Pisgah State Park
Nature preserve
8,147 acres32.1 mi of trail
Reservoir TrailDogwood Swamp TrailKilburn LoopPisgah Ridge Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: User:Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Winchester
Winchester has 8,628 acres of parks, 2,049 for every 1,000 residents
28% of Winchester’s land is conserved, about 9,924 acres. 60 miles of mapped trail cross Winchester, 1.1 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Pisgah State Park (32.1 mi), Town Conservation Land (1.2 mi), Pauchaug Preserve (0.9 mi).
Ahead of 90% of U.S. towns · #23 of 126 in New Hampshire. What drives it
Conserved land
28%
9,924 acres · of 55.0 sq mi of land
Trails
60 mi
1.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
8,628 ac
2,049 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
36%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,424 ft
Franklin Mountain
Lakes & rivers
8
What kind of outdoors town is Winchester?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Room to roam2,049 acres of park per 1,000 residents; the typical U.S. town has 13.Land that stays wild28% of the land is conserved; a typical New Hampshire town, 19%.A trail town1.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 82% of U.S. towns.History along the way5 places on the National Register.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Winchester have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Winchester is ahead of 90% of U.S. towns, #23 of 126 in New Hampshire. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Winchester’s overall grade.
Conserved land28% of the land · typical NH town 19% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (60 mi) · NH 1.2 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land2,049 acres of park per 1,000 residents (8,628 acres) · NH 44 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home36% 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 90%
LessMore
New Hampshire towns of 2,500+ (126)Ahead of 82%
New Hampshire towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 19%; the U.S., 4%), so Winchester’s 28% is ahead of 80% of New Hampshire towns, while its trails per square mile lead 38% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A− 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 Pisgah State Park, with 32.1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Town Conservation Land
Nature preserve
170 acres1.2 mi of trail
Gardiner Mountain trailLoop trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Pauchaug Preserve
Nature preserve
137 acres0.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Hinsdale Town Forest
Nature preserve
138 acres0.6 mi of trail
Town Forest Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 9 parks & preserves
Pisgah State Park8,147 acres · 32.1 mi of trail
DirectionsTown Conservation Land170 acres · 1.2 mi of trail
DirectionsPauchaug Preserve137 acres · 0.9 mi of trail
Hinsdale Town Forest138 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
Winchester Town Forest - Snow Pond196 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Winchester Town Forest - Meetinghouse Hill106 acres
Ellen Lambert Murphy Memorial Community Center12 acres
Winchester Town Forest11 acres
Winchester Town Beach1 acres
Who protects it
9,924 conserved acres
28% of Winchester’s land. Who manages Winchester’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources4,798 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits744 ac
Other state land306 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government160 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)59 ac
Joint44 ac
Private owners43 ac
State Park · 8,269 acConservation Easement · 518 acLocal Other or Unknown · 410 acPrivate Conservation · 362 acLocal Resource Management Area · 335 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 389 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 28 of 37 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pisgah State Park State Park | State natural resources | 4,643 | Unknown |
| Pisgah State Park - Critria 1 lands State Park | Not recorded | 3,626 | Unknown |
| Olsen / Wolf Creek Investments, LLC Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 290 | Unknown |
| Winchester Town Forest - Snow Pond Local Resource Management Area | Land trusts & nonprofits | 197 | Unknown |
| Town Conservation Land - Route 10 Property Local Other or Unknown | State natural resources | 155 | Unknown |
| Hinsdale Town Forest Local Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 138 | Unknown |
| Pratt Family Private Conservation | Not recorded | 72 | Unknown |
| Meetinghouse Hill Property Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 65 | Unknown |
| Mp2 Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 63 | Unknown |
| Pumphouse Road Tract Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 49 | Unknown |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
28 places to go in Winchester
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Winchester
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Waterfalls in Winchester
Pulpit Falls
DirectionsScenic views in Winchester
4 scenic views without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Peaks in Winchester
Franklin Mountain1,424 ft elevation
DirectionsMount Pisgah1,319 ft elevation · In Pisgah State Park
DirectionsGardiner Mountain1,263 ft elevation
DirectionsPisgah Mountain Range1,198 ft elevation · In Pisgah State Park
DirectionsWheeler Mountain1,175 ft elevation
DirectionsPeaked Mountain1,168 ft elevation
DirectionsStone Mountain1,168 ft elevation
DirectionsBishop Mountain1,142 ft elevation · In Pisgah State Park
Directions14 more peaks
Chestnut Hill1,142 ft elevation · In Pisgah State Park
DirectionsGun Mountain1,135 ft elevation
DirectionsSchofield Mountain1,083 ft elevation
DirectionsHogback Mountain1,056 ft elevation
DirectionsWoods Hill1,047 ft elevation
DirectionsCorliss Mountain1,010 ft elevation
DirectionsLadder Hill968 ft elevation · In Pisgah State Park
DirectionsCurtis Hill928 ft elevation
DirectionsHammond Hill899 ft elevation
DirectionsTufts Mountain873 ft elevation · In Pisgah State Park
DirectionsBaker Hill869 ft elevation
DirectionsMeetinghouse Hill869 ft elevation · In Winchester Town Forest - Meetinghouse Hill
DirectionsCat Den Mountain843 ft elevation
DirectionsSugar Hill820 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
22 named trails and 8 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 10.0 miUnpaved · 17.5 mi
Ashuelot Rail Trail10.0 mi
Reservoir Trail3.4 mi
Dogwood Swamp Trail3.0 mi
Kilburn Loop2.9 mi
Pisgah Ridge Trail2.8 mi
Chestnut Hill Trail2.0 mi
Snowbrook Trail1.7 mi
Hinsdale Snowmobile Trail (approx location)1.4 mi
Town Forest Trail1.1 mi
Doolittle Trail1.0 mi
12 more trails
Gardiner Mountain trail
0.9 miParker Trail
0.9 miNorth Ponds Trail
0.8 miSpur Trail to Western Cove
0.6 miOrchard Trail
0.5 miSouth Link
0.5 miBaker Pond Trail
0.5 miBlue dot
0.4 miLoop trail
0.3 miOld Davis Hill Trail
0.3 miDavis Hill Trail
0.2 miNorth Round Pond Trail
0.2 miBiking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Ashuelot Recreational TrailBike route
10 miCourts & fields
1Baseball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →5 places 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.
When to get out
The best walking months in Winchester: May, July 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) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 32 | 36 | 44 | 58 | 70 | 78 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 61 | 48 | 38 |
| Rain (in) | 3.1 | 2.8 | 3.3 | 3.4 | 3.6 | 4.4 | 4.1 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 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 Winchester →
Next door
Winchester and its neighbors
Winchester has the second most mapped trails of the 5 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Questions about parks and trails in Winchester
Where can I hike in Winchester?
The longest trail networks: Pisgah State Park, 32.1 miles; Town Conservation Land, 1.2 miles; Pauchaug Preserve, 0.9 miles; Hinsdale Town Forest, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Winchester is conserved land?
28% 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 Winchester’s trails?
Pisgah State Park and Town Conservation Land don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Winchester?
61,694 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Winchester or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 8,681 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Winchester have?
Ahead of 90% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #23 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 Winchester 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 →