Mountain Lakes Park
Park
977 acres12.6 mi of trail
Blue TrailOld Sib TrailWhite TrailSpruce Lake Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailhead
Photo: Daniel Case · CC BY-SA 3.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in North Salem
North Salem has 1,521 acres of parks, 296 for every 1,000 residents
39 miles of mapped trail cross North Salem, 1.8 per square mile of land. 14% of North Salem’s land is conserved, about 1,869 acres. The biggest trail networks: Mountain Lakes Park (12.6 mi), Baxter Preserve, The Racetrack (4.6 mi), Bloomerside Preserve (1.8 mi).
Ahead of 93% of U.S. towns · #92 of 758 in New York. What drives it
Conserved land
14%
1,869 acres · of 21.4 sq mi of land
Trails
39 mi
1.8 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,521 ac
296 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
66%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
16 mi
Highest peak
982 ft
Bailey Mountain
Lakes & rivers
8
2 beaches
What kind of outdoors town is North Salem?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Room to roam296 acres of park per 1,000 residents; the typical U.S. town has 13.A trail town1.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 92% of U.S. towns.Land that stays wild14% of the land is conserved; a typical New York town, 5%.History along the way3 places on the National Register.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does North Salem have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, North Salem is ahead of 93% of U.S. towns, #92 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 Salem’s overall grade.
Conserved land14% of the land · typical NY town 5% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (39 mi) · NY 0.4 · U.S. 0.4APark land296 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,521 acres) · NY 31 · U.S. 13AParks close to home66% 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 93%
LessMore
New York towns of 2,500+ (758)Ahead of 88%
Water is 7% of North Salem’s area (2 of 23 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 13%.
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.
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 Mountain Lakes Park, with 12.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Baxter Preserve, The Racetrack
Managed by North Salem Opens Lands Foundation
128 acres4.6 mi of trail
Old Race Track
Dogs on leash
Directionsto the trailhead
Bloomerside Preserve
Managed by North Salem Open Land Foundation
80 acres1.8 mi of trail
Dogs on leash
No trailhead mapped yet
Halmi Preserve
Nature preserve
73 acres1.6 mi of trail
White TrailYellow TrailWhite / Yellow TrailNSBTA Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Hayfield-on-Keeler Preserve
Managed by North Salem Opens Lands Foundation
47 acres1 mi of trail
Hayfield on Keeler Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Hearst Mead Preserve
Nature preserve
82 acres0.9 mi of trail
Red TrailYellow TrailNorth Salem Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trail sign
Purdys Ridge Preserve
Managed by North Salem Open Land Foundation
65 acres0.9 mi of trail
Yellow Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Durand Preserve
Managed by North Salem Open Land Foundation
10 acres0.5 mi of trail
South Loop (yellow)North Loop (white)
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 17 parks & preserves
Mountain Lakes Park977 acres · 12.6 mi of trail
DirectionsBaxter Preserve, The Racetrack128 acres · 4.6 mi of trail · North Salem Opens Lands Foundation
DirectionsBloomerside Preserve80 acres · 1.8 mi of trail · North Salem Open Land Foundation
Halmi Preserve73 acres · 1.6 mi of trail
DirectionsHayfield-on-Keeler Preserve47 acres · 1 mi of trail · North Salem Opens Lands Foundation
DirectionsHearst Mead Preserve82 acres · 0.9 mi of trail
DirectionsPurdys Ridge Preserve65 acres · 0.9 mi of trail · North Salem Open Land Foundation
DirectionsDurand Preserve10 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · North Salem Open Land Foundation
DirectionsLances-Lippman Preserve8 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · North Salem Open Land Foundation
DirectionsGaymark Preserve57 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · North Salem Opens Lands Foundation
Joe Bohrdrum Field Park16 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsRuth Walgreen Franklin & Winifred Fels Memorial Sanctuary208 acres · Bedford Audubon Society
DirectionsBaxter North37 acres · North Salem Opens Lands Foundation
DirectionsTiticus Outlet Unit29 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
DirectionsSporn Preserve6 acres · North Salem Opens Lands Foundation
DirectionsCroton Falls Outlet Unit3 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Bell-Blakely Preserve2 acres · North Salem Open Land Foundation
DirectionsWho protects it
1,869 conserved acres
14% of North Salem’s land. Water is left out: North Salem has 21.4 square miles of land and 1.6 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages North Salem’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits1,458 ac
County874 ac
Town or city425 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government18 ac
Regional Water Districts7 ac
Local Park · 962 acConservation Easement · 574 acUnknown Easement · 573 acLocal Other or Unknown · 352 acRecreation or Education Easement · 311 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 573 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 15 of 35 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| WESTCHESTER COUNTY Land Local Park | County | 874 | Unknown |
| Titicus Fishing Access Area Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 194 | Unknown |
| Muscoot Fishing Access Area Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 158 | Unknown |
| TOWN OF NORTH SALEM Land Local Park | Town or city | 48 | Unknown |
| Volunteers Park Local Park | Town or city | 25 | Open |
| Joe Borhdrum Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 16 | Open |
| Sunset Ridge Water Dist 1 Watershed Protection Area | Regional Water Districts | 4 | Closed |
| Candlewood Park Water 1 Watershed Protection Area | Regional Water Districts | 3 | Closed |
| Croton Falls Water 1 Watershed Protection Area | Other or Unknown Local Government | 2 | Closed |
Things to do
14 places to go in North Salem
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in North Salem
2 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in North Salem
3 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Fishing spots in North Salem
4 fishing spots without a name on the map.
Peaks in North Salem
Bailey Mountain982 ft elevation · In Mountain Lakes Park
DirectionsTiticus Mountain922 ft elevation
DirectionsTurkey Hill610 ft elevation
DirectionsEast Long Pond Mountain
DirectionsCampgrounds in North Salem
1 campground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
21 named trails and 8 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Horses · 3.5 miUnpaved · 22.9 mi
White Trail2.4 mi
Yellow Trail1.4 mi
Blue Trail1.3 mi
Old Sib Trail1.2 mi
Hayfield on Keeler Trail1.2 mi
Red Trail1.1 mi
Spruce Lake Trail0.8 mi
Old Race Track0.7 mi
Orange Trail0.6 mi
Hemlock Lake Trail0.6 mi
11 more trails
Green Trail
0.4 miNorth Loop (white)
0.4 miSouth Loop (yellow)
0.3 miNorth Salem Trail
0.2 miNSBTA Path
0.2 miBlue Connector
0.1 miOld Sib Preserve Loop
0.1 miyellow trail
0.1 miWhite / Yellow Trail
0.1 mifield path
0.1 miNSBTA Trail
0.1 miBiking & sports
16 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
16 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
24Equestrian
11Tennis
8Soccer
8Baseball
3Basketball
1Football
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 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in North Salem: April 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) | 36 | 39 | 48 | 60 | 71 | 79 | 84 | 82 | 75 | 63 | 51 | 41 |
| Rain (in) | 3.4 | 2.9 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 3.8 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 3.8 | 4.2 |
February is the driest month (2.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 4.6 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in North Salem →
Next door
North Salem and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Questions about parks and trails in North Salem
Where can I hike in North Salem?
The longest trail networks: Mountain Lakes Park, 12.6 miles; Baxter Preserve, The Racetrack, 4.6 miles; Bloomerside Preserve, 1.8 miles; Halmi Preserve, 1.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of North Salem is conserved land?
14% 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 Salem’s trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Baxter Preserve, The Racetrack (on leash) and Bloomerside Preserve (on leash). For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in North Salem?
16 miles of bike routes are on the map: 16 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near North Salem?
33,848 acres of parks and open public land lie inside North Salem or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,521 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does North Salem have?
Ahead of 93% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #92 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 Salem 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 →