Mount Hayden State Forest
Nature preserve
541 acres4.5 mi of trail
Long Path
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Tripp House and Store Complex · Photo: Kenneth C. Zirkel · CC BY-SA 3.0B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Durham
Durham has 650 acres of parks, 246 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Mount Hayden State Forest (4.5 mi), Mount Pisgah State Forest (0.5 mi). 19% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 8.7 miles of mapped trail cross Durham, 0.2 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 48% of U.S. towns · #572 of 758 in New York. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
832 acres · of 49.3 sq mi of land
Trails
8.7 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
650 ac
246 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
19%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
2,730 ft
Mount Zoar
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Durham?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Durham have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Durham is ahead of 48% of U.S. towns, #572 of 758 in New York. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Durham’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical NY town 5% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (9 mi) · NY 0.4 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land246 acres of park per 1,000 residents (650 acres) · NY 31 · U.S. 13AParks close to home19% of residents within a half mile of a park · NY 70% · U.S. 72%C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 48%
LessMore
New York towns of 2,500+ (758)Ahead of 25%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B. 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 Mount Hayden State Forest, with 4.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Mount Pisgah State Forest
Nature preserve
50 acres0.5 mi of trail
Long Path
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Windham-Blackhead Range Wilderness
Managed by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
218 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Irish Cultural Center
Park
36 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 7 parks & preserves
Mount Hayden State Forest541 acres · 4.5 mi of trail
DirectionsMount Pisgah State Forest50 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
DirectionsJennie Notch Unit21 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Windham-Blackhead Range Wilderness218 acres · New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Irish Cultural Center36 acres
Elm Ridge Wild Forest4 acres
High Peak Unit1 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Who protects it
832 conserved acres
3% of Durham’s land. Who manages Durham’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State conservation824 ac
Town or city7 ac
State Conservation Area · 604 acState Wilderness · 220 acLocal Park · 7 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 5 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Hayden State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 548 | Open |
| Windham-Blackhead Range Wilderness State Wilderness | State conservation | 220 | Open |
| Mount Pisgah State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 51 | Open |
| Town of Durham Land Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Unknown |
| Elm Ridge Wild Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 4 | Open |
Things to do
4 places to go in Durham
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Durham
Riptide Cove Wave Pool
DirectionsWaterfalls in Durham
1 waterfall without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Durham
Mount Zoar2,730 ft elevation
DirectionsMount Nebo2,680 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Long Path4.2 mi
Lakes & 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.
Courts & fields
1Baseball
1Tennis
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →22 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 2 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Susquehannah TurnpikeSite · listed 1974
About itWeldon HouseBuilding · listed 2000
About itTripp House and Store ComplexBuilding · listed 2001
About itCharles Pierce HouseBuilding · listed 2001
About itDeWitt, W.F., HotelBuilding · listed 2001
About itFord's StoreBuilding · listed 2001
About itL.E. Cleveland HouseBuilding · listed 2001
About itMrs. Osburn HouseBuilding · listed 2001
About itParsonage, TheBuilding · listed 2005
About itSt. Paul's Lutheran ChurchBuilding · listed 2005
About itA. T. HouseBuilding · listed 2006
About itOak Hill Methodist Episcopal ChurchBuilding · listed 2006
About it10 more on the History page.
When to get out
The best walking months in Durham: May and July
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) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 33 | 36 | 44 | 58 | 69 | 77 | 82 | 80 | 73 | 60 | 48 | 38 |
| Rain (in) | 2.8 | 2.4 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 3.6 | 4.3 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 4.6 | 3.1 | 3.6 |
February is the driest month (2.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.6 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Durham →
Next door
Durham and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Windham51 miCairo47 miConesville25 miRensselaerville21 miDurham8.7 miGreenville6.9 miEast Durham0.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Durham | 3% | 0.2 | 246 | 19% | B− |
| Windham | 36% | 1.1 | 2,394 | 39% | A |
| Greenville | 1% | 0.2 | 70 | 26% | C+ |
| East Durham | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Cairo | 16% | 0.8 | 31 | 16% | B+ |
| Rensselaerville | 14% | 0.3 | 2,241 | 35% | A− |
| Conesville | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Durham
Where can I hike in Durham?
The longest trail networks: Mount Hayden State Forest, 4.5 miles; Mount Pisgah State Forest, 0.5 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Durham is conserved land?
3% of its land, against a typical 5% for a New York town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Durham’s trails?
Mount Hayden State Forest and Mount Pisgah State Forest don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Durham?
49,274 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Durham or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 870 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Durham have?
Ahead of 48% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #572 of 758 in New York. 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 Durham 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 →