Midura Family Conservation Area
Nature preserve
192 acres2.6 mi of trail
White TrailYellow TrailOrange TrailGreen Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Midura Conservation Area Parking
Photo: John Phelan · CC BY 3.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Palmer Town
Palmer Town has 2,320 acres of parks, 187 for every 1,000 residents
17% of Palmer Town’s land is conserved, about 3,437 acres. The biggest trail networks: Midura Family Conservation Area (2.6 mi), Palmer Wildlife Management Area (1.4 mi), Red Bridge State Park (0.6 mi). 71% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 85% of U.S. towns · #251 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it
Conserved land
17%
3,437 acres · of 31.6 sq mi of land
Trails
12 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
2,320 ac
187 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
71%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,188 ft
Colonels Mountain
Lakes & rivers
13
What kind of outdoors town is Palmer Town?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Palmer Town have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Palmer Town is ahead of 85% of U.S. towns, #251 of 283 in Massachusetts. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; park acres per resident rank highest, trail miles lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Palmer Town’s overall grade.
Conserved land17% of the land · typical MA town 21% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (12 mi) · MA 1.9 · U.S. 0.4BPark land187 acres of park per 1,000 residents (2,320 acres) · MA 91 · U.S. 13AParks close to home71% of residents within a half mile of a park · MA 93% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 85%
LessMore
Massachusetts towns of 2,500+ (283)Ahead of 11%
Massachusetts towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 21%; the U.S., 4%), so Palmer Town’s 17% is ahead of 30% of Massachusetts towns, while its trails per square mile lead 3% of them.
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 Midura Family Conservation Area, with 2.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Palmer Wildlife Management Area
Nature preserve
1,149 acres1.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Red Bridge State Park
Nature preserve
23 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 10 parks & preserves
Midura Family Conservation Area192 acres · 2.6 mi of trail
DirectionsPalmer Wildlife Management Area1,149 acres · 1.4 mi of trail
Red Bridge State Park23 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
Lavoilette Field8 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsHryniewicz Park1 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsBurleigh Park164 acres
DirectionsKings Brook Conservation Area29 acres
Chase Memorial Park27 acres
DirectionsSwift River Green Belt25 acres
DirectionsPulaski Park4 acres
Who protects it
3,437 conserved acres
17% of Palmer Town’s land. Who manages Palmer Town’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits270 ac
State fish & wildlife211 ac
Other state land120 ac
Town or city105 ac
Not recorded3,139 ac
State Conservation Area · 1,349 acLocal Other or Unknown · 622 acWatershed Protection Area · 318 acConservation Easement · 315 acState Other or Unknown · 302 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 236 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 10 of 73 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Palmer Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 1,560 | Open |
| Midura Family Conservation Area Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 301 | Open |
| Reed Hatchery State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 267 | Open |
| Palmer Reservoir Water Supply Land Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 244 | Closed |
| Palmer Conservation Area Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 155 | Open |
| Burleigh Park Local Park | Not recorded | 148 | Open |
| Camp Ramah in New England Private Conservation | Not recorded | 113 | Restricted |
| Nenameseck Sportsmans Club Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 79 | Restricted |
| Saints Peter and Paul Cemetery Private Historic or Cultural | Not recorded | 50 | Unknown |
| Three Rivers Water Supply Land Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 44 | Closed |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
14 places to go in Palmer Town
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Palmer Town
Bondsville Playground
DirectionsThorndike Playground
DirectionsPlus 5 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Peaks in Palmer Town
Colonels Mountain1,188 ft elevation · In Palmer Wildlife Management Area
DirectionsPattaquattic Hill1,040 ft elevation
DirectionsFox Hill991 ft elevation · In Palmer Wildlife Management Area
DirectionsKings Mountain696 ft elevation
DirectionsMount Dumplin673 ft elevation
DirectionsBaptist Hill502 ft elevation
DirectionsNew View
DirectionsTrails & water
4 named trails and 13 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 1.5 mi
White Trail2.1 mi
Yellow Trail0.5 mi
Orange Trail0.4 mi
Green Trail0.1 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
10Baseball
9Tennis
5Basketball
3Soccer
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 Palmer Town: 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 | 15.2 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 35 | 38 | 46 | 59 | 70 | 78 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 62 | 50 | 39 |
| Rain (in) | 3.4 | 3.0 | 3.8 | 3.8 | 3.6 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 4.6 | 3.6 | 4.1 |
February is the driest month (3.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.6 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Palmer Town →
Next door
Palmer Town 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Palmer Town | 17% | 0.4 | 187 | 71% | A |
| Monson | 18% | 0.5 | 346 | 62% | A |
| Belchertown | 24% | 1.8 | 185 | 67% | A |
| Brimfield | 14% | 0.8 | 299 | 46% | A− |
| Warren | 6% | 0.1 | 57 | 54% | B |
| Ware | 30% | 0.7 | 119 | 76% | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Palmer Town
Where can I hike in Palmer Town?
The longest trail networks: Midura Family Conservation Area, 2.6 miles; Palmer Wildlife Management Area, 1.4 miles; Red Bridge State Park, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Palmer Town is conserved land?
17% 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 Palmer Town’s trails?
Midura Family Conservation Area and Palmer Wildlife Management Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Palmer Town?
48,330 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Palmer Town or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,626 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Palmer Town have?
Ahead of 85% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #251 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 Palmer 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 →