Hatchery Park
Park
91 acres1 mi of trail
Mason-Dixon Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Jcantroot · Public domainB+Outdoors
Outdoors in Elkton
8% of Elkton’s land is conserved: 437 acres
The biggest trail networks: Hatchery Park (1 mi), John P. Stanley Park (0.7 mi). 362 acres are parks and preserves, 23 per 1,000 residents. 3.4 miles of mapped trail cross Elkton, 0.4 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 65% of U.S. towns · #152 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it
Conserved land
8%
437 acres · of 9.0 sq mi of land
Trails
3.4 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
362 ac
23 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
56%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.2 mi
1.2 mi lanes
Highest peak
262 ft
Grays Hill
Lakes & rivers
6
1 boat launch
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Elkton have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Elkton is ahead of 65% of U.S. towns, #152 of 261 in Maryland. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Elkton’s overall grade.
Conserved land8% of the land · typical MD town 9% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (3 mi) · MD 0.5 · U.S. 0.4BPark land23 acres of park per 1,000 residents (362 acres) · MD 9 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home56% of residents within a half mile of a park · MD 87% · U.S. 72%B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 65%
LessMore
Maryland towns of 2,500+ (261)Ahead of 42%
Maryland towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 9%; the U.S., 4%), so Elkton’s 8% is ahead of 45% of Maryland towns, while its trails per square mile lead 38% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B to B+. 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 Hatchery Park, with 1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
John P. Stanley Park
Park
113 acres0.7 mi of trail
Mason-Dixon Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Eder Park
Park
33 acres0.4 mi of trail
Mason-Dixon Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 7 parks & preserves
Hatchery Park91 acres · 1 mi of trail
DirectionsJohn P. Stanley Park113 acres · 0.7 mi of trail
DirectionsEder Park33 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsMeadow East Park19 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsHoward's Pond Recreation Area33 acres
DirectionsMarina Park19 acres
DirectionsMariners Park1 acres
Who protects it
437 conserved acres
8% of Elkton’s land. Who manages Elkton’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Other or Unknown Local Government250 ac
State natural resources131 ac
State conservation125 ac
Other state land60 ac
Town or city1 ac
Not recorded7 ac
Local Park · 257 acConservation Easement · 131 acUnknown Easement · 125 acState Historic or Cultural Area · 39 acHistoric or Cultural Easement · 21 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 141 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 3 of 9 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| West & East Meadow Parks/ederpark/hatchery Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 229 | Open |
| Elk Landing State Historic or Cultural Area | Other state land | 39 | Open |
| Marina Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 21 | Open |
| Hiollingsworth Park Local Park | Not recorded | 7 | Unknown |
| Town Of Elkton Skate Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
21 places to go in Elkton
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Elkton
Elkton church of god playground
DirectionsGilpin Elementary playground
DirectionsPlus 14 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Elkton
2 dog parks without a name on the map.
Boat launches in Elkton
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Elkton
Grays Hill262 ft elevation
DirectionsGrays Hill203 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail and 6 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 1.7 mi
Mason-Dixon Trail1.5 mi
Biking & sports
1.2 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.2 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
Courts & fields
14Tennis
11Baseball
3Multi-sport
2Basketball
1Soccer
1Football
1Volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →4 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 Elkton: 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 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.3 | 15.0 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.4 |
| High (°F) | 41 | 44 | 53 | 64 | 73 | 82 | 87 | 85 | 78 | 67 | 56 | 46 |
| Rain (in) | 3.3 | 2.8 | 4.3 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 4.4 | 4.5 | 3.8 | 3.3 | 4.1 |
February is the driest month (2.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 87 °F). 4.7 inches fall in July, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 87 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Elkton →
Questions about parks and trails in Elkton
Where can I hike in Elkton?
The longest trail networks: Hatchery Park, 1 miles; John P. Stanley Park, 0.7 miles; Eder Park, 0.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Elkton is conserved land?
8% 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 Elkton’s trails?
Hatchery Park and John P. Stanley Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Elkton?
1.2 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.2 of painted or protected lanes.
Is there public land near Elkton?
23,147 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Elkton or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 362 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Elkton have?
Ahead of 65% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #152 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 Elkton 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 →