North East has 2,803 acres of parks, 942 for every 1,000 residents
15% of North East’s land is conserved, about 4,256 acres. The biggest trail networks: Taconic State Park – Rudd Pond Area (19.1 mi). 21 miles of mapped trail cross North East, 0.5 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 88% of U.S. towns · #148 of 758 in New York. What drives it
Conserved land
15%
4,256 acres · of 43.2 sq mi of land
Trails
21 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
2,803 ac
942 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
69%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
12 mi
12 mi paths
Highest peak
2,316 ft
Brace Mountain
Lakes & rivers
4
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is North East?
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, North East is ahead of 88% of U.S. towns, #148 of 758 in New York. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; park acres per resident rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of North East’s overall grade.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A− 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.
15% of North East’s land. Who manages North East’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State parks2,716 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits2,476 ac
County246 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government208 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)160 ac
Other state land93 ac
Town or city18 ac
State Park · 2,706 acConservation Easement · 2,139 acAgricultural Easement · 688 acPrivate Conservation · 172 acForest Stewardship Easement · 102 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 1,330 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 6 of 37 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
Parcel (PAD-US)
Managed by
Acres
Public access
Taconic State Park
State Park
State parks
2,706
Open
Harlem Valley Rail Trail
State Conservation Area
Other state land
101
Restricted
Dutchess Sedge Meadows
Private Conservation
Land trusts & nonprofits
80
Closed
Dutchess Sedge Meadows Preserve
Private Conservation
Land trusts & nonprofits
80
Closed
Village Of Millerton Land
Local Park
Town or city
18
Unknown
Unknown
Private Other or Unknown
Not recorded
15
Unknown
M. Taylor LLC Conservation Easement
Private Conservation
Not recorded
7
Unknown
Millerton Village Lands
Local Resource Management Area
Other or Unknown Local Government
1
Open
Things to do
27 places to go in North East
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
The best walking months in North East: 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
14.5
15.2
14.9
13.9
12.4
11.0
9.7
9.1
High (°F)
33
36
44
57
68
76
81
79
72
60
48
38
Rain (in)
3.2
2.6
3.4
3.5
3.8
4.7
4.5
4.2
4.7
4.6
3.4
3.8
February is the driest month (2.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.7 inches fall in September, the wettest month. The climate in North East →
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in North East
Where can I hike in North East?
The longest trail networks: Taconic State Park – Rudd Pond Area, 19.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of North East is conserved land?
15% 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 North East’s trails?
Taconic State Park – Rudd Pond Area and Harlem Valley Rail Trail don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in North East?
12 miles of bike routes are on the map: 12 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near North East?
37,829 acres of parks and open public land lie inside North East or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,803 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does North East have?
Ahead of 88% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #148 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 North East neighbors.
Photo: Daniel Case · CC BY-SA 4.0