Sherwood Forest
Nature preserve
814 acres4.6 mi of trail
Red TrailRockledge TrailCanyon TrailBluff Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Ken Gallager at Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Grantham
Grantham has 836 acres of parks, 241 for every 1,000 residents
47 miles of mapped trail cross Grantham, 1.7 per square mile of land. 19% of Grantham’s land is conserved, about 3,346 acres. The biggest trail networks: Sherwood Forest (4.6 mi), Grantham Town Forest (2.4 mi), Sawyer Brook Headwaters (1 mi).
Ahead of 87% of U.S. towns · #41 of 126 in New Hampshire. What drives it
Conserved land
19%
3,346 acres · of 27.2 sq mi of land
Trails
47 mi
1.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
836 ac
241 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
24%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.6 mi
0.4 mi lanes · 0.2 mi paths
Highest peak
2,625 ft
Grantham Mountain
Lakes & rivers
11
7 beaches · 5 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Grantham?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Grantham have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Grantham is ahead of 87% of U.S. towns, #41 of 126 in New Hampshire. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Grantham’s overall grade.
Conserved land19% of the land · typical NH town 19% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (47 mi) · NH 1.2 · U.S. 0.4APark land241 acres of park per 1,000 residents (836 acres) · NH 44 · U.S. 13AParks close to home24% of residents within a half mile of a park · NH 40% · U.S. 72%C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 87%
LessMore
New Hampshire towns of 2,500+ (126)Ahead of 68%
New Hampshire towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 19%; the U.S., 4%), so Grantham’s 19% is ahead of 54% of New Hampshire towns, while its trails per square mile lead 82% of them.
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 Sherwood Forest, with 4.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Grantham Town Forest
Managed by Town of Grantham
424 acres2.4 mi of trail
Croydon TurnpikeBrook Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Sawyer Brook Headwaters
Managed by Ausbon Sargent Land Preservation Trust
381 acres1 mi of trail
Croydon Turnpike
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Henry Laramie Wildlife Management Area
Nature preserve
222 acres0.9 mi of trail
Butternut TrailCole Pond Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Donas J. & Margaret Reney Memorial Forest
Managed by Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests
410 acres0.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
William B. Ruger, Jr. Wildlife Management Area - North
Managed by NH Fish & Game
343 acres0.6 mi of trail
Croydon Turnpike
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Snow Mountain Conservation Area
Managed by Upper Valley Land Trust
76 acres0.4 mi of trail
Piasecki Way South Loop
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 13 parks & preserves
Sherwood Forest814 acres · 4.6 mi of trail
DirectionsGrantham Town Forest424 acres · 2.4 mi of trail · Town of Grantham
Sawyer Brook Headwaters381 acres · 1 mi of trail · Ausbon Sargent Land Preservation Trust
Henry Laramie Wildlife Management Area222 acres · 0.9 mi of trail
Donas J. & Margaret Reney Memorial Forest410 acres · 0.7 mi of trail · Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests
DirectionsWilliam B. Ruger, Jr. Wildlife Management Area - North343 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · NH Fish & Game
Snow Mountain Conservation Area76 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Upper Valley Land Trust
Eastman Forest43 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Society for the Prot. of NH Forests
DirectionsLeavitt Hill Wetland88 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Upper Valley Land Trust
Fisher Lot30 acres · Town of Grantham
DirectionsGrantham Recreation Park24 acres · Town of Grantham
Brookside Park21 acres · Town of Grantham
DirectionsEastman Pond Island3 acres
Who protects it
3,346 conserved acres
19% of Grantham’s land. Who manages Grantham’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits1,107 ac
Town or city922 ac
State fish & wildlife887 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government833 ac
Not recorded1,419 ac
Conservation Easement · 2,828 acUnknown Easement · 833 acPrivate Conservation · 453 acLocal Resource Management Area · 441 acState Conservation Area · 366 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 1,838 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 22 of 32 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grantham Town Forest Local Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 441 | Unknown |
| Donas J. and Margaret Reney Memorial Forest Private Conservation | Not recorded | 410 | Unknown |
| William B. Ruger Wildlife Management Area - North State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 354 | Open |
| Leavitt Hill Wetland Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 88 | Unknown |
| Snow Mountain Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 76 | Unknown |
| Eastman Forest Private Conservation | Not recorded | 43 | Unknown |
| Transfer Station Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 30 | Unknown |
| Grantham Village School Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 25 | Unknown |
| Brookside Park Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 21 | Unknown |
| Enfield Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 10 | Unknown |
2 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
20 places to go in Grantham
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Grantham
East Cove Beach
DirectionsEast Lake Beach
DirectionsNorth Cove Beach
DirectionsSouth Cove Beach
DirectionsWest Cove A Beach
DirectionsWest Cove B Beach
DirectionsPlus 1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Grantham
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Grantham
5 boat launches without a name on the map.
Peaks in Grantham
Grantham Mountain2,625 ft elevation
DirectionsSargent Hill1,732 ft elevation
DirectionsBarton Hill1,578 ft elevation
DirectionsDunbar Hill1,355 ft elevation
DirectionsHowe Hill1,230 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
20 named trails and 11 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 26.2 mi
Croydon Turnpike5.6 mi
Eastman Lake Trail4.3 mi
John's Glen1.7 mi
Red Trail1.5 mi
Bright Slopes1.3 mi
Cole Pond Trail1.2 mi
Butternut Trail1.1 mi
Deer Path1.1 mi
Anderson Pond Trail0.9 mi
Brook Trail0.7 mi
10 more trails
Rockledge Trail
0.7 miCanyon Trail
0.7 miStroing Brook Trail
0.7 miJohn's Glen Balsam Loops
0.5 miHeath Forest Trails
0.5 miJohn's Glen Connector
0.3 miBluff Trail
0.3 miCraig's Corridor
0.2 miPiasecki Way South Loop
0.1 miLittle Mount Washington Trail
0.1 miBiking & sports
0.6 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.4 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
0.2 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
13Tennis
2Baseball
2Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Grantham: May, August and 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) | 9.3 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.4 | 15.1 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 28 | 32 | 40 | 54 | 66 | 74 | 79 | 77 | 70 | 57 | 44 | 33 |
| Rain (in) | 3.1 | 2.6 | 3.2 | 3.5 | 3.7 | 4.5 | 4.6 | 4.0 | 3.8 | 4.9 | 3.4 | 3.8 |
February is the driest month (2.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 79 °F). 4.9 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Grantham →
Next door
Grantham 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grantham | 19% | 1.7 | 241 | 24% | A |
| Plainfield | 14% | 1.5 | 11 | 10% | B |
| Croydon | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Springfield | 40% | 1.2 | 508 | 30% | A |
| Enfield | 29% | 1.2 | 9 | 35% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Grantham
Where can I hike in Grantham?
The longest trail networks: Sherwood Forest, 4.6 miles; Grantham Town Forest, 2.4 miles; Sawyer Brook Headwaters, 1 miles; Henry Laramie Wildlife Management Area, 0.9 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Grantham is conserved land?
19% of its land, against a typical 19% for a New Hampshire town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Grantham’s trails?
Sherwood Forest and Grantham Town Forest don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Grantham?
0.6 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.4 of painted or protected lanes and 0.2 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Grantham?
11,797 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Grantham or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,667 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Grantham have?
Ahead of 87% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #41 of 126 in New Hampshire. 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 Grantham 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 →