Harris Center Conservation Land
Managed by Harris Center for Conservation Education
919 acres2.2 mi of trail
North Pond TrailEastview TrailHiroshi Loop Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: John Phelan · CC BY 4.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Harrisville
23% of Harrisville’s land is conserved: 2,757 acres
24 miles of mapped trail cross Harrisville, 1.3 per square mile of land. 33 acres are parks and preserves, 37 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: Harris Center Conservation Land (2.2 mi).
Ahead of 74% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
23%
2,757 acres · of 18.7 sq mi of land
Trails
24 mi
1.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
33 ac
37 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
3%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,821 ft
Cobb Hill
Lakes & rivers
11
1 beach · 2 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Harrisville?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Harrisville have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Harrisville is ahead of 74% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Harrisville’s overall grade.
Conserved land23% of the land · typical NH town 19% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (24 mi) · NH 1.2 · U.S. 0.4APark land37 acres of park per 1,000 residents (33 acres) · NH 44 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home3% of residents within a half mile of a park · NH 40% · U.S. 72%D
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 74%
LessMore
New Hampshire towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 19%; the U.S., 4%), so Harrisville’s 23% is ahead of 71% of New Hampshire towns, while its trails per square mile lead 53% of them.
Water is 8% of Harrisville’s area (2 of 20 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 21%.
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 Harris Center Conservation Land, with 2.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Eliza Adams Gorge
Managed by Monadnock Conservancy
32 acres0.3 mi of trail
Monadnock Sunapee Greenway Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Edward MacDowell Lake
Managed by United States Army Corps of Engineers
203 acres0.1 mi of trail
Hiroshi Loop Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Wellington Wells Memorial Forest
Managed by New England Forestry Foundation
182 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Harris Center Conservation Land919 acres · 2.2 mi of trail · Harris Center for Conservation Education
DirectionsEliza Adams Gorge32 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Monadnock Conservancy
Edward MacDowell Lake203 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · United States Army Corps of Engineers
Wellington Wells Memorial Forest182 acres · New England Forestry Foundation
Keene Watershed Land29 acres
Who protects it
2,757 conserved acres
23% of Harrisville’s land. Water is left out: Harrisville has 18.7 square miles of land and 1.6 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Harrisville’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits2,945 ac
Town or city82 ac
Joint8 ac
Not recorded1,199 ac
Conservation Easement · 2,700 acPrivate Conservation · 1,177 acUnknown Easement · 261 acState Other or Unknown · 65 acWatershed Protection Area · 30 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 1,485 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 84 of 100 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sidney Williams Woods Private Conservation | Not recorded | 457 | Unknown |
| Hancock Road Private Conservation | Not recorded | 229 | Unknown |
| Wellington Wells Memorial Forest Private Conservation | Not recorded | 185 | Unknown |
| Rathburn Tract Private Conservation | Not recorded | 172 | Unknown |
| Hcce Private Conservation | Not recorded | 45 | Unknown |
| Seaver Reservoir Lot State Other or Unknown | Town or city | 38 | Unknown |
| Keene Watershed Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 30 | Unknown |
| Willard Hill Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 30 | Unknown |
| Childs Bog State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 26 | Unknown |
| Willard Richardson Private Conservation | Not recorded | 23 | Unknown |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
9 places to go in Harrisville
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Harrisville
Sunset Beach
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Harrisville
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Boat launches in Harrisville
Harrisville Pond Boat Launch
DirectionsPlus 1 boat launch without a name on the map.
Peaks in Harrisville
Cobb Hill1,821 ft elevation
DirectionsBlood Hill1,526 ft elevation
DirectionsDerby Hill1,509 ft elevation
DirectionsWillard Hill1,407 ft elevation · In Wellington Wells Memorial Forest
DirectionsGreenwood Hill1,135 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
11 named trails and 11 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 0.5 miUnpaved · 10.4 mi
Harrisville Rail Trail1.8 mi
Eastview Trail1.3 mi
Monadnock Sunapee Greenway Trail1.2 mi
Monadnock-Sunapee Greenway0.9 mi
Jaquith Rail Trail0.8 mi
North Pond Trail0.7 mi
Zophar Willard Trail0.7 mi
Gorge Trail0.5 mi
Monadnock_Sunapee Greenway0.4 mi
River Trail0.4 mi
1 more trails
Hiroshi Loop Trail
0.2 miHistory along the way
History →31 places on the National Register, one a National Historic Landmark
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Chesham Village DistrictDistrict · listed 1986
About itPottersville DistrictDistrict · listed 1986
About itSilver Lake DistrictDistrict · listed 1986
About itHarrisville Rural DistrictDistrict · listed 1987
About itAcre (The)Building · listed 1988
About itAdams FarmBuilding · listed 1988
About itBeech Hill Summer Home DistrictDistrict · listed 1988
About itClymer HouseBuilding · listed 1988
About itCorban C. Farwell HomesteadBuilding · listed 1988
About itElbridge G. Bemis HouseBuilding · listed 1988
About itFasnacloichBuilding · listed 1988
About it19 more on the History page.
When to get out
The best walking months in Harrisville: 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) | 9.3 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.7 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 30 | 33 | 41 | 54 | 66 | 74 | 78 | 77 | 70 | 57 | 45 | 35 |
| Rain (in) | 3.4 | 3.2 | 3.6 | 3.8 | 3.8 | 4.5 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 5.1 | 3.8 | 4.3 |
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 Harrisville →
Next door
Harrisville 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harrisville | 23% | 1.3 | 37 | 3% | B+ |
| Nelson | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Dublin | 35% | 0.9 | 466 | 11% | A− |
| Hancock | 45% | 0.9 | 29 | 21% | A− |
| Roxbury | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Marlborough | 22% | 1.0 | 209 | 45% | A |
| Peterborough | 32% | 1.1 | 89 | 45% | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Harrisville
Where can I hike in Harrisville?
The longest trail networks: Harris Center Conservation Land, 2.2 miles; Eliza Adams Gorge, 0.3 miles; Edward MacDowell Lake, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Harrisville is conserved land?
23% 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 Harrisville’s trails?
Harris Center Conservation Land and Eliza Adams Gorge don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Harrisville?
16,174 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Harrisville or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 184 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Harrisville have?
Ahead of 74% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Harrisville 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 →