Quabbin Park
Managed by DCR
2,717 acres9.7 mi of trail
Observation Tower TrailEnfield Lookout TrailShoreline/Enfield Lookout TrailSpillway Trail
No dogs
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Judith Mosso, Ware, MA · CC BY-SA 4.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Ware
30% of Ware’s land is conserved: 6,597 acres
1,193 acres are parks and preserves, 119 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: Quabbin Park (9.7 mi), Quabbin Reservoir Reservation (6.1 mi), Grenville Park (2.4 mi). 23 miles of mapped trail cross Ware, 0.7 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 92% of U.S. towns · #202 of 283 in Massachusetts. What drives it
Conserved land
30%
6,597 acres · of 34.4 sq mi of land
Trails
23 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,193 ac
119 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
76%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
4.8 mi
4.8 mi paths
Highest peak
1,004 ft
Quabbin Hill
Lakes & rivers
6
1 beach
What kind of outdoors town is Ware?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Ware have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Ware is ahead of 92% of U.S. towns, #202 of 283 in Massachusetts. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; conserved land ranks highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Ware’s overall grade.
Conserved land30% of the land · typical MA town 21% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (23 mi) · MA 1.9 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land119 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,193 acres) · MA 91 · U.S. 13AParks close to home76% 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 92%
LessMore
Massachusetts towns of 2,500+ (283)Ahead of 29%
Massachusetts towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 21%; the U.S., 4%), so Ware’s 30% is ahead of 73% of Massachusetts towns, while its trails per square mile lead 10% of them.
Water is 14% of Ware’s area (6 of 40 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 26%.
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 Quabbin Park, with 9.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Quabbin Reservoir Reservation
Managed by DCR - Division Of Water Supply Protection
7,964 acres6.1 mi of trail
No dogs
No trailhead mapped yet
Coy Hill Wildlife Management Area
Nature preserve
201 acres1.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 9 parks & preserves
Quabbin Park2,717 acres · 9.7 mi of trail · DCR
DirectionsQuabbin Reservoir Reservation7,964 acres · 6.1 mi of trail · DCR - Division Of Water Supply Protection
Grenville Park85 acres · 2.4 mi of trail
DirectionsCoy Hill Wildlife Management Area201 acres · 1.1 mi of trail
Memorial Field5 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsHerman Covey Wildlife Management Area352 acres
Ware River Access27 acres
Strawberry Fields9 acres
Baker Lot2 acres
Who protects it
6,597 conserved acres
30% of Ware’s land. Water is left out: Ware has 34.4 square miles of land and 5.6 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Ware’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city520 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits302 ac
Other state land103 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)51 ac
Joint48 ac
State fish & wildlife26 ac
Not recorded6,023 ac
Watershed Protection Area · 4,833 acState Conservation Area · 855 acConservation Easement · 752 acAgricultural Easement · 154 acLocal Resource Management Area · 137 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 428 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 56 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quabbin Reservoir Watershed Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 4,803 | Restricted |
| Coy Hill Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 499 | Open |
| Herman Covey Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 356 | Open |
| Town Forest Local Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 137 | Open |
| Greenville Park Local Park | Town or city | 87 | Open |
| Ware River Access State Resource Management Area | State fish & wildlife | 53 | Open |
| Ware H.S./Elementary School Research or Educational Area | Not recorded | 47 | Open |
| Aspen Grove Cemetery Local Historic or Cultural Area | Not recorded | 36 | Closed |
| Old Railroad Bed Local Park | Town or city | 27 | Open |
| St Williams Cemetery Private Historic or Cultural | Not recorded | 27 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
15 places to go in Ware
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Ware
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Ware
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Ware
Ware Dog Park
DirectionsScenic views in Ware
Enfield Look OutIn Quabbin Park
DirectionsQuabbin SpillwayIn Quabbin Park
DirectionsPeaks in Ware
Quabbin Hill1,004 ft elevation · In Quabbin Park
DirectionsBear Hill988 ft elevation · In Quabbin Reservoir Reservation
DirectionsLittle Quabbin873 ft elevation · In Quabbin Reservoir Reservation
DirectionsMount Lizzie840 ft elevation · In Quabbin Reservoir Reservation
DirectionsBrimstone Hill735 ft elevation
DirectionsRichards Ledges545 ft elevation · In Quabbin Reservoir Reservation
DirectionsCampgrounds in Ware
Camp
DirectionsTrails & water
4 named trails and 6 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 13.8 mi
Observation Tower Trail1.4 mi
Enfield Lookout Trail1.3 mi
Shoreline/Enfield Lookout Trail1.2 mi
Spillway Trail1.0 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
4.8 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
4.8 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
5Baseball
2Soccer
2Basketball
1Tennis
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →6 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 5 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Otis Company Mill No. 1Building · listed 1982
About itWare Center Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1986
About itWare-Hardwick Covered BridgeStructure · listed 1986
About itChurch Street Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1986
About itWare Town HallBuilding · listed 1986
About itWare Millyard Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1986
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Ware: 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) | 34 | 37 | 45 | 58 | 69 | 77 | 82 | 80 | 74 | 61 | 50 | 39 |
| Rain (in) | 3.5 | 3.1 | 3.9 | 3.8 | 3.6 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 4.7 | 3.6 | 4.2 |
February is the driest month (3.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.7 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Ware →
Next door
Ware and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Belchertown94 miPetersham74 miWare23 miNew Salem17 miHardwick15 miPalmer Town12 miWest Brookfield9.1 miWarren2.7 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ware | 30% | 0.7 | 119 | 76% | A |
| Belchertown | 24% | 1.8 | 185 | 67% | A |
| New Salem | 81% | 0.4 | 277 | 49% | A− |
| Petersham | 77% | 1.4 | 4,590 | 74% | A+ |
| Hardwick | 40% | 0.4 | 1,342 | 85% | A |
| Palmer Town | 17% | 0.4 | 187 | 71% | A |
| West Brookfield | 24% | 0.4 | 500 | 66% | A |
| Warren | 6% | 0.1 | 57 | 54% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Ware
Where can I hike in Ware?
The longest trail networks: Quabbin Park, 9.7 miles; Quabbin Reservoir Reservation, 6.1 miles; Grenville Park, 2.4 miles; Coy Hill Wildlife Management Area, 1.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Ware is conserved land?
30% 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 Ware’s trails?
Quabbin Park and Quabbin Reservoir Reservation don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Ware?
4.8 miles of bike routes are on the map: 4.8 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Ware?
48,193 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Ware or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,356 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Ware have?
Ahead of 92% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #202 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 Ware 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 →