Appalachian National Scenic Trail
Managed by National Park Service
329 acres2.8 mi of trail
Appalachian TrailAppalachian Trail;Highlands Trail
Dogs usually limited
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Checkerboard Inn · Photo: Daniel Case · CC BY-SA 3.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Monroe
22% of Monroe’s land is conserved: 2,558 acres
2,171 acres are parks and preserves, 101 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: Appalachian National Scenic Trail (2.8 mi), Harriman State Park (1.6 mi), Sterling Forest State Park (1.5 mi). 14 miles of mapped trail cross Monroe, 0.8 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 92% of U.S. towns · #107 of 758 in New York. What drives it
Conserved land
22%
2,558 acres · of 18.5 sq mi of land
Trails
14 mi
0.8 per sq mi of land
Park land
2,171 ac
101 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
79%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
3.3 mi
3.3 mi paths
Highest peak
873 ft
Bald Hill
Lakes & rivers
14
1 beach · 1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Monroe?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Monroe have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Monroe is ahead of 92% of U.S. towns, #107 of 758 in New York. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; conserved land ranks highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Monroe’s overall grade.
Conserved land22% of the land · typical NY town 5% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (14 mi) · NY 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land101 acres of park per 1,000 residents (2,171 acres) · NY 31 · U.S. 13AParks close to home79% 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 86%
Water is 6% of Monroe’s area (1 of 20 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 20%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be 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 Appalachian National Scenic Trail, with 2.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Harriman State Park
Managed by New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation
345 acres1.6 mi of trail
Sapphire Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Sterling Forest State Park
Managed by New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation
1,022 acres1.5 mi of trail
Doris Duke TrailAppalachian Trail;Highlands Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Town of Monroe Park
Nature preserve
184 acres1 mi of trail
Unmarked Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 10 parks & preserves
Appalachian National Scenic Trail329 acres · 2.8 mi of trail · National Park Service
Harriman State Park345 acres · 1.6 mi of trail · New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation
Sterling Forest State Park1,022 acres · 1.5 mi of trail · New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation
Town of Monroe Park184 acres · 1 mi of trail
Mombasha Park14 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
DirectionsCrane Park;Mill Ponds42 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsRuach Hachayim3 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Smith Clove Park35 acres
DirectionsMary Harriman Park8 acres
DirectionsAirplane Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
2,558 conserved acres
22% of Monroe’s land. Water is left out: Monroe has 18.5 square miles of land and 1.3 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Monroe’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State parks1,404 ac
Town or city791 ac
National Park Service365 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government84 ac
Other state land75 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits73 ac
Private owners46 ac
State Park · 1,542 acLocal Park · 873 acNational Scenic or Historic Trail · 359 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 46 acLocal Recreation Area · 27 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 5 of 21 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sterling Forest State Park State Park | State parks | 1,059 | Open |
| Village of Monroe Land Local Park | Town or city | 555 | Unknown |
| Appalachian National Scenic Trail National Scenic or Historic Trail | National Park Service | 359 | Open |
| Harriman State Park State Park | State parks | 345 | Open |
| Town of Monroe Land Local Park | Town or city | 121 | Open |
| Palisades Interstate Park State Park | Other state land | 75 | Open |
| Smith Clove Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 71 | Open |
| Village of Kiryas Joel Land Local Park | Town or city | 63 | Open |
| Shirazi State Park | Land trusts & nonprofits | 62 | Open |
| Mombasha Park Local Park | Town or city | 47 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
16 places to go in Monroe
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Monroe
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Monroe
13 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Monroe
1 boat launch without a name on the map.
Peaks in Monroe
Bald Hill873 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
7 named trails and 14 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 6.0 mi
Appalachian Trail2.0 mi
Sapphire Trail0.9 mi
Unmarked Trail0.8 mi
Appalachian Trail;Highlands Trail0.8 mi
Doris Duke Trail0.6 mi
Hillside Trail0.1 mi
Jessup Trail0.1 mi
Biking & sports
3.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
3.3 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
10Tennis
9Baseball
6Basketball
3Soccer
2Field hockey
1Football
1Equestrian
1Volleyball
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 7 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Monroe: April, May and July 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) | 9.5 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.1 | 14.9 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 35 | 38 | 46 | 59 | 70 | 78 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 63 | 50 | 40 |
| Rain (in) | 3.4 | 2.8 | 3.8 | 3.9 | 3.7 | 4.7 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 3.6 | 4.1 |
February is the driest month (2.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.7 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Monroe →
Next door
Monroe and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Tuxedo140 miWoodbury65 miWoodbury65 miChester19 miBlooming Grove17 miMonroe14 miSouth Blooming Grove1.8 miWalton Park0.7 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monroe | 22% | 0.8 | 101 | 79% | A |
| Blooming Grove | 4% | 0.5 | 49 | 75% | B+ |
| Woodbury | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Woodbury | 48% | 1.8 | 911 | 90% | A+ |
| Chester | 16% | 0.8 | 196 | 76% | A |
| South Blooming Grove | 5% | 0.4 | 37 | 69% | B+ |
| Walton Park | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Tuxedo | 81% | 3.2 | 7,475 | 83% | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Monroe
Where can I hike in Monroe?
The longest trail networks: Appalachian National Scenic Trail, 2.8 miles; Harriman State Park, 1.6 miles; Sterling Forest State Park, 1.5 miles; Town of Monroe Park, 1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Monroe is conserved land?
22% 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 Monroe’s trails?
Appalachian National Scenic Trail and Harriman State Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Monroe?
3.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 3.3 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Monroe?
117,528 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Monroe or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,530 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Monroe have?
Ahead of 92% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #107 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 Monroe 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 →