Erwin Wildlife Management Area
Nature preserve
2,484 acres20.8 mi of trail
New Cut TrailOFBUpper Weaver Creek TrailLower OFB+1
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Photo: User:Dincher · CC BY-SA 3.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Erwin
Erwin has 1,958 acres of parks, 246 for every 1,000 residents
18% of Erwin’s land is conserved, about 4,430 acres. 33 miles of mapped trail cross Erwin, 0.9 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Erwin Wildlife Management Area (20.8 mi), McCarthy Hill State Forest (2.4 mi), Erwin Hollow State Forest (1.6 mi).
Ahead of 92% of U.S. towns · #112 of 758 in New York. What drives it
Conserved land
18%
4,430 acres · of 38.7 sq mi of land
Trails
33 mi
0.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,958 ac
246 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
71%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.7 mi
0.7 mi paths
Highest peak
1,719 ft
Higman Hill
Lakes & rivers
3
What kind of outdoors town is Erwin?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Erwin have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Erwin is ahead of 92% of U.S. towns, #112 of 758 in New York. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; park acres per resident rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Erwin’s overall grade.
Conserved land18% of the land · typical NY town 5% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (33 mi) · NY 0.4 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land246 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,958 acres) · NY 31 · U.S. 13AParks close to home71% of residents within a half mile of a park · NY 70% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 92%
LessMore
New York towns of 2,500+ (758)Ahead of 85%
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 Erwin WMA, with 20.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
McCarthy Hill State Forest
Managed by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
641 acres2.4 mi of trail
Crystal Hills Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Erwin Hollow State Forest
Nature preserve
522 acres1.6 mi of trail
Crystal Hills Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 14 parks & preserves
Erwin Wildlife Management Area2,484 acres · 20.8 mi of trail
McCarthy Hill State Forest641 acres · 2.4 mi of trail · New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Erwin Hollow State Forest522 acres · 1.6 mi of trail
Hodgeman Park15 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsErwin Mountain State Forest494 acres
Kinsella Park58 acres
DirectionsCraig Park8 acres
DirectionsAbbey-Kuehnle Park4 acres
DirectionsScudder-Weber Park2 acres
Twin Valley Park2 acres
Beartown Park2 acres
First Responders Honor Park1 acres
Rand Avenue Park1 acres
DirectionsCooper's Plains Park1 acres
Who protects it
4,430 conserved acres
18% of Erwin’s land. Who manages Erwin’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State conservation4,158 ac
Town or city193 ac
State parks152 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government4 ac
State Resource Management Area · 2,490 acState Conservation Area · 1,668 acLocal Park · 193 acState Park · 152 acLocal Resource Management Area · 4 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 2 of 16 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Erwin Wma State Resource Management Area | State conservation | 2,490 | Open |
| Mccarthy Hill State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 641 | Open |
| Erwin Hollow State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 524 | Open |
| Erwin Mountain State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 503 | Open |
| Indian Hills State Golf Course State Park | State parks | 152 | Open |
| Erwin Town of Land Local Park | Town or city | 80 | Unknown |
| Kinsella Park Local Park | Town or city | 56 | Open |
| Painted Post Village Land Local Park | Town or city | 22 | Unknown |
| Hodgman Park Local Park | Town or city | 16 | Open |
| Craig Park Local Park | Town or city | 9 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
15 places to go in Erwin
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Erwin
12 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Erwin
Craig park dog parkIn Craig Park
DirectionsWaterfalls in Erwin
1 waterfall without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Erwin
Higman Hill1,719 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
6 named trails and 3 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 18.9 miUnpaved · 11.6 mi
Crystal Hills Trail2.9 mi
New Cut Trail0.7 mi
OFB0.6 mi
Upper Weaver Creek Trail0.4 mi
Lower OFB0.3 mi
Bridges0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.7 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.7 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
10Soccer
8Baseball
7Tennis
7Basketball
4Softball
3Football
1Pickleball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 4 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Erwin: May and August
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 | 15.2 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 32 | 35 | 44 | 57 | 69 | 78 | 81 | 80 | 73 | 60 | 48 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 2.1 | 1.7 | 2.5 | 3.2 | 3.1 | 3.8 | 3.6 | 3.6 | 3.9 | 3.4 | 2.6 | 2.4 |
February is the driest month (1.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 3.9 inches fall in September, the wettest month. The climate in Erwin →
Next door
Erwin and its neighbors
Erwin has the most mapped trails of the 7 towns around it. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Erwin | 18% | 0.9 | 246 | 71% | A |
| Corning | 1% | 0.1 | 10 | 43% | C |
| Addison | 5% | 0.5 | 306 | 68% | A− |
| Lindley | under 1% | under 0.1 | 34 | 4% | C− |
| Painted Post | 4% | 0.4 | 20 | 99%+ | A− |
| Campbell | 5% | 0.2 | 457 | 18% | B |
| Hornby | 13% | 0.4 | 1,850 | 31% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Erwin
Where can I hike in Erwin?
The longest trail networks: Erwin Wildlife Management Area, 20.8 miles; McCarthy Hill State Forest, 2.4 miles; Erwin Hollow State Forest, 1.6 miles; Hodgeman Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Erwin is conserved land?
18% 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 Erwin’s trails?
Erwin Wildlife Management Area and McCarthy Hill State Forest don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Erwin?
0.7 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.7 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Erwin?
21,172 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Erwin or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 4,465 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Erwin have?
Ahead of 92% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #112 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 Erwin 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 →