Hyland Hill State Forest
Managed by NH Dept of Resources & Econ Dev
17 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
High Tops School · Photo: Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 3.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Westmoreland
Westmoreland has 53 miles of mapped trails, 1.5 for every square mile of land
10% of Westmoreland’s land is conserved, about 2,212 acres. 5% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 64 acres are parks and preserves, 29 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 68% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
10%
2,212 acres · of 35.8 sq mi of land
Trails
53 mi
1.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
64 ac
29 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
5%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,503 ft
Hyland Hill
Lakes & rivers
3
What kind of outdoors town is Westmoreland?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Westmoreland have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Westmoreland is ahead of 68% of U.S. towns. Trail miles hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Westmoreland’s overall grade.
Conserved land10% of the land · typical NH town 19% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (53 mi) · NH 1.2 · U.S. 0.4APark land29 acres of park per 1,000 residents (64 acres) · NH 44 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home5% of residents within a half mile of a park · NH 40% · U.S. 72%D
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 68%
LessMore
New Hampshire towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 19%; the U.S., 4%), so Westmoreland’s 10% is ahead of 13% 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 Hyland Hill State Forest, with 0.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Van Zandt Williams Family Preserve
Managed by Society for the Prot. of NH Forests
41 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Ruth C. Warwick Preserve
Managed by The Nature Conservancy
39 acres
Dogs usually not allowed
No trailhead mapped yet
Indian Arrowhead Forest Preserve
Managed by Society for the Prot. of NH Forests
1 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
2,212 conserved acres
10% of Westmoreland’s land. Who manages Westmoreland’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits1,753 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)349 ac
Other or Unknown Federal Land348 ac
Other state land323 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government258 ac
Not recorded781 ac
Conservation Easement · 1,891 acLocal Other or Unknown · 695 acUnknown Easement · 606 acAgricultural Easement · 382 acPrivate Conservation · 185 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 1,279 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 32 of 34 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheshire County Farm Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 610 | Unknown |
| Warwick Preserve Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 120 | Unknown |
| Van Zandt Williams Family Preserve Private Conservation | Not recorded | 51 | Unknown |
| Westmoreland Lot Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 47 | Unknown |
| Staples - Agricultural Preservation Restriction Private Agricultural | Other state land | 32 | Unknown |
| Hyland Hill State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 20 | Unknown |
| R3 36 Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 20 | Unknown |
| R6 14 Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 18 | Unknown |
| Indian Arrowhead Forest Preserve Private Conservation | Not recorded | 14 | Unknown |
Things to do
12 places to go in Westmoreland
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Westmoreland
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Westmoreland
Hyland Hill1,503 ft elevation · In Hyland Hill State Forest
DirectionsHancock Peak1,460 ft elevation
DirectionsBald Hill1,299 ft elevation
DirectionsGilboa Mountain1,260 ft elevation
DirectionsButterfield Hill1,161 ft elevation
DirectionsOwl Hill1,027 ft elevation
DirectionsCass Hill1,017 ft elevation
DirectionsTorrey Hill1,010 ft elevation
Directions3 more peaks
Windy Hill689 ft elevation
DirectionsTurkey Hill659 ft elevation
DirectionsPark Hill492 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails and 3 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 6.6 miUnpaved · 6.9 mi
Cheshire Rail Trail2.7 mi
Stonewall Circle0.2 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.
Cheshire Recreational Rail TrailBike route
6.6 miCourts & fields
1Tennis
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).
When to get out
The best walking months in Westmoreland: May 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 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.7 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 32 | 35 | 44 | 57 | 69 | 78 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 60 | 48 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 3.1 | 2.8 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 4.7 | 3.3 | 3.9 |
February is the driest month (2.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.7 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Westmoreland →
Next door
Westmoreland and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Keene81 miChesterfield62 miWestmoreland53 miPutney30 miWalpole30 miWestminster26 miSurry25 miDummerston12 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Westmoreland | 10% | 1.5 | 29 | 5% | B+ |
| Surry | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Walpole | 16% | 0.8 | 40 | 32% | A− |
| Chesterfield | 25% | 1.3 | 1,337 | 26% | A |
| Keene | 22% | 2.2 | 103 | 84% | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Westmoreland
Where can I hike in Westmoreland?
The longest trail networks: Hyland Hill State Forest, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Westmoreland 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 Westmoreland’s trails?
Hyland Hill State Forest and Van Zandt Williams Family Preserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Westmoreland?
26,879 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Westmoreland or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 67 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Westmoreland have?
Ahead of 68% 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 Westmoreland 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 →