Methodist Episcopal Church · Photo: Josconklin · CC BY-SA 3.09% of Madison’s land is conserved, and virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 6.0 miles of mapped trail cross Madison, 1.4 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Memorial Park (2.4 mi), Summerhill Park (0.7 mi).
Ahead of 92% of U.S. towns · #153 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Madison?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Madison have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Madison is ahead of 92% of U.S. towns, #153 of 468 in New Jersey. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of residents near a park ranks highest, park acres per resident lowest.
New Jersey towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 11%; the U.S., 4%), so Madison’s 9% is ahead of 43% of New Jersey towns, while its trails per square mile lead 79% of them.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Memorial Park, with 2.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Loantaka Brook Reservation
All 13 parks & preserves
252 conserved acres
9% of Madison’s land. Who manages Madison’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 2 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 64 | Open |
| Madison Recreation Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 47 | Open |
| Delbarton Area Local Park | Town or city | 36 | Open |
| Loantaka Brook Reservation Local Conservation Area | County | 25 | Open |
| Summerhill Park Local Park | Town or city | 24 | Open |
| Unknown Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 12 | Open |
| Bayley Fields Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 10 | Open |
| Lucy D Anthony Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| James Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Dodge Field Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 4 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
18 places to go in Madison
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
4 public pools without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Plus 13 playgrounds without a name on the map.
2 lakes & rivers
15 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
8 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.
The best walking months in Madison: April 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) | 9.6 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.1 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 39 | 42 | 50 | 62 | 72 | 81 | 86 | 84 | 77 | 65 | 54 | 44 |
| Rain (in) | 3.6 | 2.8 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.1 | 4.6 | 4.7 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.4 | 3.6 | 4.4 |
February is the driest month (2.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 86 °F). 4.7 inches fall in July, the wettest month. The climate in Madison →
Madison and its neighbors
Madison has the second most mapped trails of the 4 towns around it. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Madison | 9% | 1.4 | 17 | 99%+ | A |
| Florham Park | 11% | 0.2 | 39 | 99% | A− |
| Chatham Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Green Village | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Madison
Where can I hike in Madison?
The longest trail networks: Memorial Park, 2.4 miles; Summerhill Park, 0.7 miles; Zuck Arboretum, 0.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Madison is conserved land?
9% of its land, against a typical 11% for a New Jersey town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Madison’s trails?
Memorial Park and Summerhill Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Madison?
15 miles of bike routes are on the map: 14 of painted or protected lanes and 1.8 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Madison?
38,083 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Madison or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 282 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Madison have?
Ahead of 92% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #153 of 468 in New Jersey. 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 Madison neighbors.
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 →