Shaker Mountain Wild Forest
Managed by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
8,052 acres18.1 mi of trail
Northville-Placid Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Photo: Beyond My Ken · CC BY-SA 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Mayfield
Mayfield has 9,509 acres of parks, 1,557 for every 1,000 residents
30% of Mayfield’s land is conserved, about 11,312 acres. The biggest trail networks: Shaker Mountain Wild Forest (18.1 mi), Wilcox Lake Wild Forest (0.6 mi). 43 miles of mapped trail cross Mayfield, 0.7 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 81% of U.S. towns · #211 of 758 in New York. What drives it
Conserved land
30%
11,312 acres · of 58.4 sq mi of land
Trails
43 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
9,509 ac
1,557 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
9%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.9 mi
1.9 mi paths
Highest peak
2,293 ft
Bernhardt Mountain
Lakes & rivers
8
2 beaches
What kind of outdoors town is Mayfield?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Mayfield have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Mayfield is ahead of 81% of U.S. towns, #211 of 758 in New York. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Mayfield’s overall grade.
Conserved land30% of the land · typical NY town 5% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (43 mi) · NY 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land1,557 acres of park per 1,000 residents (9,509 acres) · NY 31 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home9% of residents within a half mile of a park · NY 70% · U.S. 72%D
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 81%
LessMore
New York towns of 2,500+ (758)Ahead of 72%
Water is 10% of Mayfield’s area (6 of 65 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 28%.
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 Shaker Mountain Wild Forest, with 18.1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Wilcox Lake Wild Forest
Managed by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
52 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Who protects it
11,312 conserved acres
30% of Mayfield’s land. Water is left out: Mayfield has 58.4 square miles of land and 6.3 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Mayfield’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State conservation15,486 ac
Town or city1,365 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits26 ac
State Conservation Area · 8,102 acPrivate Conservation · 3,802 acUnknown Easement · 1,804 acForest Stewardship Easement · 1,778 acLocal Park · 1,365 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 1,819 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 7 of 16 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shaker Mountain Wild Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 8,050 | Open |
| Finch Pruyn Private Conservation | State conservation | 3,802 | Closed |
| City Of Gloversville - Board Land Local Park | Town or city | 1,365 | Unknown |
| Wilcox Lake Wild Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 52 | Open |
| Girl Scouts of the United States of America Lands Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 26 | Closed |
Things to do
16 places to go in Mayfield
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Mayfield
2 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in Mayfield
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Scenic views in Mayfield
4 scenic views without a name on the map.
Peaks in Mayfield
Bernhardt Mountain2,293 ft elevation
DirectionsFerguson Mountain2,198 ft elevation
DirectionsPeters Mountain2,152 ft elevation · In Shaker Mountain Wild Forest
DirectionsTyrrell Hill2,116 ft elevation · In Shaker Mountain Wild Forest
DirectionsLawyer Mountain2,057 ft elevation · In Shaker Mountain Wild Forest
DirectionsSteele Mountain1,998 ft elevation · In Shaker Mountain Wild Forest
DirectionsBrower Hill1,788 ft elevation · In Shaker Mountain Wild Forest
DirectionsShaker Mountain1,709 ft elevation · In Shaker Mountain Wild Forest
Directions1 more peak
Whiskey Hill1,565 ft elevation · In Shaker Mountain Wild Forest
DirectionsTrails & water
6 named trails and 8 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 16.6 mi
Fonda, Johnstown and Gloversville Rail Trail2.9 mi
Northville-Placid Trail2.7 mi
Ski Trail (Blue)2.4 mi
Ski Trail (Yellow)0.7 mi
Otter Slide Loop0.7 mi
Ski Trail (Red)0.5 mi
Biking & sports
1.9 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.9 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
6Soccer
4Baseball
1Tennis
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).
When to get out
The best walking months in Mayfield: May, August and 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 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.4 | 15.1 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 30 | 33 | 42 | 56 | 68 | 77 | 81 | 79 | 72 | 59 | 46 | 35 |
| Rain (in) | 3.3 | 2.8 | 3.3 | 3.8 | 3.9 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 3.3 | 3.7 |
February is the driest month (2.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.6 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Mayfield →
Next door
Mayfield and its neighbors
Mayfield has the most mapped trails of the 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mayfield | 30% | 0.7 | 1,557 | 9% | A− |
| Johnstown | 17% | 0.6 | 1,100 | 49% | A |
| Northampton | 4% | 0.2 | 214 | 56% | B |
| Benson | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Broadalbin | 1% | 0.1 | 25 | 34% | C |
| Bleecker | — 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 Mayfield
Where can I hike in Mayfield?
The longest trail networks: Shaker Mountain Wild Forest, 18.1 miles; Wilcox Lake Wild Forest, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Mayfield is conserved land?
30% 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 Mayfield’s trails?
Shaker Mountain Wild Forest and Wilcox Lake Wild Forest don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Mayfield?
1.9 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.9 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Mayfield?
128,282 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Mayfield or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 9,509 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Mayfield have?
Ahead of 81% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #211 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 Mayfield 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 →