Hidden Valley Nature Center
Managed by Midcoast Conservancy
953 acres18.3 mi of trail
Bowl LoopLittle Dyer's PondCouch HillBambi's Trail+1
Dogs on leash
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Jefferson Cattle Pound · Photo: User:Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0BOutdoors
Outdoors in Jefferson
Jefferson has 179 acres of parks, 68 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Hidden Valley Nature Center (18.3 mi), West Branch Preserve (2.5 mi), Stetser Preserve (1.9 mi). 9% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 29 miles of mapped trail cross Jefferson, 0.5 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 58% of U.S. towns · #66 of 143 in Maine. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
1,689 acres · of 52.6 sq mi of land
Trails
29 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
179 ac
68 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
9%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
486 ft
Haskell Hill
Lakes & rivers
16
1 beach · 4 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Jefferson?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Jefferson have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Jefferson is ahead of 58% of U.S. towns, #66 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 Jefferson’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical ME town 6% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (29 mi) · ME 0.7 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land68 acres of park per 1,000 residents (179 acres) · ME 15 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home9% of residents within a half mile of a park · ME 30% · U.S. 72%D
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 58%
LessMore
Maine towns of 2,500+ (143)Ahead of 54%
Water is 10% of Jefferson’s area (6 of 59 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 4%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ 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 Hidden Valley Nature Center, with 18.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
West Branch Preserve
Managed by Midcoast Conservancy
208 acres2.5 mi of trail
Tracy's Mill LoopJoe's Trail
Dogs allowed
Directionsto West Bank Preserve
Stetser Preserve
Managed by Midcoast Conservancy
165 acres1.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Statser Trail
Musquash Pond Preserve
Managed by Midcoast Conservancy
490 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Davis Stream Preserve
Managed by Midcoast Conservancy
9 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 10 parks & preserves
Hidden Valley Nature Center953 acres · 18.3 mi of trail · Midcoast Conservancy
DirectionsWest Branch Preserve208 acres · 2.5 mi of trail · Midcoast Conservancy
DirectionsStetser Preserve165 acres · 1.9 mi of trail · Midcoast Conservancy
DirectionsMusquash Pond Preserve490 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · Midcoast Conservancy
Davis Stream Preserve9 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Midcoast Conservancy
Damariscotta Lake State Park19 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands
DirectionsDyer Long Pond Access38 acres
DirectionsTurnpike Road19 acres · Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife
Clary Lake Access7 acres
DirectionsDamariscotta Lake Access2 acres
Who protects it
1,689 conserved acres
5% of Jefferson’s land. Water is left out: Jefferson has 52.6 square miles of land and 6.0 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Jefferson’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits3,029 ac
State fish & wildlife69 ac
State parks19 ac
Not recorded240 ac
Unknown Easement · 1,070 acConservation Easement · 804 acPrivate Conservation · 534 acAgricultural Easement · 463 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 386 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 994 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 22 of 50 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Musquash Pond Preserve Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 439 | Closed |
| West Branch Preserve Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 316 | Closed |
| Stetser Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 159 | Restricted |
| Dyer Long Pond Access State Other or Unknown | State fish & wildlife | 38 | Closed |
| Turnpike Road State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 20 | Closed |
| Damariscotta Lake State Park State Park | State parks | 19 | Closed |
| Davis Stream Preserve Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 9 | Closed |
| Williard Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 9 | Closed |
| Clary Lake Access State Other or Unknown | State fish & wildlife | 7 | Closed |
| Damariscotta Lake Access State Other or Unknown | State fish & wildlife | 3 | Closed |
1 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
14 places to go in Jefferson
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Jefferson
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Jefferson
1 playground without a name on the map.
Boat launches in Jefferson
4 boat launches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Peaks in Jefferson
Haskell Hill486 ft elevation
DirectionsDyer Hill410 ft elevation
DirectionsBrooks Turner Hill371 ft elevation
DirectionsPeter Mountain367 ft elevation
DirectionsBodge Hill341 ft elevation
DirectionsBunker Hill292 ft elevation
DirectionsCampgrounds in Jefferson
North CampsiteFee · In Hidden Valley Nature Center · Hidden Valley Nature Center
DirectionsSouth CampsiteFee · In Hidden Valley Nature Center · Hidden Valley Nature Center
DirectionsTrails & water
25 named trails and 16 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 3.0 miHorses · 3.0 miUnpaved · 0.9 mi
Bowl Loop1.9 mi
Tracy's Mill Loop1.5 mi
Joe's Trail1.3 mi
Little Dyer's Pond1.2 mi
Couch Hill0.9 mi
Bambi's Trail0.8 mi
Fisher0.6 mi
Route 460.6 mi
Log Brow Loop0.6 mi
Kidney Pond0.5 mi
15 more trails
Andy's Alley
0.5 miMoose Alley
0.4 miReed Meadow
0.4 miSlick Rock
0.4 miCrossbill
0.4 miBluff Trail
0.4 miHermit Thrush
0.4 miOld Stove
0.3 miTwo Dog
0.3 miKidney
0.3 miBowl Bypass
0.2 miSugar Hill
0.2 miHaybale
0.2 miSugar Ridge
0.2 miNorth Head
0.2 miBiking & 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
3Tennis
2Baseball
1Basketball
1Soccer
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 Jefferson: 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) | 9.2 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.5 | 15.2 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.9 |
| High (°F) | 30 | 32 | 41 | 53 | 64 | 73 | 78 | 77 | 70 | 57 | 46 | 35 |
| Rain (in) | 3.7 | 3.2 | 4.0 | 4.1 | 3.7 | 4.3 | 3.3 | 3.4 | 4.1 | 5.1 | 4.5 | 4.5 |
February is the driest month (3.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 78 °F). 5.1 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Jefferson →
Next door
Jefferson and its neighbors
Jefferson has the most mapped trails of the 8 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Jefferson29 miNewcastle19 miWhitefield16 miWaldoboro15 miAlna6.2 miSomerville5.0 miWindsor3.5 miNobleboro0.4 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson | 5% | 0.5 | 68 | 9% | B |
| Nobleboro | 5% | under 0.1 | 8 | 9% | C− |
| Windsor | 9% | 0.1 | 25 | 2% | C+ |
| Somerville | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Whitefield | 6% | 0.3 | under 1 | under 1% | C− |
| Alna | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Waldoboro | 9% | 0.2 | 23 | 19% | B− |
| Newcastle | 17% | 0.7 | 38 | 28% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Jefferson
Where can I hike in Jefferson?
The longest trail networks: Hidden Valley Nature Center, 18.3 miles; West Branch Preserve, 2.5 miles; Stetser Preserve, 1.9 miles; Musquash Pond Preserve, 0.5 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Jefferson is conserved land?
5% 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 Jefferson’s trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Hidden Valley Nature Center (on leash) and West Branch Preserve. For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Jefferson?
1,138 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Jefferson or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 179 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Jefferson have?
Ahead of 58% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #66 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 Jefferson 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 →