Malanka Landfill
Managed by New Jersey Meadowlands Commission
65 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Photo: Famartin · CC BY-SA 3.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Secaucus
16% of Secaucus’ 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. 16% of Secaucus’ land is conserved, about 612 acres. 5.8 miles of mapped trail cross Secaucus, 1.0 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 96% of U.S. towns · #94 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
Conserved land
16%
612 acres · of 5.8 sq mi of land
Trails
5.8 mi
1.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
643 ac
30 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.8 mi
0.4 mi paths
Highest peak
197 ft
Laurel Hill
Lakes & rivers
3
2 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Secaucus?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Secaucus have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Secaucus is ahead of 96% of U.S. towns, #94 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 Secaucus’ overall grade.
Conserved land16% of the land · typical NJ town 11% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · NJ 0.7 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land30 acres of park per 1,000 residents (643 acres) · NJ 25 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · NJ 98% · U.S. 72%A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 96%
LessMore
New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)Ahead of 80%
New Jersey towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 11%; the U.S., 4%), so Secaucus’ 16% is ahead of 62% of New Jersey towns, while its trails per square mile lead 64% of them.
Water is 11% of Secaucus’ area (1 of 7 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 15%.
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 Malanka Landfill, with 0.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Laurel Hill County Park
Park
75 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Riverbend Wetlands Preserve
Managed by New Jersey Meadowlands Commission
55 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 13 parks & preserves
Malanka Landfill65 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · New Jersey Meadowlands Commission
Schmidts Wood14 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsLaurel Hill County Park75 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsAcorn Park3 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsImagine Garden2 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsSnipes Park2 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsMill Creek Point5 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsMonarch Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Town of Secaucus
DirectionsRiverbend Wetlands Preserve55 acres · New Jersey Meadowlands Commission
Laurel Hill Park Wetland22 acres · New Jersey Meadowlands Commission
Schmidts Wood Park7 acres
DirectionsShetik Field3 acres
Fountain Park2 acres
Who protects it
612 conserved acres
16% of Secaucus’ land. Water is left out: Secaucus has 5.8 square miles of land and 0.7 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Secaucus’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Regional agency375 ac
Town or city206 ac
County22 ac
Not recorded9 ac
Local Conservation Area · 245 acLocal Other or Unknown · 211 acLocal Park · 141 acUnknown · 9 acLocal Recreation Area · 6 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 27 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mill Creek Marsh Local Other or Unknown | Regional agency | 205 | Open |
| Anderson Creek Marsh Local Conservation Area | Regional agency | 114 | Open |
| Snipes Park Local Park | Town or city | 58 | Open |
| New Jersey Meadowlands Commission Estuary or Marsh Local Conservation Area | Regional agency | 54 | Open |
| High School Marsh Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 43 | Open |
| Mill Ridge Ball Fields Local Park | Town or city | 35 | Open |
| Schmidts Woods Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 18 | Open |
| Hudson County Park Local Park | County | 13 | Open |
| Fish Creek Marsh Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 13 | Open |
| Acquisition of the "Petrillo" Site Unknown | Not recorded | 9 | Unknown |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
28 places to go in Secaucus
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Secaucus
Huber Street Park
DirectionsPlus 10 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Secaucus
5 dog parks without a name on the map.
Boat launches in Secaucus
2 boat launches without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Secaucus
6 scenic views without a name on the map.
Peaks in Secaucus
Laurel Hill197 ft elevation · In Laurel Hill County Park
DirectionsLittle Snake Hill75 ft elevation
DirectionsCommunity gardens in Secaucus
Meadowlands Community GardenIn Imagine Garden · Town of Secaucus
DirectionsMillridge Community GardenTown of Secaucus
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails and 3 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 0.7 miUnpaved · 3.0 mi
Secaucus Greenway0.8 mi
Mill Creek Marsh Trail0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
1.8 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
1.4 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
22Tennis
9Baseball
7Basketball
5Soccer
2Football
1Cricket
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Secaucus: 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 | 50 | 62 | 72 | 81 | 86 | 85 | 77 | 66 | 55 | 45 |
| Rain (in) | 3.4 | 2.9 | 4.1 | 3.9 | 3.9 | 4.4 | 4.5 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 3.4 | 4.2 |
February is the driest month (2.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 86 °F). 4.5 inches fall in July, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 86 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Secaucus →
Next door
Secaucus and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Jersey City23 miLyndhurst Township7.0 miNorth Bergen Township6.8 miSecaucus5.8 miKearny2.9 miEast Rutherford1.6 miCarlstadt0.1 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Secaucus | 16% | 1.0 | 30 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Jersey City | 18% | 1.6 | 4 | 99%+ | A |
| North Bergen Township | 6% | 1.3 | 4 | 99%+ | A− |
| Lyndhurst Township | 10% | 1.5 | 34 | 95% | A |
| East Rutherford | 2% | 0.4 | 4 | 94% | B− |
| Kearny | 4% | 0.3 | 30 | 99% | A− |
| Carlstadt | 13% | under 0.1 | 54 | 99%+ | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Secaucus
Where can I hike in Secaucus?
The longest trail networks: Malanka Landfill, 0.6 miles; Schmidts Wood, 0.4 miles; Laurel Hill County Park, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Secaucus is conserved land?
16% 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 Secaucus’ trails?
Malanka Landfill and Schmidts Wood don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Secaucus?
1.8 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.4 of off-road paths and 1.4 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Secaucus?
25,023 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Secaucus or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 643 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Secaucus have?
Ahead of 96% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #94 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 Secaucus 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 →