Cayuga Shores Wildlife Management Area
Managed by NYSDEC
287 acres1.8 mi of trail
Elvee Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Rogues Harbor Inn · Photo: Jerrye & Roy Klotz, MD · CC BY-SA 4.0C+Outdoors
Outdoors in Lansing
Lansing has 128 acres of parks, 11 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Cayuga Shores Wildlife Management Area (1.8 mi). 10 miles of mapped trail cross Lansing, 0.2 per square mile of land. 2% of Lansing’s land is conserved, about 691 acres.
Ahead of 37% of U.S. towns · #654 of 758 in New York. What drives it
Conserved land
2%
691 acres · of 60.5 sq mi of land
Trails
10 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
128 ac
11 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
55%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
3.9 mi
0.8 mi paths
Highest peak
1,142 ft
Bean Hill
Lakes & rivers
1
3 boat launches
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Lansing have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Lansing is ahead of 37% of U.S. towns, #654 of 758 in New York. All four inputs are below most U.S. towns; park acres per resident come closest.
C+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Lansing’s overall grade.
Conserved land2% of the land · typical NY town 5% · U.S. 4%C+Trails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (10 mi) · NY 0.4 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land11 acres of park per 1,000 residents (128 acres) · NY 31 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home55% 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 37%
LessMore
New York towns of 2,500+ (758)Ahead of 14%
Water is 14% of Lansing’s area (9 of 70 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 2%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be C+. 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 Cayuga Shores WMA, with 1.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Salt Point Park
Managed by Town of Lansing, NY
31 acres
Dogs on leash
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Ned Hickey Park
Park
1 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
691 conserved acres
2% of Lansing’s land. Water is left out: Lansing has 60.5 square miles of land and 9.5 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Lansing’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
USDA easements (NRCS)438 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits121 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government53 ac
State conservation37 ac
Town or city36 ac
Regional Water Districts8 ac
Agricultural Easement · 431 acUnknown Easement · 90 acLocal Park · 71 acState Recreation Area · 37 acPrivate Conservation · 31 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 528 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 2 of 22 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Myers Point Boat Launch State Recreation Area | State conservation | 37 | Open |
| Salmon Creek Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 31 | Closed |
| Myers Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 31 | Open |
| Twin Glens Natural Area Lands Local Conservation Area | Other or Unknown Local Government | 13 | Restricted |
| Town of Lansing-Ludlowville Pk Land Local Park | Town or city | 13 | Unknown |
| Town of Lansing Land Local Park | Town or city | 12 | Open |
| Village of Lansing Land Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Unknown |
| Southern Cayuga Lake Lands Local Resource Management Area | Regional Water Districts | 7 | Open |
| Town Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 5 | Open |
| Unknown Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
4 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
22 places to go in Lansing
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Lansing
Horizons Swimming Pool
DirectionsIthaca Swimming Club
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Lansing
10 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Lansing
1 dog park without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Boat launches in Lansing
Myers Park Boat LaunchFee
DirectionsSalt Point boat launch
DirectionsPlus 1 boat launch without a name on the map.
Waterfalls in Lansing
Peaks in Lansing
Bean Hill1,142 ft elevation
DirectionsLobdell Hill1,102 ft elevation
DirectionsPicnic areas in Lansing
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Trails & water
10 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 7.6 mi
Lansing Center Trail Main Loop1.3 mi
Main Loop Trail0.6 mi
Loops 1 and 20.6 mi
Pocket Falls Trail0.5 mi
Lake View Trail0.5 mi
Elvee Trail0.4 mi
Emilie Jonas Falls Nature Trail0.3 mi
Loop 30.3 mi
Red Trail0.3 mi
Scoops Spur0.3 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
3.9 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.8 mi
off-road bike paths
3.0 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
9Tennis
8Basketball
6Soccer
6Baseball
3Football
1Softball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place 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.
Rogues Harbor InnBuilding · listed 2009
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Lansing: 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 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 32 | 35 | 43 | 56 | 69 | 78 | 82 | 80 | 73 | 60 | 48 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 2.2 | 1.9 | 2.7 | 3.3 | 3.3 | 4.0 | 3.9 | 3.6 | 3.8 | 3.6 | 2.8 | 2.7 |
February is the driest month (1.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.0 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Lansing →
Next door
Lansing and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Dryden60 miIthaca46 miUlysses14 miLansing10 miGroton7.4 miLocke3.3 miCayuga Heights0.9 miCovert0.3 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lansing | 2% | 0.2 | 11 | 55% | C+ |
| Covert | 6% | under 0.1 | 14 | 9% | C |
| Groton | 1% | 0.1 | 20 | 38% | C |
| Ulysses | 5% | 0.4 | 193 | 55% | B+ |
| Ithaca | 17% | 1.6 | 111 | 91% | A+ |
| Locke | 10% | 0.1 | 774 | 32% | B |
| Dryden | 12% | 0.6 | 337 | 45% | A− |
| Cayuga Heights | under 1% | 0.5 | 1 | 84% | C |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Lansing
Where can I hike in Lansing?
The longest trail networks: Cayuga Shores Wildlife Management Area, 1.8 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Lansing is conserved land?
2% 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 Lansing’s trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Salt Point Park (on leash) and Marian Hartill Park. For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Lansing?
3.9 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.8 of off-road paths and 3.0 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Lansing?
28,313 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Lansing or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 128 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Lansing have?
Ahead of 37% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #654 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 Lansing 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 →