Spruce Mountain Conservation Area
Nature preserve
157 acres1.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 3.0BOutdoors
Outdoors in Jay
Jay has 191 acres of parks, 41 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Spruce Mountain Conservation Area (1.4 mi), French Falls Recreation Area (1.4 mi). 27 miles of mapped trail cross Jay, 0.6 per square mile of land. 35% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 57% of U.S. towns · #69 of 143 in Maine. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
775 acres · of 48.4 sq mi of land
Trails
27 mi
0.6 per sq mi of land
Park land
191 ac
41 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
35%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.2 mi
1.2 mi paths
Highest peak
1,230 ft
Nebo Mountain
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Jay?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Jay have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Jay is ahead of 57% of U.S. towns, #69 of 143 in Maine. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Jay’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical ME town 6% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.6 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (27 mi) · ME 0.7 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land41 acres of park per 1,000 residents (191 acres) · ME 15 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home35% of residents within a half mile of a park · ME 30% · U.S. 72%C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 57%
LessMore
Maine towns of 2,500+ (143)Ahead of 52%
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 Spruce Mountain Conservation Area, with 1.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
French Falls Recreation Area
Park
29 acres1.4 mi of trail
Red TrailBlue TrailYellow TrailWhite Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Jay Recreation Area
Park
138 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Alden Hill Conservation Area
Managed by Androscoggin Land Trust
78 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 8 parks & preserves
Spruce Mountain Conservation Area157 acres · 1.4 mi of trail
French Falls Recreation Area29 acres · 1.4 mi of trail
Jay Recreation Area138 acres
Alden Hill Conservation Area78 acres · Androscoggin Land Trust
Seven Mile Stream Preserve42 acres
Canton Rivershore Conservation Area10 acres · Androscoggin Land Trust
DirectionsStone Street Ballfield6 acres
Dow Field4 acres
Who protects it
775 conserved acres
3% of Jay’s land. Who manages Jay’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits1,127 ac
State parks83 ac
County9 ac
Not recorded157 ac
Agricultural Easement · 727 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 314 acPrivate Conservation · 233 acState Recreation Area · 83 acConservation Easement · 9 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 363 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 5 of 16 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| SpruceMtn Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 170 | Closed |
| Spruce Mtn Private Conservation | Not recorded | 157 | Unknown |
| Whistlestop Rail Trail Jay to Farmington State Recreation Area | State parks | 83 | Closed |
| AldenHill Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 77 | Closed |
| Androscoggin Land Trust - Sevenmile Stream Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 54 | Closed |
| SevenMileStream Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 42 | Closed |
| Expanding the Androscoggin Greenway Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 28 | Closed |
| CantonRivershore Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 10 | Closed |
| Androscoggin Land Trust - Jay Riley Dam Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 9 | Closed |
| French Falls Park Local Park | County | 7 | Open |
1 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
12 places to go in Jay
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Jay
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Peaks in Jay
Nebo Mountain1,230 ft elevation
DirectionsSpruce Mountain1,112 ft elevation
DirectionsCow Hill1,056 ft elevation
DirectionsPhilbrick Hill971 ft elevation
DirectionsPaine Hill961 ft elevation
DirectionsMacomber Hill846 ft elevation
DirectionsLittle Moose Hill764 ft elevation
DirectionsWarren Hill676 ft elevation
Directions2 more peaks
Jay Hill623 ft elevation
DirectionsTreat Hill607 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
10 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 11.9 miUnpaved · 15.9 mi
Whistle Stop Trail7.2 mi
Snowmobile ITS 894.7 mi
Snowmobile ITS 115 Connector3.1 mi
Snowmobile ITS 822.9 mi
Snowmobile ITS 872.2 mi
North Jay White Granite Park1.1 mi
Red Trail0.5 mi
Blue Trail0.4 mi
Yellow Trail0.3 mi
White Trail0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
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
off-road bike paths
Whistle Stop TrailBike route
7.2 miCourts & fields
3Baseball
2Tennis
2Soccer
1Softball
1Field hockey
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 Jay: May and July 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) | 9.2 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.8 | 15.5 | 15.2 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.8 |
| High (°F) | 27 | 31 | 39 | 52 | 65 | 73 | 79 | 78 | 70 | 57 | 44 | 33 |
| Rain (in) | 3.4 | 2.9 | 3.7 | 4.1 | 3.7 | 4.8 | 4.1 | 3.9 | 3.6 | 5.3 | 4.3 | 4.2 |
February is the driest month (2.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 79 °F). 5.3 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Jay →
Next door
Jay 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jay | 3% | 0.6 | 41 | 35% | B |
| Canton | 9% | 0.5 | 69 | 42% | B+ |
| Chesterville | 9% | 0.8 | under 1 | 2% | C+ |
| Wilton | 3% | 0.8 | 16 | 40% | B |
| Livermore Falls | 2% | 0.5 | 19 | 54% | B− |
| Livermore | 4% | 0.1 | 9 | 12% | C |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Jay
Where can I hike in Jay?
The longest trail networks: Spruce Mountain Conservation Area, 1.4 miles; French Falls Recreation Area, 1.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Jay is conserved land?
3% 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 Jay’s trails?
Spruce Mountain Conservation Area and French Falls Recreation Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Jay?
1.2 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.2 of off-road paths. Named routes: Whistle Stop Trail.
Is there public land near Jay?
2,602 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Jay or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 191 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Jay have?
Ahead of 57% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #69 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 Jay 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 →