Franklin Point State Park
Managed by Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Maryland Park Service
487 acres3.7 mi of trail
Circuit TrailFlag Pond TrailPine Alley LoopPicnic Area Loop
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Pubdog · Public domainAOutdoors
Outdoors in Shady Side
Shady Side has 619 acres of parks, 131 for every 1,000 residents
16% of Shady Side’s land is conserved, about 691 acres. 5.7 miles of mapped trail cross Shady Side, 0.9 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Franklin Point State Park (3.7 mi), Jack Creek Park (1.4 mi), Shady Cove Natural Area (0.6 mi).
Ahead of 91% of U.S. towns · #39 of 261 in Maryland. What drives it
Conserved land
16%
691 acres · of 6.6 sq mi of land
Trails
5.7 mi
0.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
619 ac
131 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
73%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Shady Side?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Room to roam131 acres of park per 1,000 residents; the typical U.S. town has 13.Land that stays wild16% of the land is conserved; a typical Maryland town, 9%.A trail town0.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 77% of U.S. towns.History along the way3 places on the National Register.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Shady Side have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Shady Side is ahead of 91% of U.S. towns, #39 of 261 in Maryland. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; park acres per resident rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Shady Side’s overall grade.
Conserved land16% of the land · typical MD town 9% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · MD 0.5 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land131 acres of park per 1,000 residents (619 acres) · MD 9 · U.S. 13AParks close to home73% 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 91%
LessMore
Maryland towns of 2,500+ (261)Ahead of 85%
Maryland towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 9%; the U.S., 4%), so Shady Side’s 16% is ahead of 77% of Maryland towns, while its trails per square mile lead 69% of them.
Water is 15% of Shady Side’s area (1 of 8 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 14%.
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 Franklin Point State Park, with 3.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Jack Creek Park
Managed by Anne Arundel County Parks and Recreation
56 acres1.4 mi of trail
Meadow Trail NorthMeadow Trail SouthForest Loop (white)
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Shady Cove Natural Area
Park
26 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Snug Harbor Natural Area
Park
8 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Franklin Point State Park487 acres · 3.7 mi of trail · Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Maryland Park Service
DirectionsJack Creek Park56 acres · 1.4 mi of trail · Anne Arundel County Parks and Recreation
DirectionsShady Cove Natural Area26 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
Snug Harbor Natural Area8 acres
Churchton Park6 acres
Who protects it
691 conserved acres
16% of Shady Side’s land. Water is left out: Shady Side has 6.6 square miles of land and 1.2 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Shady Side’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources487 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government113 ac
County99 ac
Other state land42 ac
State Park · 487 acLocal Park · 108 acConservation Easement · 53 acForest Stewardship Easement · 51 acHistoric or Cultural Easement · 42 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 96 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 9 of 36 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin Point State Park State Park | State natural resources | 487 | Open |
| Jack Creek Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 47 | Open |
| Shady Cove Natural Area Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 28 | Open |
| Shadyside4 Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 16 | Open |
| Snug Harbor Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 12 | Open |
| Churchton Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 6 | Open |
Things to do
3 places to go in Shady Side
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Shady Side
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Scenic views in Shady Side
1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
7 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 1.1 mi
Circuit Trail1.5 mi
Flag Pond Trail1.0 mi
Pine Alley Loop0.7 mi
Meadow Trail North0.7 mi
Meadow Trail South0.3 mi
Forest Loop (white)0.3 mi
Picnic Area Loop0.2 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.
Courts & fields
2Basketball
2Baseball
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 Shady Side: April to June
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 | 9.5 |
| High (°F) | 44 | 47 | 55 | 66 | 75 | 83 | 88 | 86 | 79 | 68 | 57 | 48 |
| Rain (in) | 3.1 | 2.7 | 4.1 | 3.3 | 3.7 | 4.3 | 4.5 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 3.9 | 3.1 | 3.7 |
February is the driest month (2.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 88 °F). 4.6 inches fall in September, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 88 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Shady Side →
Next door
Shady Side and its neighbors
Shady Side has the most mapped trails of the 3 towns around it. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shady Side | 16% | 0.9 | 131 | 73% | A |
| Galesville | 5% | 0.2 | 33 | 84% | B+ |
| Deale | 6% | 0.1 | 3 | 44% | C |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Shady Side
Where can I hike in Shady Side?
The longest trail networks: Franklin Point State Park, 3.7 miles; Jack Creek Park, 1.4 miles; Shady Cove Natural Area, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Shady Side is conserved land?
16% 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 Shady Side’s trails?
Franklin Point State Park and Jack Creek Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Shady Side?
6,658 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Shady Side or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 619 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Shady Side have?
Ahead of 91% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #39 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 Shady Side 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 →