Paulinskill River Wildlife Management Area
Managed by New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife
110 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: JackTheVicar · CC BY-SA 3.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Newton
14% of Newton’s land is conserved, and 99% of residents live within a half mile of a park
14% of Newton’s land is conserved, about 302 acres. 2.3 miles of mapped trail cross Newton, 0.7 per square mile of land. 206 acres are parks and preserves, 25 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 91% of U.S. towns · #182 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
Conserved land
14%
302 acres · of 3.4 sq mi of land
Trails
2.3 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
206 ac
25 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.4 mi
0.4 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Newton?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Newton have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Newton is ahead of 91% of U.S. towns, #182 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.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Newton’s overall grade.
Conserved land14% of the land · typical NJ town 11% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (2 mi) · NJ 0.7 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land25 acres of park per 1,000 residents (206 acres) · NJ 25 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home99% 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 91%
LessMore
New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)Ahead of 61%
New Jersey towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 11%; the U.S., 4%), so Newton’s 14% is ahead of 57% of New Jersey towns, while its trails per square mile lead 49% 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
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Memory Park
Managed by Township of Newton
35 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Lot B
All 6 parks & preserves
Memory Park35 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Township of Newton
DirectionsPaulinskill River Wildlife Management Area110 acres · New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife
DirectionsPine Street Park3 acres
DirectionsSummit Avenue Park2 acres
New Hampshire Street Park1 acres · Town of Newton
Newton Square1 acres · Sussex County
DirectionsWho protects it
302 conserved acres
14% of Newton’s land. Who manages Newton’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife220 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits169 ac
Other state land95 ac
Town or city94 ac
State parks3 ac
State natural resources3 ac
County1 ac
State Conservation Area · 204 acPrivate Conservation · 169 acState Resource Management Area · 110 acLocal Recreation Area · 68 acLocal Park · 17 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 6 of 24 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paulinskill River Wildlife Management Area State Resource Management Area | State fish & wildlife | 220 | Open |
| Sussex Swamp Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 168 | Unknown |
| Mackenzie's Bog Preserve State Conservation Area | Other state land | 94 | Open |
| Memory Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 55 | Open |
| Sussex Swamp Preserve Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 10 | Open |
| Rail Trail Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| Summit Avenue Park Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Sussex Branch Trail State Recreation Area | State parks | 6 | Open |
| New Hampshire Street Park Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Newton Town Water Body Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 4 | Open |
4 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
5 places to go in Newton
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Newton
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Dog parks in Newton
Large DogsIn Memory Park
DirectionsSmall DogsIn Memory Park
DirectionsTown of Newton Dog ParkIn Memory Park
DirectionsPlus 1 dog park without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.4 miHorses · 1.4 miUnpaved · 1.7 mi
Sussex Branch Trail0.3 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.4 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.4 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
8Baseball
4Basketball
3Tennis
1Soccer
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). The map also marks 5 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Newton: April to June 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) | 9.5 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.1 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 36 | 39 | 48 | 61 | 71 | 79 | 83 | 82 | 75 | 63 | 51 | 40 |
| Rain (in) | 3.4 | 2.7 | 3.8 | 3.8 | 3.9 | 4.5 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 3.3 | 4.0 |
February is the driest month (2.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.6 inches fall in July, the wettest month. The climate in Newton →
Next door
Newton 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Newton | 14% | 0.7 | 25 | 99% | A |
| Fredon Township | 30% | 0.3 | 580 | 71% | A |
| Andover Township | 24% | 1.8 | 394 | 72% | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Newton
Where can I hike in Newton?
The longest trail networks: Memory Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Newton is conserved land?
14% 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 Newton’s trails?
Paulinskill River Wildlife Management Area and Memory Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Newton?
0.4 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.4 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Newton?
74,278 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Newton or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 207 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Newton have?
Ahead of 91% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #182 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 Newton 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 →