Wilcox Lake Wild Forest
Managed by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
1,790 acres3 mi of trail
Hadley Mountain Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Hadley Mountain Trailhead ParkingWebsite ↗
Photo: Kenneth C. Zirkel · CC BY-SA 4.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Hadley
Hadley has 1,871 acres of parks, 902 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Wilcox Lake Wild Forest (3 mi). 8% of Hadley’s land is conserved, about 2,108 acres. 46% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 69% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
8%
2,108 acres · of 39.7 sq mi of land
Trails
7.2 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,871 ac
902 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
46%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
2,648 ft
Hadley Mountain
Lakes & rivers
5
2 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Hadley?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Hadley have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Hadley is ahead of 69% of U.S. towns. 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 Hadley’s overall grade.
Conserved land8% of the land · typical NY town 5% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (7 mi) · NY 0.4 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land902 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,871 acres) · NY 31 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home46% 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 69%
LessMore
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B− 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 Wilcox Lake Wild Forest, with 3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Dean Mountain Whitewhater Park
Managed by Town of Hadley
31 acres0.4 mi of trail
River trail (unmarked)
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Who protects it
2,108 conserved acres
8% of Hadley’s land. Who manages Hadley’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State conservation1,792 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits277 ac
Town or city38 ac
State Conservation Area · 1,792 acPrivate Conservation · 277 acLocal Park · 38 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 4 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wilcox Lake Wild Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 1,792 | Open |
| Sacandaga Confluence Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 277 | Closed |
| Town Of Hadley Land Local Park | Town or city | 30 | Unknown |
| Sam Spread Town Park Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Open |
Things to do
41 places to go in Hadley
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Hadley
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Boat launches in Hadley
2 boat launches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Fishing spots in Hadley
Stewart Pond Fishing Access
DirectionsWaterfalls in Hadley
Rockwell Falls
DirectionsScenic views in Hadley
Hadley Mountain Fire TowerIn Wilcox Lake Wild Forest
DirectionsPlus 13 scenic views without a name on the map.
Peaks in Hadley
Hadley Mountain2,648 ft elevation · In Wilcox Lake Wild Forest
DirectionsWest Mountain2,490 ft elevation · In Wilcox Lake Wild Forest
DirectionsPond Mountain1,844 ft elevation
DirectionsIndian Cobble Mountain1,804 ft elevation
DirectionsSpringer Mountain1,742 ft elevation
DirectionsMount Anthony1,627 ft elevation
DirectionsBryan Mountain1,598 ft elevation
DirectionsDwyer Mountain1,594 ft elevation
Directions14 more peaks
O'Keefe Mountain1,578 ft elevation · In Wilcox Lake Wild Forest
DirectionsMenzie Mountain1,572 ft elevation
DirectionsHughes Mountain1,542 ft elevation
DirectionsSwears Mountain1,447 ft elevation
DirectionsGilbert Hill1,444 ft elevation
DirectionsCanada Hill1,417 ft elevation
DirectionsJeffers Mountain1,398 ft elevation
DirectionsGarner Hill1,381 ft elevation
DirectionsHammond Lot Mountain1,345 ft elevation
DirectionsJones Mountain1,335 ft elevation
DirectionsBirds Nest Mountain1,325 ft elevation
DirectionsDean Mountain1,070 ft elevation
DirectionsDillon Mountain
DirectionsWhite Mountain
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails and 5 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 4.3 mi
Hadley Mountain Trail1.5 mi
River trail (unmarked)0.3 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
2Baseball
2Tennis
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Hadley: May 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) | 9.3 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.4 | 15.1 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 29 | 32 | 41 | 55 | 67 | 75 | 79 | 77 | 70 | 58 | 45 | 34 |
| Rain (in) | 3.3 | 2.9 | 3.6 | 3.9 | 3.8 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 3.9 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 3.6 | 3.9 |
February is the driest month (2.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 79 °F). 4.4 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Hadley →
Next door
Hadley and its neighbors
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hadley | 8% | 0.2 | 902 | 46% | B+ |
| Lake Luzerne | 32% | 0.9 | 1,788 | 66% | A |
| Day | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Corinth | 41% | 0.8 | 862 | 61% | A |
| Stony Creek | — 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 Hadley
Where can I hike in Hadley?
The longest trail networks: Wilcox Lake Wild Forest, 3 miles; Dean Mountain Whitewhater Park, 0.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Hadley is conserved land?
8% 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 Hadley’s trails?
Wilcox Lake Wild Forest and Dean Mountain Whitewhater Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Hadley?
103,705 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Hadley or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,871 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Hadley have?
Ahead of 69% 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.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Hadley 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 →