Dustin Barker Town Forest
Managed by Pittsfield Conservation Commission
44 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: User:Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Pittsfield
Pittsfield has 37 miles of mapped trails, 1.6 for every square mile of land
10% of Pittsfield’s land is conserved, about 1,615 acres. 45% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 69 acres are parks and preserves, 17 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 75% of U.S. towns · #88 of 126 in New Hampshire. What drives it
Conserved land
10%
1,615 acres · of 24.0 sq mi of land
Trails
37 mi
1.6 per sq mi of land
Park land
69 ac
17 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
45%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,322 ft
Catamount Mountain
Lakes & rivers
6
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Pittsfield?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Pittsfield have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Pittsfield is ahead of 75% of U.S. towns, #88 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 Pittsfield’s overall grade.
Conserved land10% of the land · typical NH town 19% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.6 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (37 mi) · NH 1.2 · U.S. 0.4APark land17 acres of park per 1,000 residents (69 acres) · NH 44 · U.S. 13BParks close to home45% 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 75%
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 Pittsfield’s 10% is ahead of 18% 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 Dustin Barker Town Forest, with 0.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Rocky Ridge Town Forest
Managed by Pittsfield Conservation Commission
135 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Forrest B. Argue Recreation Area
Managed by Town of Pittsfield
6 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 7 parks & preserves
Dustin Barker Town Forest44 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Pittsfield Conservation Commission
Drake Field11 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsForrest B. Argue Recreation Area6 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Town of Pittsfield
DirectionsRocky Ridge Town Forest135 acres · Pittsfield Conservation Commission
Sargent Town Forest6 acres · Pittsfield Conservation Commission
Pittsfield Centennial Community Park1 acres · Town of Pittsfield
Dustin Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
1,615 conserved acres
10% of Pittsfield’s land. Who manages Pittsfield’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits760 ac
Joint491 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government337 ac
State fish & wildlife230 ac
Town or city114 ac
Not recorded640 ac
Conservation Easement · 1,571 acLocal Other or Unknown · 365 acUnknown Easement · 337 acWatershed Protection Area · 225 acLocal Resource Management Area · 50 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 950 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 22 of 35 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pittsfield Aqueduct Company Land Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 225 | Unknown |
| Town of Pittsfield Land Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 90 | Unknown |
| Rocky Point Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 76 | Unknown |
| Town Shed Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 58 | Unknown |
| Greer Road Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 57 | Unknown |
| Thompson Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 55 | Unknown |
| Dustin Baker Town Forest Local Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 45 | Unknown |
| Drake / Laro Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 24 | Unknown |
| Gravel Pit Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 19 | Unknown |
| Suncook River Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 10 | Unknown |
1 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
14 places to go in Pittsfield
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Pittsfield
5 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Pittsfield
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Fishing spots in Pittsfield
1 fishing spot without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Pittsfield
1 scenic view without a name on the map.
Peaks in Pittsfield
Catamount Mountain1,322 ft elevation
DirectionsTilton Hill994 ft elevation
DirectionsNudds Hill827 ft elevation
DirectionsJenness Hill820 ft elevation
DirectionsLeavitt Hill682 ft elevation
DirectionsCampgrounds in Pittsfield
T.L. Storer Scout Reservation
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail and 6 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 8.0 mi
Old Route 1070.1 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
4Tennis
1Baseball
1Soccer
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place 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.
Pittsfield Center Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1980
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Pittsfield: 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) | 31 | 34 | 42 | 56 | 68 | 76 | 81 | 79 | 72 | 59 | 47 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 3.4 | 3.3 | 4.0 | 4.1 | 4.0 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 4.0 | 5.1 | 4.1 | 4.4 |
February is the driest month (3.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 5.1 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Pittsfield →
Next door
Pittsfield 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pittsfield | 10% | 1.6 | 17 | 45% | A− |
| Chichester | 8% | 0.8 | 16 | 7% | B |
| Barnstead | 5% | 1.1 | 7 | 27% | B− |
| Epsom | 10% | 1.3 | 7 | 21% | B |
| Northwood | 17% | 1.4 | 203 | 27% | A |
| Strafford | 29% | 1.4 | 49 | 15% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Pittsfield
Where can I hike in Pittsfield?
The longest trail networks: Dustin Barker Town Forest, 0.4 miles; Drake Field, 0.2 miles; Forrest B. Argue Recreation Area, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Pittsfield 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 Pittsfield’s trails?
Dustin Barker Town Forest and Rocky Ridge Town Forest don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Pittsfield?
14,635 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Pittsfield or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 195 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Pittsfield have?
Ahead of 75% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #88 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 Pittsfield 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 →