Rumford Whitecap Mountain Preserve
Managed by Mahoosuc Land Trust
1,089 acres6.5 mi of trail
BlackOrange/Red TrailStarr Trail (yellow)
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Jon Platek · CC BY-SA 3.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Rumford
8% of Rumford’s land is conserved: 3,529 acres
The biggest trail networks: Rumford Whitecap Mountain Preserve (6.5 mi), Pennacook Area Community Trails (1 mi), Glassface Mountain Conservation Area (0.6 mi). 35 miles of mapped trail cross Rumford, 0.5 per square mile of land. 93 acres are parks and preserves, 16 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 66% of U.S. towns · #48 of 143 in Maine. What drives it
Conserved land
8%
3,529 acres · of 68.6 sq mi of land
Trails
35 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
93 ac
16 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
60%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
2,346 ft
Black Mountain
Lakes & rivers
5
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Rumford?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Rumford have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Rumford is ahead of 66% of U.S. towns, #48 of 143 in Maine. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Rumford’s overall grade.
Conserved land8% of the land · typical ME town 6% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (35 mi) · ME 0.7 · U.S. 0.4BPark land16 acres of park per 1,000 residents (93 acres) · ME 15 · U.S. 13BParks close to home60% 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 66%
LessMore
Maine towns of 2,500+ (143)Ahead of 67%
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 Rumford Whitecap Mountain Preserve, with 6.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Pennacook Area Community Trails
Nature preserve
296 acres1 mi of trail
Snowmobile ITS 82
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Glassface Mountain Conservation Area
Nature preserve
43 acres0.6 mi of trail
Glassface Ledges
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailhead
Water Supply Land
Nature preserve
1,069 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 15 parks & preserves
Rumford Whitecap Mountain Preserve1,089 acres · 6.5 mi of trail · Mahoosuc Land Trust
DirectionsPennacook Area Community Trails296 acres · 1 mi of trail
DirectionsGlassface Mountain Conservation Area43 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsWater Supply Land1,069 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Rumford Public Boat Access13 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsVeteran's Memorial Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Town of Rumford
DirectionsWater Supply Lands170 acres
DirectionsMystery Mountain66 acres
Irl Osborne Brown and Julia Gertrude Brown Memorial Forest51 acres
Chisholm Park16 acres · Town of Rumford
DirectionsMorency Park6 acres · Town of Rumford
DirectionsJ. Eugene Boivin Park3 acres · Town of Rumford
DirectionsStephens High School Memorial Park2 acres · Town of Rumford
DirectionsHastings Landing1 acres
DirectionsStrathglass Park1 acres · Town of Rumford
DirectionsWho protects it
3,529 conserved acres
8% of Rumford’s land. Who manages Rumford’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits1,868 ac
Regional Water Districts1,401 ac
Regional agency456 ac
Town or city54 ac
Not recorded1,856 ac
Watershed Protection Area · 2,804 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 1,174 acLocal Other or Unknown · 908 acConservation Easement · 661 acLocal Park · 54 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 450 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 10 of 22 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unknown Local Other or Unknown | Regional agency | 1,889 | Unknown |
| Water Supply Lands Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 1,403 | Unknown |
| Rumford Whitecap Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 751 | Closed |
| Miscellaneous Municipal Lands Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 453 | Unknown |
| Ellis River Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 371 | Unknown |
| Irl Brown Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 52 | Closed |
| Hosmer Field Complex Local Park | Town or city | 49 | Open |
| Boivin Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Oxford Street Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Ball Field Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
12 places to go in Rumford
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Rumford
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Rumford
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Waterfalls in Rumford
Rumford Falls
DirectionsPeaks in Rumford
Black Mountain2,346 ft elevation
DirectionsSouth Twin Mountain2,149 ft elevation
DirectionsWhitecap Mountain2,149 ft elevation · In Rumford Whitecap Mountain Preserve
DirectionsGlass Face Mountain1,880 ft elevation
DirectionsThurston Mountain1,453 ft elevation
DirectionsRed Hill1,437 ft elevation
DirectionsBarkers High Ledge1,171 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
7 named trails and 5 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 15.2 mi
Snowmobile ITS 828.4 mi
Orange/Red Trail3.4 mi
Black3.0 mi
Starr Trail (yellow)1.8 mi
Dan Richard Walking Trail0.6 mi
Glassface Ledges0.6 mi
Connector0.1 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
4Tennis
4Basketball
4Softball
2Baseball
2Soccer
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →11 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Strathglass Park DistrictDistrict · listed 1974
About itDeacon Hutchins HouseBuilding · listed 1979
About itMechanic InstituteBuilding · listed 1980
About itMunicipal BuildingBuilding · listed 1980
About itRumford Falls Power Company BuildingBuilding · listed 1980
About itStrathglass BuildingBuilding · listed 1980
About itRumford Point Congregational ChurchBuilding · listed 1985
About itRumford Public LibraryBuilding · listed 1989
About itRumford Commercial Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2017
About itRumford Center Meeting HouseBuilding · listed 2024
About itRumford Falls Paper Company Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2024
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Rumford: 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) | 26 | 29 | 38 | 51 | 64 | 73 | 77 | 76 | 69 | 55 | 43 | 31 |
| Rain (in) | 3.7 | 3.0 | 3.7 | 4.4 | 4.1 | 5.4 | 4.7 | 4.4 | 3.9 | 5.5 | 4.7 | 4.5 |
February is the driest month (3.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 77 °F). 5.5 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Rumford →
Next door
Rumford and its neighbors
Rumford has the second most mapped trails of the 5 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rumford | 8% | 0.5 | 16 | 60% | B+ |
| Mexico | under 1% | 0.9 | 12 | 67% | B− |
| Bethel | 4% | 0.8 | 7 | 22% | C+ |
| Peru | under 1% | 0.5 | under 1 | under 1% | D |
| Roxbury | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Rumford
Where can I hike in Rumford?
The longest trail networks: Rumford Whitecap Mountain Preserve, 6.5 miles; Pennacook Area Community Trails, 1 miles; Glassface Mountain Conservation Area, 0.6 miles; Water Supply Land, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Rumford is conserved land?
8% 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 Rumford’s trails?
Rumford Whitecap Mountain Preserve and Pennacook Area Community Trails don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Rumford?
935 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Rumford or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 93 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Rumford have?
Ahead of 66% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #48 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 Rumford 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 →