Knowles Pond Conservation Area
Managed by Northfield Conservation Commission
81 acres1.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Hall Memorial Library · Photo: User:Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Northfield
Northfield has 48 miles of mapped trails, 1.7 for every square mile of land
371 acres are parks and preserves, 75 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: Knowles Pond Conservation Area (1.6 mi), Glines Park (0.9 mi), Richard Smart Conservation Area (0.6 mi). 42% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 74% of U.S. towns · #89 of 126 in New Hampshire. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
605 acres · of 28.5 sq mi of land
Trails
48 mi
1.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
371 ac
75 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
42%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
6.9 mi
6.9 mi paths
Highest peak
1,496 ft
Bean Hill
Lakes & rivers
4
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Northfield?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Northfield have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Northfield is ahead of 74% of U.S. towns, #89 of 126 in New Hampshire. Trail miles hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Northfield’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical NH town 19% · U.S. 4%B−Trails1.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (48 mi) · NH 1.2 · U.S. 0.4APark land75 acres of park per 1,000 residents (371 acres) · NH 44 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home42% 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 74%
LessMore
New Hampshire towns of 2,500+ (126)Ahead of 30%
New Hampshire towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 19%; the U.S., 4%), so Northfield’s 3% is ahead of 1% of New Hampshire towns, while its trails per square mile lead 81% 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 Knowles Pond Conservation Area, with 1.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Glines Park
Managed by Town of Northfield
56 acres0.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Richard Smart Conservation Area
Managed by Northfield Conservation Commission
24 acres0.6 mi of trail
Richard Smart Conservation Area
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Stillhouse Forest
Managed by Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests
195 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 12 parks & preserves
Knowles Pond Conservation Area81 acres · 1.6 mi of trail · Northfield Conservation Commission
Glines Park56 acres · 0.9 mi of trail · Town of Northfield
Richard Smart Conservation Area24 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · Northfield Conservation Commission
Surrette Park9 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Town of Northfield
Arch Park12 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Town of Northfield
DirectionsStillhouse Forest195 acres · Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests
DirectionsSotir Conservation Area38 acres · Northfield Conservation Commission
Ayers State Forest8 acres · NH Dept of Resources & Econ Dev
Pines Park8 acres · Town of Northfield
Roger & Gloria Blais Riverview Conservation Area2 acres
DirectionsGranite Mills Conservation Area1 acres · Northfield Conservation Commission
DirectionsTilton Island Park1 acres
Who protects it
605 conserved acres
3% of Northfield’s land. Who manages Northfield’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits262 ac
Town or city14 ac
Not recorded460 ac
Conservation Easement · 262 acPrivate Conservation · 192 acLocal Other or Unknown · 123 acLocal Conservation Area · 84 acLocal Resource Management Area · 57 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 131 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 8 of 15 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stillhouse Forest Private Conservation | Not recorded | 192 | Open |
| Knowles Pond Conservation Area Local Conservation Area | Not recorded | 84 | Unknown |
| Stevens Road Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 68 | Unknown |
| Northfield Town Forest Local Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 57 | Unknown |
| Rand Road Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 38 | Unknown |
| Wethersfield Drive Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 17 | Unknown |
| Arch Park Local Park | Town or city | 13 | Open |
| Ayers State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 4 | Unknown |
| Tilton Island Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
7 places to go in Northfield
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Northfield
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Northfield
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Northfield
Bean Hill1,496 ft elevation
DirectionsBrown Hill886 ft elevation
DirectionsMount Tug758 ft elevation
DirectionsHart Hill607 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
25 named trails and 4 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 11.1 miUnpaved · 5.7 mi
Winnipesaukee Trail1.7 mi
Snowmobile trial1.3 mi
Rangeway #41.1 mi
Yellow Dot Trail1.0 mi
Ye North trail1.0 mi
Richard Smart Conservation Area0.9 mi
Pass the Buck0.7 mi
Loop Trail0.7 mi
Hey Joe trail0.6 mi
Jackalope0.6 mi
15 more trails
Swamp Donkey Disco
0.5 miDoctors Orders trail
0.5 miFaux Pine trail
0.4 miStumpline trail
0.4 miSharkNado
0.4 miBuckshot
0.4 miLoam Depot
0.4 miDoubleday Trail
0.4 miSquirrelAgator
0.3 miRiver Trail
0.3 mi820 trail
0.3 miForrest Pond Rangeway
0.3 miWoodchuck Norris
0.2 miWinch trail
0.2 miJoe's Cutoff
0.2 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
6.9 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
6.9 mi
off-road bike paths
Winnipesaukee TrailBike route
1.7 miCourts & fields
4Baseball
2Soccer
1Tennis
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 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 Northfield: 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 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.4 | 15.1 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 30 | 33 | 42 | 55 | 67 | 75 | 80 | 79 | 71 | 58 | 46 | 35 |
| Rain (in) | 3.3 | 3.2 | 3.7 | 3.9 | 4.0 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 4.1 | 4.0 | 5.1 | 4.0 | 4.3 |
February is the driest month (3.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 80 °F). 5.1 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Northfield →
Next door
Northfield and its neighbors
Northfield has the second most mapped trails of the 7 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Franklin53 miNorthfield48 miCanterbury47 miBoscawen40 miTilton11 miBelmont9.6 miTilton Northfield3.3 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northfield | 3% | 1.7 | 75 | 42% | B+ |
| Tilton | 1% | 1.0 | 15 | 56% | B |
| Franklin | 22% | 1.9 | 21 | 63% | A |
| Tilton Northfield | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Boscawen | 18% | 1.6 | 11 | 21% | B+ |
| Canterbury | 19% | 1.1 | 99 | 8% | A− |
| Belmont | 7% | 0.3 | 37 | 42% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Northfield
Where can I hike in Northfield?
The longest trail networks: Knowles Pond Conservation Area, 1.6 miles; Glines Park, 0.9 miles; Richard Smart Conservation Area, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Northfield is conserved land?
3% 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 Northfield’s trails?
Knowles Pond Conservation Area and Glines Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Northfield?
6.9 miles of bike routes are on the map: 6.9 of off-road paths. Named routes: Winnipesaukee Trail.
Is there public land near Northfield?
9,428 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Northfield or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 463 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Northfield have?
Ahead of 74% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #89 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 Northfield 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 →