Northwest Branch Stream Valley Park
Managed by Montgomery Parks
73 acres2.6 mi of trail
Rachel Carson Greenway TrailCopperhead Run TrailNorthwest Branch TrailFall Line Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailheadWebsite ↗
Photo: G. Edward Johnson · CC BY 4.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Burnt Mills
15% of Burnt Mills’ land is conserved, and virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 2.9 miles of mapped trail cross Burnt Mills, 3.5 per square mile of land. 15% of Burnt Mills’ land is conserved, about 85 acres.
Ahead of 88% of U.S. towns · #47 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it
Conserved land
15%
85 acres · of 0.8 sq mi of land
Trails
2.9 mi
3.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
10 ac
2.6 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
2
1 beach
What kind of outdoors town is Burnt Mills?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Burnt Mills have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Burnt Mills is ahead of 88% of U.S. towns, #47 of 261 in Maryland. Trail miles hold the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Burnt Mills’ overall grade.
Conserved land15% of the land · typical MD town 9% · U.S. 4%A−Trails3.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (3 mi) · MD 0.5 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land2.6 acres of park per 1,000 residents (10 acres) · MD 9 · U.S. 13C−Parks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · MD 87% · U.S. 72%A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 88%
LessMore
Maryland towns of 2,500+ (261)Ahead of 82%
Maryland towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 9%; the U.S., 4%), so Burnt Mills’ 15% is ahead of 75% of Maryland towns, while its trails per square mile lead 98% 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 Northwest Branch Stream Valley Park, with 2.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Burnt Mills East Special Park
Managed by Montgomery Parks
2 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailheadWebsite ↗
Burnt Mills West Special Park
Managed by Montgomery Parks
2 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailheadWebsite ↗
Who protects it
85 conserved acres
15% of Burnt Mills’ land. Who manages Burnt Mills’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Other or Unknown Local Government28 ac
Private owners6 ac
Regional agency2 ac
Not recorded75 ac
State Other or Unknown · 75 acLocal Park · 35 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 2 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 4 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northwest Branch Park State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 103 | Unknown |
| Northwest Recreation Center Local Park | Private owners | 6 | Open |
| Burnt Mills West Sp Local Park | Regional agency | 2 | Open |
Things to do
8 places to go in Burnt Mills
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Burnt Mills
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Burnt Mills
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Waterfalls in Burnt Mills
1 waterfall without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Burnt Mills
1 scenic view without a name on the map.
Picnic areas in Burnt Mills
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Trails & water
5 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.3 miHorses · 1.3 miUnpaved · 2.8 mi
Rachel Carson Greenway Trail1.0 mi
Copperhead Run Trail0.7 mi
Northwest Branch Trail0.5 mi
Fall Line Trail0.2 mi
Chute 10.1 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.
Northwest Branch TrailBike route
2 miCopperhead Run TrailBike route
0.7 miRachel Carson Greenway TrailBike route
0.5 miCourts & fields
3Basketball
1Beach volleyball
1Baseball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Burnt Mills: April to June and 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) | 9.7 | 10.7 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 14.9 | 14.6 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 10.0 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 43 | 46 | 54 | 66 | 75 | 83 | 87 | 85 | 79 | 68 | 56 | 47 |
| Rain (in) | 3.0 | 2.6 | 3.8 | 3.4 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 4.5 | 4.0 | 4.4 | 3.9 | 3.1 | 3.7 |
February is the driest month (2.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 87 °F). 4.5 inches fall in July, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 87 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Burnt Mills →
Next door
Burnt Mills 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burnt Mills | 15% | 3.5 | 3 | 99%+ | A |
| Kemp Mill | 18% | 2.7 | 3 | 96% | A− |
| White Oak | 13% | 0.8 | 5 | 46% | B |
| Four Corners | 14% | 1.0 | 4 | 99%+ | A− |
| Hillandale | 12% | 2.0 | 17 | 99%+ | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Burnt Mills
Where can I hike in Burnt Mills?
The longest trail networks: Northwest Branch Stream Valley Park, 2.6 miles; Burnt Mills East Special Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Burnt Mills is conserved land?
15% of its land, against a typical 9% for a Maryland town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Burnt Mills’ trails?
Northwest Branch Stream Valley Park and Burnt Mills East Special Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Burnt Mills?
15,898 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Burnt Mills or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 10 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Burnt Mills have?
Ahead of 88% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #47 of 261 in Maryland. 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 Burnt Mills 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 →