Rose Mountain Preserve
Managed by Piscataquog Land Conservancy
186 acres2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Naturebunny1 · Public domainA−Outdoors
Outdoors in Lyndeborough
21% of Lyndeborough’s land is conserved: 4,046 acres
47 miles of mapped trail cross Lyndeborough, 1.5 per square mile of land. 212 acres are parks and preserves, 131 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: Rose Mountain Preserve (2 mi), Alan & Edgar Rice Nature Preserve (0.5 mi).
Ahead of 83% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
21%
4,046 acres · of 30.4 sq mi of land
Trails
47 mi
1.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
212 ac
131 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
13%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,716 ft
Rose Mountain
Lakes & rivers
3
What kind of outdoors town is Lyndeborough?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Lyndeborough have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Lyndeborough is ahead of 83% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Lyndeborough’s overall grade.
Conserved land21% of the land · typical NH town 19% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (47 mi) · NH 1.2 · U.S. 0.4APark land131 acres of park per 1,000 residents (212 acres) · NH 44 · U.S. 13AParks close to home13% 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 83%
LessMore
New Hampshire towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 19%; the U.S., 4%), so Lyndeborough’s 21% is ahead of 60% of New Hampshire towns, while its trails per square mile lead 70% of them.
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 Rose Mountain Preserve, with 2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Alan & Edgar Rice Nature Preserve
Managed by Piscuataquog Land Conservancy
17 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Kingsbury Timber - Deaf Dog Lot
Managed by Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests
110 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Deland Memorial Forest
Managed by New England Forestry Foundation
176 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 17 parks & preserves
Rose Mountain Preserve186 acres · 2 mi of trail · Piscataquog Land Conservancy
Alan & Edgar Rice Nature Preserve17 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · Piscuataquog Land Conservancy
Kingsbury Timber - Deaf Dog Lot110 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests
Deland Memorial Forest176 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · New England Forestry Foundation
Piscataquog Wildlife Management Area148 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · NH Fish & Game
Purgatory Falls3 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Town of Lyndeborough
Roger D. Whittemore Reservation116 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests
Kingsbury Timber - Needham Lot68 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests
Town Forest17 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Town of Lyndeborough
Charles & Calvin Proctor Preserve70 acres · Piscataquog Land Conservancy
Kingsbury Timber - Fuller Lot48 acres · Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests
Wapack National Wildlife Refuge44 acres · United States Forest Service
King - Hibbard Forest34 acres · Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests
Curtiss Dogwood Natural Area14 acres
Purgatory Lower Falls7 acres · Town of Lyndeborough
Mont Vernon Town Land2 acres · Town of Mont Vernon
Carnival Hill Recreation Area2 acres · Town of Wilton
Who protects it
4,046 conserved acres
21% of Lyndeborough’s land. Who manages Lyndeborough’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits4,109 ac
Town or city544 ac
State fish & wildlife158 ac
Private owners91 ac
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service89 ac
State natural resources27 ac
Other state land11 ac
Conservation Easement · 2,016 acUnknown Easement · 1,643 acPrivate Conservation · 1,334 acWatershed Protection Area · 520 acNational Wildlife Refuge · 89 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 2,025 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 64 of 80 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Souhegan River Watershed Site #8 Watershed Protection Area | Town or city | 520 | Unknown |
| Olsen A Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 329 | Unknown |
| Olsen B Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 329 | Unknown |
| Rose Mountain Preserve Private Conservation | Not recorded | 166 | Unknown |
| Whittemore Reservation Private Conservation | Not recorded | 98 | Unknown |
| Deaf Dog Lot Private Conservation | Not recorded | 94 | Unknown |
| Wapack National Wildlife Refuge National Wildlife Refuge | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 89 | Restricted |
| Plc # 109 Private Conservation | Private owners | 70 | Unknown |
| Needham Lot Private Conservation | Not recorded | 54 | Unknown |
| Piscataquog Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 47 | Unknown |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
13 places to go in Lyndeborough
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Waterfalls in Lyndeborough
Purgatory Lower FallsIn Purgatory Lower Falls
DirectionsSenter FallsIn Alan & Edgar Rice Nature Preserve
DirectionsUpper FallsIn Purgatory Falls
DirectionsPlus 1 waterfall without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Lyndeborough
Rose Mountain1,716 ft elevation · In Rose Mountain Preserve
DirectionsThe Pinnacle1,677 ft elevation
DirectionsWinn Mountain1,650 ft elevation
DirectionsLyndeborough Mountain1,611 ft elevation
DirectionsPiscataquog Mountain1,227 ft elevation
DirectionsPiscataquog Mountain1,181 ft elevation
DirectionsStimson Hill994 ft elevation
DirectionsParker Hill745 ft elevation
DirectionsPlus 1 peak without a name on the map.
Trails & water
5 named trails and 3 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 8.4 mi
Purgatory Brook Trail0.9 mi
Upland Trail0.5 mi
Upper Purgatory Falls Trail0.3 mi
Lower Falls Trail0.1 mi
Cliff Loop0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 2 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Lyndeborough: 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) | 32 | 35 | 43 | 57 | 68 | 76 | 81 | 79 | 72 | 60 | 47 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 3.4 | 3.3 | 4.0 | 4.1 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 4.0 | 4.1 | 5.3 | 4.0 | 4.5 |
February is the driest month (3.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 5.3 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Lyndeborough →
Next door
Lyndeborough and its neighbors
Lyndeborough has the second most mapped trails of the 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lyndeborough | 21% | 1.5 | 131 | 13% | A− |
| Mont Vernon | 19% | 1.2 | 2 | 14% | B− |
| Greenfield | 30% | 1.5 | 334 | 30% | A |
| Milford | 17% | 1.9 | 47 | 78% | A |
| Wilton | 24% | 0.8 | 133 | 36% | A− |
| Temple | 23% | 1.4 | 880 | 19% | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Lyndeborough
Where can I hike in Lyndeborough?
The longest trail networks: Rose Mountain Preserve, 2 miles; Alan & Edgar Rice Nature Preserve, 0.5 miles; Kingsbury Timber - Deaf Dog Lot, 0.4 miles; Deland Memorial Forest, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Lyndeborough is conserved land?
21% 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 Lyndeborough’s trails?
Rose Mountain Preserve and Alan & Edgar Rice Nature Preserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Lyndeborough?
14,914 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Lyndeborough or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 292 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Lyndeborough have?
Ahead of 83% 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 Lyndeborough 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 →