Whittemore Town Forest
Managed by Town of Pembroke
135 acres1.5 mi of trail
Flagg TrailPettingill TrailMcCrutcheon TrailYellow Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Suncook Village Commercial-Civic Historic District · Photo: Ken Gallager at en.wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Pembroke
Pembroke has 33 miles of mapped trails, 1.5 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Whittemore Town Forest (1.5 mi), White Sands Conservation Area (0.7 mi). 256 acres are parks and preserves, 34 per 1,000 residents. 4% of Pembroke’s land is conserved, about 617 acres.
Ahead of 77% of U.S. towns · #79 of 126 in New Hampshire. What drives it
Conserved land
4%
617 acres · of 22.6 sq mi of land
Trails
33 mi
1.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
256 ac
34 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
58%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
997 ft
Plausawa Hill
Lakes & rivers
2
1 beach · 1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Pembroke?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Pembroke have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Pembroke is ahead of 77% of U.S. towns, #79 of 126 in New Hampshire. Trail miles hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Pembroke’s overall grade.
Conserved land4% of the land · typical NH town 19% · U.S. 4%BTrails1.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (33 mi) · NH 1.2 · U.S. 0.4APark land34 acres of park per 1,000 residents (256 acres) · NH 44 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home58% 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 77%
LessMore
New Hampshire towns of 2,500+ (126)Ahead of 38%
New Hampshire towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 19%; the U.S., 4%), so Pembroke’s 4% is ahead of 2% of New Hampshire towns, while its trails per square mile lead 66% 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 Whittemore Town Forest, with 1.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
White Sands Conservation Area
Managed by Town of Pembroke
34 acres0.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Center Hill Conservation Area
Managed by Town of Pembroke
87 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 16 parks & preserves
Whittemore Town Forest135 acres · 1.5 mi of trail · Town of Pembroke
White Sands Conservation Area34 acres · 0.7 mi of trail · Town of Pembroke
Memorial Field26 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsCenter Hill Conservation Area87 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Town of Pembroke
Ames Brook Conservation Area48 acres · Town of Pembroke
Hillman Farm46 acres · Town of Pembroke
New Hampshire Soccer Complex45 acres
Beacon Hill Conservation Area42 acres · Town of Pembroke
Heiser Conservation Area33 acres · Town of Pembroke
Beck Conservation Area32 acres · Town of Pembroke
Bragfield Pond Conservation Area27 acres · Town of Pembroke
Butterfield Town Forest27 acres · Town of Pembroke
Schuett Conservation Area7 acres · Town of Pembroke
Clark Conservation Area6 acres · Town of Pembroke
Wildlife Management Area2 acres · NH Fish & Game
Pembroke Park1 acres · Town of Pembroke
Who protects it
617 conserved acres
4% of Pembroke’s land. Who manages Pembroke’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city220 ac
Joint47 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)46 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits29 ac
Other state land26 ac
Not recorded393 ac
Local Resource Management Area · 212 acLocal Other or Unknown · 188 acAgricultural Easement · 92 acUnknown Easement · 84 acWatershed Protection Area · 84 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 99 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 25 of 32 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whittemore Town Forest Local Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 137 | Unknown |
| Concord Wellfield Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 55 | Unknown |
| Bragfield Hill Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 42 | Unknown |
| Beck Local Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 33 | Unknown |
| Memorial Field Local Park | Town or city | 32 | Open |
| White Sands Conservation Area Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 31 | Open |
| Pembroke Water Works Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 29 | Unknown |
| Pembroke Town Forest - Butterfield Tract Local Resource Management Area | Land trusts & nonprofits | 29 | Unknown |
| Anderson Local Other or Unknown | Other state land | 26 | Unknown |
| North Pembroke Road Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 24 | Unknown |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
10 places to go in Pembroke
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Pembroke
White Sands Beach
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Pembroke
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Pembroke
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Pembroke
Plausawa Hill997 ft elevation
DirectionsPembroke Hill669 ft elevation
DirectionsPicnic areas in Pembroke
2 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Trails & water
4 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 24.8 mi
Flagg Trail0.4 mi
Pettingill Trail0.4 mi
McCrutcheon Trail0.3 mi
Yellow Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
8Soccer
7Baseball
4Tennis
2Multi-sport
1Beach volleyball
1Basketball
1Tracks
1Softball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
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 3 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Pembroke: 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 | 14.7 | 15.4 | 15.1 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 31 | 35 | 43 | 57 | 68 | 77 | 82 | 80 | 72 | 60 | 47 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 3.2 | 3.1 | 3.6 | 3.7 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 3.9 | 4.8 | 3.8 | 4.2 |
February is the driest month (3.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.8 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Pembroke →
Next door
Pembroke 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pembroke | 4% | 1.5 | 34 | 58% | A− |
| Concord | 26% | 2.2 | 24 | 72% | A |
| Allenstown | 56% | 3.0 | 1,430 | 87% | A+ |
| Suncook | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Bow | 21% | 2.9 | 183 | 68% | A+ |
| Chichester | 8% | 0.8 | 16 | 7% | B |
| Epsom | 10% | 1.3 | 7 | 21% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Pembroke
Where can I hike in Pembroke?
The longest trail networks: Whittemore Town Forest, 1.5 miles; White Sands Conservation Area, 0.7 miles; Memorial Field, 0.4 miles; Center Hill Conservation Area, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Pembroke is conserved land?
4% 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 Pembroke’s trails?
Whittemore Town Forest and White Sands Conservation Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Pembroke?
19,802 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Pembroke or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 256 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Pembroke have?
Ahead of 77% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #79 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 Pembroke 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 →