Ahern State Park
Park
129 acres5.2 mi of trail
BackboneEscapeRusty BedspringLower Jakes+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: cappi thompson from Gorham, New Hampshire, USA · CC BY 2.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Laconia
Laconia has 22 miles of mapped trails, 1.1 for every square mile of land
10% of Laconia’s land is conserved, about 1,308 acres. The biggest trail networks: Ahern State Park (5.2 mi). 75% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns · #69 of 126 in New Hampshire. What drives it
Conserved land
10%
1,308 acres · of 19.8 sq mi of land
Trails
22 mi
1.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
261 ac
15 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
75%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
2.5 mi
0.4 mi lanes · 2.1 mi paths
Highest peak
932 ft
Buckyard Mountain
Lakes & rivers
7
19 beaches · 5 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Laconia?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Laconia have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Laconia is ahead of 80% of U.S. towns, #69 of 126 in New Hampshire. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Laconia’s overall grade.
Conserved land10% of the land · typical NH town 19% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (22 mi) · NH 1.2 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land15 acres of park per 1,000 residents (261 acres) · NH 44 · U.S. 13BParks close to home75% of residents within a half mile of a park · NH 40% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 80%
LessMore
New Hampshire towns of 2,500+ (126)Ahead of 46%
New Hampshire towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 19%; the U.S., 4%), so Laconia’s 10% is ahead of 16% of New Hampshire towns, while its trails per square mile lead 40% of them.
Water is 24% of Laconia’s area (6 of 26 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 8%.
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 Ahern State Park, with 5.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Opechee Bay State Forest
Managed by New Hampshire Department of Resources and Economic Development
47 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Bond Beach Park
Managed by City of Laconia
29 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Paugus Bay State Forest
Managed by NH Department of Resources & Economic Development
252 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 22 parks & preserves
Ahern State Park129 acres · 5.2 mi of trail
DirectionsOpechee Bay State Forest47 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · New Hampshire Department of Resources and Economic Development
Bond Beach Park29 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · City of Laconia
DirectionsOpechee Park17 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · City of Laconia
DirectionsWyatt Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · City of Laconia
DirectionsStewart Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsRotary Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsPaugus Bay State Forest252 acres · NH Department of Resources & Economic Development
Huston-Morgan State Forest156 acres · NH Department of Resources & Economic Development
Prescott State Forest118 acres · New Hampshire Division of Forests and Lands
Swain State Forest101 acres · NH Department of Resources & Economic Development
Hamel State Forest39 acres · New Hampshire Division of Forests and Lands
Weirs Community Park22 acres
DirectionsMemorial Park18 acres
DirectionsPickerel Pond Conservation Land16 acres · Laconia Conservation Commission
Robbie Mills Sports Complex10 acres
Leavitt Park7 acres
DirectionsEndicott Rock Park5 acres
DirectionsBartlett Beach3 acres
DirectionsEager Island3 acres · Laconia Conservation Commission
DirectionsTardif Park2 acres
Sanborn Park2 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
1,308 conserved acres
10% of Laconia’s land. Water is left out: Laconia has 19.8 square miles of land and 6.2 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Laconia’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits389 ac
State natural resources228 ac
Town or city195 ac
Joint53 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government52 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)15 ac
Other or Unknown Federal Land15 ac
State Resource Management Area · 717 acConservation Easement · 344 acUnknown Easement · 261 acState Park · 129 acLocal Park · 76 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 338 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 17 of 37 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paugus Bay State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 252 | Unknown |
| Huston - Morgan State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 160 | Unknown |
| Governors State Park State Park | State natural resources | 129 | Open |
| Prescott State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 114 | Unknown |
| Swain State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 102 | Unknown |
| Opechee Bay State Forest State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 48 | Open |
| Hamel State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 41 | Unknown |
| Bond Park Local Park | Town or city | 36 | Open |
| Weirs Community Park Local Park | Town or city | 23 | Open |
| Memorial Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 11 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
48 places to go in Laconia
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Laconia
Long Bay Beach
DirectionsPaugus Bay Beach
DirectionsQuinby Point
DirectionsWeirs BeachIn Endicott Rock Park
DirectionsPlus 15 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Swimming spots in Laconia
1 swimming spot without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Laconia
16 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Dog parks in Laconia
Lezama Family Happy Tails Dog ParkHours: Mon–Sun 6 am – 8 pm
DirectionsPlus 1 dog park without a name on the map.
Boat launches in Laconia
Messer Street Boat Ramp
DirectionsPlus 4 boat launches without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Laconia
2 scenic views without a name on the map.
Peaks in Laconia
Buckyard Mountain932 ft elevation
DirectionsPicnic areas in Laconia
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Disc golf in Laconia
Jade Trace
DirectionsTrails & water
15 named trails and 7 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 1.4 mi
Fitness Loop0.6 mi
Alcatraz0.5 mi
Backbone0.5 mi
Escape0.4 mi
Rusty Bedspring0.4 mi
Lower Jakes0.4 mi
Yo Benson0.4 mi
Pond Loop0.3 mi
Sewer Line0.3 mi
Psycho0.3 mi
5 more trails
Upper Jakes
0.2 miRattlesnake
0.2 miSunset
0.1 miWinni Point
0.1 miConnector
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
2.5 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
2.1 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
24Tennis
8Basketball
6Baseball
2Pickleball
2Soccer
1Skate park
1Multi-sport
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →14 places on the National Register
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.
Belknap-Sulloway MillBuilding · listed 1971
About itBusiel-Seeburg MillBuilding · listed 1971
About itNew Hampshire Veterans' Association Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1980
About itEndicott RockSite · listed 1980
About itLaconia Passenger StationBuilding · listed 1982
About itLaconia District CourtBuilding · listed 1982
About itUnited Baptist Church of LakeportBuilding · listed 1985
About itEvangelical Baptist ChurchBuilding · listed 1985
About itGale Memorial LibraryBuilding · listed 1985
About itUS Post Office-Laconia MainBuilding · listed 1986
About itGoss, Ossian Wilbur, Reading RoomBuilding · listed 1986
About itJohn W. Busiel HouseBuilding · listed 1994
About it2 more on the History page.
When to get out
The best walking months in Laconia: May, June, 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) | 30 | 34 | 42 | 56 | 68 | 77 | 82 | 80 | 72 | 59 | 47 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 3.1 | 2.8 | 3.4 | 3.6 | 3.7 | 4.2 | 4.5 | 3.9 | 3.9 | 4.8 | 3.8 | 4.1 |
February is the driest month (2.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.8 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Laconia →
Next door
Laconia 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laconia | 10% | 1.1 | 15 | 75% | A− |
| Meredith | 17% | 1.0 | 270 | 52% | A |
| Gilford | 34% | 2.2 | 244 | 41% | A |
| Belmont | 7% | 0.3 | 37 | 42% | B |
| Sanbornton | 15% | 1.0 | 90 | 12% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Laconia
Where can I hike in Laconia?
The longest trail networks: Ahern State Park, 5.2 miles; Opechee Bay State Forest, 0.3 miles; Bond Beach Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Laconia is conserved land?
10% 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 Laconia’s trails?
Ahern State Park and Opechee Bay State Forest don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Laconia?
2.5 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.4 of painted or protected lanes and 2.1 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Laconia?
9,761 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Laconia or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 309 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Laconia have?
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #69 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 Laconia 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 →