More than half of Vernon Township’s land is conserved: 61%
61% of Vernon Township’s land is conserved, about 26,262 acres. 14,940 acres are parks and preserves, 661 per 1,000 residents. 117 miles of mapped trail cross Vernon Township, 1.7 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 98% of U.S. towns · #47 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
Conserved land
61%
26,262 acres · of 67.5 sq mi of land
Trails
117 mi
1.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
14,940 ac
661 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
75%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
2.0 mi
2.0 mi paths
Highest peak
1,470 ft
Wawayanda Mountain
Lakes & rivers
31
19 beaches · 5 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Vernon Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Vernon Township is ahead of 98% of U.S. towns, #47 of 468 in New Jersey. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; conserved land ranks highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Vernon Township’s overall grade.
New Jersey towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 11%; the U.S., 4%), so Vernon Township’s 61% is ahead of 99% of New Jersey towns, while its trails per square mile lead 86% 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.
61% of Vernon Township’s land. Who manages Vernon Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources11,836 ac
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service6,332 ac
State conservation6,308 ac
State fish & wildlife2,303 ac
County1,063 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government786 ac
National Park Service734 ac
State Park · 15,998 acNational Wildlife Refuge · 6,332 acConservation Easement · 6,290 acState Conservation Area · 2,319 acState Recreation Area · 2,186 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 7,570 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 18 of 137 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
Parcel (PAD-US)
Managed by
Acres
Public access
Wawayanda State Park
State Park
State natural resources
15,995
Open
Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge
National Wildlife Refuge
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
6,332
Restricted
Hamburg Mountain Wildlife Management Area
State Conservation Area
State fish & wildlife
2,303
Open
Appalachian Trail
State Recreation Area
State natural resources
2,212
Open
Appalachian National Scenic Trail
National Scenic or Historic Trail
National Park Service
734
Open
unknown
Private Conservation
Not recorded
241
Open
Janet Van Gelder Wildlife Sanctuary
Private Conservation
Land trusts & nonprofits
222
Open
The Land Conservancy of New Jersey Preserve
Private Conservation
Land trusts & nonprofits
121
Open
Vernon Township Conservation Area
Local Conservation Area
Town or city
105
Open
Maple Grange Park
Local Park
Not recorded
95
Open
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
83 places to go in Vernon Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.0 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
17Baseball
13Tennis
8Basketball
7Tracks
4Soccer
4Multi-sport
4Beach volleyball
2Softball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
4 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 8 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
The best walking months in Vernon Township: May and July 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)
9.5
10.6
11.8
13.3
14.5
15.1
14.9
13.8
12.4
11.0
9.8
9.2
High (°F)
34
37
45
58
68
76
81
79
72
61
49
38
Rain (in)
3.6
2.7
4.0
3.8
3.9
4.8
4.2
4.6
4.6
4.6
3.5
4.2
February is the driest month (2.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.8 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Vernon Township →
Next door
Vernon Township and its neighbors
Vernon Township has the second most mapped trails of the 5 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Vernon Township
Where can I hike in Vernon Township?
The longest trail networks: Hamburg Mountain Wildlife Management Area, 18 miles; Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge, 8.8 miles; Pochuck Mountain Sanctuary, 0.7 miles; Maple Grange Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Vernon Township is conserved land?
61% 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 Vernon Township’s trails?
Hamburg Mountain Wildlife Management Area and Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Vernon Township?
2.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.0 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Vernon Township?
123,048 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Vernon Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 15,816 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Vernon Township have?
Ahead of 98% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #47 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 Vernon Township neighbors.
Photo: Jared Kofsky/Placenj.com · CC BY-SA 4.0