South Mountain Reservation
Nature preserve
479 acres13.3 mi of trail
Turtle Back (Orange)Lenape Trail (Yellow)Crest TrailHillspur Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Jim.henderson · Public domainA+Outdoors
Outdoors in Maplewood Township
Maplewood Township has 17 miles of mapped trails, 4.4 for every square mile of land
22% of Maplewood Township’s land is conserved, about 541 acres. 98% of residents live within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: South Mountain Reservation (13.3 mi), Memorial Park (0.8 mi).
Ahead of 97% of U.S. towns · #70 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
Conserved land
22%
541 acres · of 3.9 sq mi of land
Trails
17 mi
4.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
541 ac
21 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
98%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
3.1 mi
What kind of outdoors town is Maplewood Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Maplewood Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Maplewood Township is ahead of 97% of U.S. towns, #70 of 468 in New Jersey. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Maplewood Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land22% of the land · typical NJ town 11% · U.S. 4%ATrails4.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (17 mi) · NJ 0.7 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land21 acres of park per 1,000 residents (541 acres) · NJ 25 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home98% of residents within a half mile of a park · NJ 98% · U.S. 72%A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 97%
LessMore
New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)Ahead of 85%
New Jersey towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 11%; the U.S., 4%), so Maplewood Township’s 22% is ahead of 74% of New Jersey towns, while its trails per square mile lead 99% 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 South Mountain Reservation, with 13.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Dehart Park
Park
7 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Boyden Park
Park
3 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
541 conserved acres
22% of Maplewood Township’s land. Who manages Maplewood Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County469 ac
Town or city72 ac
Local Conservation Area · 469 acLocal Park · 55 acLocal Other or Unknown · 9 acLocal Recreation Area · 8 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Mountain Reservation Local Conservation Area | County | 469 | Open |
| Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 23 | Open |
| Maplecrest Local Park | Town or city | 15 | Open |
| South Orange Village Unknown Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Maplewood Community Pool Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Dehart Park Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Milo S. Borden Park Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| WJ Orchard Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Grasmere Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| R. Walkter Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
1 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
9 places to go in Maplewood Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Maplewood Township
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Waterfalls in Maplewood Township
Hemlock FallsIn South Mountain Reservation
DirectionsHobble FallsIn South Mountain Reservation
DirectionsScenic views in Maplewood Township
Bramhall TerraceIn South Mountain Reservation
DirectionsPlus 1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Campgrounds in Maplewood Township
Girl Scout CampIn South Mountain Reservation
DirectionsTrails & water
23 named trails
Named trails
Unpaved · 6.6 mi
Turtle Back (Orange)1.4 mi
Lenape Trail (Yellow)1.0 mi
Crest Trail0.8 mi
Hillspur Trail0.8 mi
Openwood Trail0.6 mi
Summit Trail0.6 mi
Hemlock Falls Loop0.6 mi
Longwood Trail0.6 mi
Ball's Bluff Trail0.5 mi
Turtle Back Trail (Orange)0.5 mi
13 more trails
Upper Hemlock
0.4 miReservoir Trail
0.3 miGreen Trail
0.3 miTurtle Back Bypass
0.3 miOverlook Trail
0.3 miUnblazed
0.2 miLenape Trail (Yellow) / Turtle Back Trail (Orange)
0.1 miAqual Trail
0.1 miHigh Water Bypass
0.1 miParking Lot Link
0.1 miLenape Tulip Springs Link
0.1 miRahway Trail (White)
0.1 miGirl Scout Bridge / Summit Trail
0.1 miBiking & sports
3.1 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
3.1 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
14Tennis
9Baseball
5Soccer
2Basketball
2Pickleball
1Lacrosse
1Skate park
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →4 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 Maplewood Township: April to June, August 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) | 9.6 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.1 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 40 | 43 | 51 | 63 | 73 | 82 | 87 | 85 | 78 | 66 | 55 | 45 |
| Rain (in) | 3.5 | 2.9 | 4.1 | 3.9 | 4.0 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 3.5 | 4.4 |
February is the driest month (2.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 87 °F). 4.7 inches fall in July, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 87 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Maplewood Township →
Next door
Maplewood Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Millburn Township34 miNewark23 miMaplewood Township17 miUnion Township3.5 miIrvington Township1.9 miSouth Orange Village Township1.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maplewood Township | 22% | 4.4 | 21 | 98% | A+ |
| Irvington Township | 3% | 0.7 | 1 | 99%+ | B |
| Newark | 4% | 0.9 | 3 | 97% | B+ |
| South Orange Village Township | 5% | 0.4 | 6 | 98% | B |
| Millburn Township | 29% | 3.6 | 78 | 91% | A+ |
| Union Township | 10% | 0.4 | 11 | 99%+ | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Maplewood Township
Where can I hike in Maplewood Township?
The longest trail networks: South Mountain Reservation, 13.3 miles; Memorial Park, 0.8 miles; Dehart Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Maplewood Township is conserved land?
22% 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 Maplewood Township’s trails?
South Mountain Reservation and Memorial Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Maplewood Township?
3.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 3.1 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Maplewood Township?
32,666 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Maplewood Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 541 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Maplewood Township have?
Ahead of 97% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #70 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 Maplewood Township 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 →