Whalen Memorial State Forest
Managed by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
1,330 acres12.6 mi of trail
Fred J. Cusimano Westside Overland Trail
Dogs allowed
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
A−Outdoors
Outdoors in North Harmony
North Harmony has 2,908 acres of parks, 1,546 for every 1,000 residents
13% of North Harmony’s land is conserved, about 3,472 acres. 37 miles of mapped trail cross North Harmony, 0.9 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Whalen Memorial State Forest (12.6 mi), North Harmony State Forest (9.7 mi), Dobbins Woods Nature Preserve (1.8 mi).
Ahead of 82% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
13%
3,472 acres · of 42.1 sq mi of land
Trails
37 mi
0.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
2,908 ac
1,546 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
27%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.2 mi
0.2 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is North Harmony?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does North Harmony have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, North Harmony is ahead of 82% of U.S. towns. 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 North Harmony’s overall grade.
Conserved land13% of the land · typical NY town 5% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (37 mi) · NY 0.4 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land1,546 acres of park per 1,000 residents (2,908 acres) · NY 31 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home27% 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 82%
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 Whalen Memorial State Forest, with 12.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
North Harmony State Forest
Managed by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
1,519 acres9.7 mi of trail
Fred J. Cusimano Westside Overland Trail
Dogs allowed
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Dobbins Woods Nature Preserve
Nature preserve
106 acres1.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Chautauqua Lake Fish And Wildlife Management Area
Nature preserve
85 acres0.9 mi of trail
Tom's Point Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Who protects it
3,472 conserved acres
13% of North Harmony’s land. Who manages North Harmony’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State conservation2,954 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)312 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits184 ac
Town or city22 ac
State Conservation Area · 2,867 acConservation Easement · 312 acPrivate Conservation · 184 acState Resource Management Area · 87 acLocal Park · 22 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 312 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 2 of 14 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Harmony State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 1,530 | Open |
| Whalen Memorial State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 1,337 | Open |
| Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy Land Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 184 | Closed |
| Chautauqua Lake Fish And Wildlife Management Area State Resource Management Area | State conservation | 87 | Open |
| N Harmony Town Park Land Local Park | Town or city | 21 | Unknown |
| Town Of North Harmony Land Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Unknown |
Things to do
3 places to go in North Harmony
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in North Harmony
Boces Playground
DirectionsBoat launches in North Harmony
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Campgrounds in North Harmony
Lean To - PanamaOffice of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (OPRHP)
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails
Named trails
Open to bikes · 7.1 miHorses · 5.8 miUnpaved · 8.7 mi
Fred J. Cusimano Westside Overland Trail5.3 mi
Tom's Point Trail0.7 mi
Biking & sports
0.2 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.2 mi
off-road bike paths
Whalen Memorial State Forest Mountain Bike TrailsBike route
11.8 miCourts & fields
1Equestrian
1Baseball
1Basketball
1Tennis
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in North Harmony: 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) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.2 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 31 | 33 | 42 | 56 | 68 | 75 | 79 | 78 | 71 | 59 | 46 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 3.6 | 2.7 | 3.1 | 3.7 | 4.0 | 4.3 | 4.6 | 4.0 | 4.6 | 4.9 | 3.9 | 4.1 |
February is the driest month (2.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 79 °F). 4.9 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in North Harmony →
Next door
North Harmony and its neighbors
North Harmony has the second 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Harmony | 13% | 0.9 | 1,546 | 27% | A− |
| Harmony | 16% | 0.4 | 1,398 | 19% | A− |
| Sherman | 6% | 0.4 | 609 | 52% | B+ |
| Chautauqua | 6% | 0.7 | 536 | 47% | A− |
| Busti | 2% | under 0.1 | 69 | 53% | C+ |
| Panama | — 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 North Harmony
Where can I hike in North Harmony?
The longest trail networks: Whalen Memorial State Forest, 12.6 miles; North Harmony State Forest, 9.7 miles; Dobbins Woods Nature Preserve, 1.8 miles; Chautauqua Lake Fish And Wildlife Management Area, 0.9 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of North Harmony is conserved land?
13% 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 Harmony’s trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Whalen Memorial State Forest and North Harmony State Forest. For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in North Harmony?
0.2 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.2 of off-road paths. Named routes: Whalen Memorial State Forest Mountain Bike Trails.
Is there public land near North Harmony?
17,250 acres of parks and open public land lie inside North Harmony or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,996 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does North Harmony have?
Ahead of 82% 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 North Harmony 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 →