Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Photo: Daniel Case · CC BY-SA 3.011% of Gallatin’s land is conserved, about 2,851 acres. The biggest trail networks: Lake Taghkanic State Park (7.4 mi). 9% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 63% of U.S. towns. What drives it
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, Gallatin is ahead of 63% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
The longest trail network is Lake Taghkanic State Park, with 7.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
11% of Gallatin’s land. Who manages Gallatin’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 1,755 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Taghkanic State Park State Park | State parks | 1,038 | Open |
| Columbia Land Conservancy Land Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 45 | Closed |
| Doodletown Wildlife Management Area State Resource Management Area | State conservation | 12 | Open |
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
4 scenic views without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
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 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 34 | 37 | 46 | 59 | 70 | 78 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 62 | 49 | 39 |
| Rain (in) | 2.8 | 2.4 | 2.9 | 3.4 | 3.7 | 4.6 | 4.2 | 4.7 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 3.1 | 3.5 |
February is the driest month (2.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.7 inches fall in August, the wettest month. The climate in Gallatin →
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gallatin | 11% | 0.2 | 627 | 9% | B |
| Clermont | 18% | 0.4 | 278 | 19% | B+ |
| Ancram | 24% | 0.5 | 528 | 13% | A− |
| Taghkanic | 12% | 0.2 | 1,168 | 30% | B+ |
| Livingston | 19% | under 0.1 | 95 | 18% | B− |
| Pine Plains | 8% | 0.4 | 415 | 47% | A− |
| Milan | 7% | 0.3 | 367 | 10% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
The longest trail networks: Lake Taghkanic State Park, 7.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
11% 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.
Lake Taghkanic State Park and Doodletown Wildlife Management Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
26,037 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Gallatin or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,057 of them inside the town line.
Ahead of 63% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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.
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Gallatin neighbors.
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 →