 1.6 mi of trail
Town Conservation Land266 acres · 1.1 mi of trail
DirectionsEmerson Brook Reservoir Land358 acres · 1 mi of trail
Pike Messenger Conservation Park35 acres · 0.9 mi of trail
DirectionsLost 5051 acres · 0.8 mi of trail
DirectionsPrichard Woodlot131 acres · 0.7 mi of trail
Barett Reservation95 acres · 0.7 mi of trail
Cudhea Conservation Restriction46 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
Jopp Lot29 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
Hatfield Memorial23 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
Pine Hill16 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
Clapp Woodlot17 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsCapt Bill Lot37 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Wildwood Farm Open Space21 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Dolan Ox Pasture4 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
ECGA Wilmot2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Essex Street Conservation Area43 acres
Boxford State Forest33 acres
Emily Maher Park30 acres
DirectionsECGA Tragert-Cote29 acres
Johns Meadow Conservation Area26 acres
DirectionsHarold Parker State Forest25 acres
Nichols Putnam21 acres
Conservatiion Land10 acres
Hocter Park10 acres
Conservation Land9 acres · Essex Count Greenbelt
Howe-Manning Recreation Area7 acres
DirectionsAunt Betts Pond Land6 acres
Wunnegen Conservation Area4 acres
Klosowski Woodland4 acres
Squash Field4 acres
DirectionsBrookfield4 acres
Esty Lot4 acres
Henry Tragert Town Common3 acres
DirectionsEssex County Agricultural And Technical Institute2 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
1,813 conserved acres
21% of Middleton’s land. Water is left out: Middleton has 13.4 square miles of land and 1.0 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Middleton’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits418 ac
Town or city216 ac
Other state land139 ac
Private owners85 ac
County12 ac
Not recorded1,305 ac
Private Conservation · 727 acConservation Easement · 380 acLocal Other or Unknown · 219 acWatershed Protection Area · 205 acLocal Park · 137 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 241 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 3 of 88 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emerson Bog Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 198 | Open |
| Prichard Memorial Forest Private Conservation | Not recorded | 139 | Open |
| Pond Meadow Reservation Private Conservation | Not recorded | 108 | Open |
| Danvers Agricultural Reserve State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 106 | Unknown |
| Boys Club Of Lynn Private Conservation | Not recorded | 97 | Restricted |
| Barrett Reservation Private Conservation | Not recorded | 86 | Open |
| Jewish Community Center Local Park | Private owners | 85 | Open |
| Danvers Fish and Game Club Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 84 | Restricted |
| Essex Agricultural And Technical Institute Local Other or Unknown | Other state land | 65 | Open |
| Breakneck Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 64 | Closed |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
13 places to go in Middleton
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Middleton
Middleton Town Beach
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Middleton
8 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Peaks in Middleton
Wills Hill246 ft elevation
DirectionsBare Hill210 ft elevation
DirectionsFerncroft Hill180 ft elevation
DirectionsGould Hill135 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
3 named trails and 7 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 14.9 miHorses · 6.2 miUnpaved · 21.3 mi
Middleton Rail Trail3.2 mi
Lost 50 Trail1.0 mi
Overlook Trail0.3 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
6Baseball
5Soccer
5Tennis
2Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →5 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The best walking months in Middleton: 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) | 36 | 38 | 46 | 57 | 68 | 77 | 82 | 81 | 74 | 62 | 51 | 41 |
| Rain (in) | 3.5 | 3.4 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 3.7 | 4.2 | 3.6 | 3.5 | 3.8 | 4.7 | 3.9 | 4.6 |
February is the driest month (3.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.7 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Middleton →
Next door
Middleton and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
North Andover97 miBoxford82 miMiddleton40 miTopsfield30 miNorth Reading26 miPeabody21 miLynnfield19 miDanvers14 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Middleton | 21% | 3.0 | 178 | 99% | A+ |
| Danvers | 20% | 1.1 | 26 | 98% | A |
| Topsfield | 37% | 2.5 | 222 | 87% | A+ |
| Peabody | 15% | 1.3 | 14 | 98% | A |
| Boxford | 24% | 3.5 | 307 | 91% | A+ |
| North Reading | 11% | 1.9 | 50 | 94% | A+ |
| Lynnfield | 28% | 1.9 | 41 | 96% | A+ |
| North Andover | 21% | 3.7 | 73 | 96% | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Middleton
Where can I hike in Middleton?
The longest trail networks: Middleton Pond, 10.4 miles; Prichard Memorial Forest, 1.6 miles; Town Conservation Land, 1.1 miles; Emerson Brook Reservoir Land, 1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Middleton is conserved land?
21% 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 Middleton’s trails?
Middleton Pond and Prichard Memorial Forest don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Middleton?
45,967 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Middleton or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,981 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Middleton have?
Among the top 1% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #42 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 Middleton 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 →