Cookson State Forest
Nature preserve
1,955 acres7.1 mi of trail
blue blazes
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Zinetv1 · CC BY-SA 3.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in New Marlborough
New Marlborough has 3,176 acres of parks, 2,116 for every 1,000 residents
32% of New Marlborough’s land is conserved, about 9,569 acres. The biggest trail networks: Cookson State Forest (7.1 mi), Steepletop (2.3 mi), Questing Reservation (1.9 mi). 25 miles of mapped trail cross New Marlborough, 0.5 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 89% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
32%
9,569 acres · of 46.9 sq mi of land
Trails
25 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
3,176 ac
2,116 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
54%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,742 ft
Dry Hill
Lakes & rivers
11
1 beach
What kind of outdoors town is New Marlborough?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does New Marlborough have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, New Marlborough is ahead of 89% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of New Marlborough’s overall grade.
Conserved land32% of the land · typical MA town 21% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (25 mi) · MA 1.9 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land2,116 acres of park per 1,000 residents (3,176 acres) · MA 91 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home54% of residents within a half mile of a park · MA 93% · U.S. 72%C+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 89%
LessMore
Massachusetts towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 21%; the U.S., 4%), so New Marlborough’s 32% is ahead of 76% of Massachusetts towns, while its trails per square mile lead 8% 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 Cookson State Forest, with 7.1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Steepletop
Managed by Berkshire Natural Resources Council
1,152 acres2.3 mi of trail
Edie's Way (South Loop)Louise Lane (North Loop)
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Questing Reservation
Nature preserve
407 acres1.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Sandisfield State Forest
Nature preserve
968 acres0.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 17 parks & preserves
Cookson State Forest1,955 acres · 7.1 mi of trail
Steepletop1,152 acres · 2.3 mi of trail · Berkshire Natural Resources Council
DirectionsQuesting Reservation407 acres · 1.9 mi of trail
DirectionsSandisfield State Forest968 acres · 0.8 mi of trail
Campbell Falls State Park Reserve3 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsSandisfield / New Marlboro Wce (Hoppins Lot)278 acres
Donnelly Cr152 acres
Suter Farm144 acres
Campbells Falls State Park138 acres
Beartown State Forest97 acres
Smith-Alexander & Clark Farms63 acres
Whiting River Reserve, Berkshire Natural Resource Council (BNRC)43 acres · BNRC
DirectionsCorn Warrior, Berkshire Natural Resources Council (BNRC)38 acres · BNRC
Lumbert Cross Road Preserve, New Marlborough Land Trust37 acres · BNRC
DirectionsKonkapot River Access11 acres
Old Inn On The Green Cr10 acres
Umpachene Falls Park7 acres
Who protects it
9,569 conserved acres
32% of New Marlborough’s land. Who manages New Marlborough’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits7,077 ac
State parks766 ac
Other state land760 ac
State conservation320 ac
State natural resources276 ac
State fish & wildlife276 ac
Joint225 ac
Conservation Easement · 8,267 acState Resource Management Area · 3,461 acPrivate Conservation · 1,555 acAgricultural Easement · 752 acUnknown Easement · 410 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 4,215 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 19 of 189 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cookson State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 2,130 | Open |
| Sandisfield State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 1,245 | Open |
| Camp Segowea Private Conservation | Not recorded | 550 | Restricted |
| Questing Reservation Private Conservation | Not recorded | 384 | Unknown |
| Dry Hill Reservation Private Conservation | Not recorded | 206 | Open |
| Thousand Acre Swamp Private Conservation | Not recorded | 200 | Open |
| Berkshire Trout Hatchery Federal Other or Unknown | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 156 | Restricted |
| Thousand Acre Swamp Flood Control Site Private Conservation | State parks | 140 | Closed |
| Blackberry River Flood Control Site 15 State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 137 | Unknown |
| Blackberry River Flood Control Site State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 129 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
14 places to go in New Marlborough
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in New Marlborough
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Waterfalls in New Marlborough
Campbell FallsIn Campbell Falls State Park Reserve
DirectionsScenic views in New Marlborough
1 scenic view without a name on the map.
Peaks in New Marlborough
Dry Hill1,742 ft elevation
DirectionsWoodruff Mountain1,640 ft elevation
DirectionsLeffingwell Hill1,463 ft elevation · In Questing Reservation
DirectionsCleveland Mountain1,450 ft elevation
DirectionsBrush Hill1,447 ft elevation
DirectionsFord Hill1,398 ft elevation
DirectionsRhodes Hill1,398 ft elevation
DirectionsBenton Hill1,339 ft elevation
Directions1 more peak
Cooks Ledge1,319 ft elevation
DirectionsPlus 1 peak without a name on the map.
Picnic areas in New Marlborough
Picnic Area
DirectionsTrails & water
4 named trails and 11 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 6.6 mi
Edie's Way (South Loop)1.4 mi
New Marlboro Preserve Loop1.3 mi
Louise Lane (North Loop)0.9 mi
blue blazes0.2 mi
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
5Tennis
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).
When to get out
The best walking months in New Marlborough: May to August
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) | 32 | 35 | 43 | 56 | 68 | 75 | 80 | 78 | 71 | 59 | 47 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 3.6 | 3.0 | 3.8 | 3.6 | 4.0 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.4 | 5.0 | 4.9 | 3.7 | 4.3 |
February is the driest month (3.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 80 °F). 5.0 inches fall in September, the wettest month. The climate in New Marlborough →
Next door
New Marlborough 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Marlborough | 32% | 0.5 | 2,116 | 54% | A |
| Monterey | 47% | 1.0 | 2,371 | 80% | A+ |
| Sheffield | 36% | 0.8 | 1,070 | 57% | A |
| Sandisfield | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in New Marlborough
Where can I hike in New Marlborough?
The longest trail networks: Cookson State Forest, 7.1 miles; Steepletop, 2.3 miles; Questing Reservation, 1.9 miles; Sandisfield State Forest, 0.8 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of New Marlborough is conserved land?
32% 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 New Marlborough’s trails?
Cookson State Forest and Steepletop don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near New Marlborough?
81,940 acres of parks and open public land lie inside New Marlborough or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 6,749 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does New Marlborough have?
Ahead of 89% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 New Marlborough 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 →