Hilltop Reservation
Nature preserve
104 acres3.6 mi of trail
Old Hilltop TrailPeace TrailMeadow TrailArrowhead Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Soccera2g at English Wikipedia · Public domainA+Outdoors
Outdoors in Verona Township
15% of Verona Township’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. 11 miles of mapped trail cross Verona Township, 3.9 per square mile of land. 15% of Verona Township’s land is conserved, about 263 acres.
Ahead of 97% of U.S. towns · #74 of 468 in New Jersey. What drives it
Conserved land
15%
263 acres · of 2.8 sq mi of land
Trails
11 mi
3.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
263 ac
18 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Verona Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Verona Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Verona Township is ahead of 97% of U.S. towns, #74 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 Verona Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land15% of the land · typical NJ town 11% · U.S. 4%A−Trails3.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (11 mi) · NJ 0.7 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land18 acres of park per 1,000 residents (263 acres) · NJ 25 · U.S. 13BParks 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 97%
LessMore
New Jersey towns of 2,500+ (468)Ahead of 84%
New Jersey towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 11%; the U.S., 4%), so Verona Township’s 15% is ahead of 59% of New Jersey towns, while its trails per square mile lead 98% 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 Hilltop Reservation, with 3.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Verona Park
Park
41 acres3.1 mi of trail
Lenape Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Eagle Rock Reservation
Nature preserve
56 acres2.1 mi of trail
Red TrailCrest TrailLocal Homes Access TrailBlue Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Hilltop Reservation104 acres · 3.6 mi of trail
DirectionsVerona Park41 acres · 3.1 mi of trail
DirectionsEagle Rock Reservation56 acres · 2.1 mi of trail
Kip's Castle Park8 acres
baseball and softball field1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
263 conserved acres
15% of Verona Township’s land. Who manages Verona Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County145 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government98 ac
Town or city12 ac
Not recorded68 ac
Recreation or Education Easement · 137 acLocal Other or Unknown · 62 acLocal Conservation Area · 40 acPrivate Conservation · 37 acLocal Park · 35 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 81 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hilltop Reservation Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 75 | Open |
| Verona Park Local Other or Unknown | County | 54 | Open |
| Eagle Rock Reservation Local Conservation Area | County | 34 | Open |
| Kips Castle Local Other or Unknown | County | 8 | Open |
| Brookside Terrace Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| West Essex Trail Local Recreation Area | County | 6 | Open |
| Everett Field Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
Things to do
10 places to go in Verona Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Verona Township
Verona Park PlaygroundIn Verona Park
DirectionsPlus 8 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Verona Township
1 dog park without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
13 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 2.5 miUnpaved · 7.0 mi
Lenape Trail1.3 mi
Old Hilltop Trail0.8 mi
Peace Trail0.6 mi
Arrowhead Trail0.5 mi
Red Trail0.5 mi
West Essex Trail0.4 mi
Crest Trail0.3 mi
Local Homes Access Trail0.3 mi
Blue Trail0.3 mi
Meadow Trail0.3 mi
3 more trails
More Peace Trail
0.2 miWater Tower Loop
0.2 miGreen Trail
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
West Essex TrailBike route
0.4 miCourts & fields
17Tennis
10Baseball
7Soccer
7Basketball
5Tracks
4Football
3Softball
2Field hockey
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Verona Township: 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) | 9.5 | 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 | 53 | 43 |
| Rain (in) | 3.5 | 2.8 | 4.2 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.7 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.5 | 3.7 | 4.4 |
February is the driest month (2.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 86 °F). 4.7 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Verona Township →
Next door
Verona Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
West Orange Township45 miCedar Grove Township28 miVerona Township11 miMontclair Township8.2 miNorth Caldwell3.1 miEssex Fells2.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Verona Township | 15% | 3.9 | 18 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Montclair Township | 7% | 1.3 | 8 | 99%+ | A− |
| Cedar Grove Township | 18% | 6.5 | 36 | 99%+ | A+ |
| North Caldwell | 6% | 1.0 | 17 | 99% | A |
| West Orange Township | 19% | 3.7 | 30 | 94% | A+ |
| Essex Fells | 14% | 1.4 | 58 | 99%+ | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Verona Township
Where can I hike in Verona Township?
The longest trail networks: Hilltop Reservation, 3.6 miles; Verona Park, 3.1 miles; Eagle Rock Reservation, 2.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Verona Township is conserved land?
15% 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 Verona Township’s trails?
Hilltop Reservation and Verona Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Verona Township?
31,001 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Verona Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 263 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Verona Township have?
Ahead of 97% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #74 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 Verona 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 →