Rolland F. Perry City Forest
Nature preserve
720 acres14.7 mi of trail
East / West LoopMoose TrailDeer TrailBear Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Quintin Soloviev · CC BY 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Bangor
Bangor has 53 miles of mapped trails, 1.5 for every square mile of land
11% of Bangor’s land is conserved, about 2,406 acres. The biggest trail networks: Rolland F. Perry City Forest (14.7 mi), Walden-Parke Preserve (7.4 mi), Central Penjajawoc Preserve (2.1 mi). 81% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 84% of U.S. towns · #13 of 143 in Maine. What drives it
Conserved land
11%
2,406 acres · of 34.3 sq mi of land
Trails
53 mi
1.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
461 ac
14 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
81%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
2.8 mi
2.8 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Bangor?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Bangor have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Bangor is ahead of 84% of U.S. towns, #13 of 143 in Maine. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Bangor’s overall grade.
Conserved land11% of the land · typical ME town 6% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (53 mi) · ME 0.7 · U.S. 0.4APark land14 acres of park per 1,000 residents (461 acres) · ME 15 · U.S. 13BParks close to home81% of residents within a half mile of a park · ME 30% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 84%
LessMore
Maine towns of 2,500+ (143)Ahead of 92%
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 Rolland F. Perry City Forest, with 14.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Walden-Parke Preserve
Managed by Bangor Land Trust
499 acres7.4 mi of trail
Walden Parke TrailSnowmobile Bangor TrailMaple TrailVeazie Railroad
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Central Penjajawoc Preserve
Managed by Bangor Land Trust
267 acres2.1 mi of trail
White Pine LoopMilkweed TrailPenjajawoc Overlook Trail
No dogs
Directionsto the trailheadWebsite ↗
North Penjajawoc Forest
Managed by Bangor Land Trust
101 acres1.9 mi of trail
North Forest LoopRock Bridge TrailVeazie RailroadSnowmobile Bangor Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Northeast Penjajawoc Preserve
Managed by Bangor Land Trust
83 acres1.5 mi of trail
Snowmobile Bangor Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Brown Woods
Managed by City of Bangor
25 acres0.7 mi of trail
Brown Woods Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Essex Street Recreation Area
Park
87 acres0.6 mi of trail
Snowmobile Bangor Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 33 parks & preserves
Rolland F. Perry City Forest720 acres · 14.7 mi of trail
DirectionsWalden-Parke Preserve499 acres · 7.4 mi of trail · Bangor Land Trust
Central Penjajawoc Preserve267 acres · 2.1 mi of trail · Bangor Land Trust
DirectionsNorth Penjajawoc Forest101 acres · 1.9 mi of trail · Bangor Land Trust
Northeast Penjajawoc Preserve83 acres · 1.5 mi of trail · Bangor Land Trust
DirectionsBrown Woods25 acres · 0.7 mi of trail · City of Bangor
Essex Street Recreation Area87 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
Hayford Park35 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
DirectionsKenduskeag Parkway9 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsGateway Park5 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsBass Park69 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · City of Bangor
DirectionsCascade Park7 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsTalbot Park4 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Coe Park2 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Fairmont Park3 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Broad Street Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsSaxl Park58 acres
DirectionsPrentiss Woods26 acres
DirectionsUnion Street Recreation Area15 acres
DirectionsWest Penjajawoc Grasslands12 acres · Bangor Land Trust
Broadway Park11 acres
DirectionsStillwater Park10 acres
DirectionsKenduskeag Stream Park9 acres
DirectionsChapin Park6 acres
Waterfront Park5 acres
DirectionsSummit Park4 acres
Garden Plots4 acres
DirectionsWilliams Park3 acres
DirectionsBangor Gardens Park3 acres
Dakin Park3 acres
DirectionsLittle City Park1 acres
Davenport Park1 acres
DirectionsPickering Square1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
2,406 conserved acres
11% of Bangor’s land. Who manages Bangor’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Regional agency1,516 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits915 ac
State parks88 ac
State conservation18 ac
Not recorded827 ac
State Conservation Area · 1,548 acLocal Other or Unknown · 788 acPrivate Conservation · 394 acLocal Park · 222 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 148 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 25 of 64 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| City Forest State Conservation Area | Regional agency | 768 | Closed |
| Unknown Local Other or Unknown | Regional agency | 328 | Unknown |
| Bangor Municipal Golf Course Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 223 | Unknown |
| Walden-Parke Phase 2 State Conservation Area | Land trusts & nonprofits | 213 | Closed |
| Severance Parcel Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 202 | Closed |
| Walden-Parke Preserve Private Conservation | Not recorded | 202 | Unknown |
| Walden-Parke Preserve Phase II Private Conservation | Not recorded | 200 | Unknown |
| Caribou Bog - Penjajawoc Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 97 | Closed |
| Miscellaneous Municipal Lands Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 94 | Unknown |
| Quinn Parcel State Conservation Area | Land trusts & nonprofits | 93 | Closed |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
23 places to go in Bangor
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Bangor
Dakin PoolIn Dakin Park
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Bangor
Bangor Creative PlaygroundIn Hayford Park
DirectionsChildrens Play area
DirectionsPlus 14 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Waterfalls in Bangor
Lovers Leap
DirectionsPlus 1 waterfall without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Scenic views in Bangor
Marsh OverlookIn Central Penjajawoc Preserve
DirectionsMarsh OverlookIn Central Penjajawoc Preserve
DirectionsCampgrounds in Bangor
Paul Bunyan Campground
DirectionsCommunity gardens in Bangor
UMA Bangor Campus GardenUniversity of Maine at Augusta - Bangor Campus
DirectionsTrails & water
24 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 3.9 miUnpaved · 9.9 mi
Snowmobile Bangor Trail19.0 mi
East / West Loop3.9 mi
Walden Parke Trail2.2 mi
White Pine Loop1.3 mi
Veazie Railroad1.0 mi
Kenduskeag Stream Trail0.9 mi
Moose Trail0.8 mi
Deer Trail0.6 mi
Bear Trail0.6 mi
Milkweed Trail0.5 mi
14 more trails
Brown Woods Trail
0.5 miNorth Forest Loop
0.5 miRock Bridge Trail
0.5 miMaple Trail
0.4 miBog trail
0.4 miPenjajawoc Overlook Trail
0.3 miArboretum Trail
0.3 miGrouse Trail
0.3 miRabbit Trail
0.3 miLynx Trail
0.3 miSnowmobile Bangor Hampden Connection
0.2 miSquirrel Trail
0.2 miOrono Bog Boardwalk
0.2 miKenduskeag Stream Trail Connector
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
2.8 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.8 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
16Baseball
13Tennis
7Soccer
5Pickleball
4Football
4Basketball
1Beach volleyball
1Lacrosse
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →38 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 3 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Bangor HouseBuilding · listed 1972
About itSymphony HouseBuilding · listed 1972
About itBlake HouseBuilding · listed 1972
About itGrand Army Memorial HomeBuilding · listed 1972
About itJonas Cutting-Edward Kent HouseBuilding · listed 1973
About itMorse & Co. Office BuildingBuilding · listed 1973
About itSt. John's Catholic ChurchBuilding · listed 1973
About itBroadway Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1973
About itGodfrey-Kellogg HouseBuilding · listed 1973
About itJoseph W. Low HouseBuilding · listed 1973
About itZebulon Smith HouseBuilding · listed 1974
About itAdams-Pickering BlockBuilding · listed 1974
About it26 more on the History page.
When to get out
The best walking months in Bangor: 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) | 9.1 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.8 | 15.6 | 15.3 | 14.0 | 12.5 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.8 |
| High (°F) | 28 | 31 | 40 | 53 | 66 | 74 | 80 | 79 | 70 | 58 | 45 | 34 |
| Rain (in) | 3.4 | 2.6 | 3.3 | 3.6 | 3.4 | 3.8 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 3.8 | 4.8 | 4.1 | 4.0 |
February is the driest month (2.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 80 °F). 4.8 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Bangor →
Next door
Bangor and its neighbors
Bangor has the most mapped trails of the 6 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Questions about parks and trails in Bangor
Where can I hike in Bangor?
The longest trail networks: Rolland F. Perry City Forest, 14.7 miles; Walden-Parke Preserve, 7.4 miles; Central Penjajawoc Preserve, 2.1 miles; North Penjajawoc Forest, 1.9 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Bangor is conserved land?
11% of its land, against a typical 6% for a Maine town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Bangor’s trails?
Rolland F. Perry City Forest and Walden-Parke Preserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Bangor?
2.8 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.8 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Bangor?
993 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Bangor or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 461 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Bangor have?
Ahead of 84% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #13 of 143 in Maine. 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 Bangor 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 →