Chateaugay State Forest
Managed by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
3,755 acres9.2 mi of trail
Old Hobbit & Elf TrailTrail 1Trail 2Trail 5+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Scriba TrailheadWebsite ↗
Stillwater Bridge · Photo: Antepenultimate · CC BY-SA 4.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Orwell
Orwell has 5,446 acres of parks, 5,958 for every 1,000 residents
23% of Orwell’s land is conserved, about 5,929 acres. The biggest trail networks: Chateaugay State Forest (9.2 mi), Salmon River Falls Unique Area (0.6 mi). 16 miles of mapped trail cross Orwell, 0.4 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 87% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
23%
5,929 acres · of 39.6 sq mi of land
Trails
16 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
5,446 ac
5,958 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
58%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,115 ft
Myers Hill
Lakes & rivers
4
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Orwell?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Orwell have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Orwell is ahead of 87% 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 Orwell’s overall grade.
Conserved land23% of the land · typical NY town 5% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (16 mi) · NY 0.4 · U.S. 0.4BPark land5,958 acres of park per 1,000 residents (5,446 acres) · NY 31 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home58% 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 87%
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 Chateaugay State Forest, with 9.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Salmon River Falls Unique Area
Nature preserve
118 acres0.6 mi of trail
Salmon River Falls Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Hall Island State Forest
Nature preserve
601 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Stave Mill State Forest
Managed by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
529 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 7 parks & preserves
Chateaugay State Forest3,755 acres · 9.2 mi of trail · New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
DirectionsSalmon River Falls Unique Area118 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsHall Island State Forest601 acres
Stave Mill State Forest529 acres · New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Lower Salmon River State Forest399 acres · New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Trout Brook State Forest332 acres · New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
Salmon River State Forest31 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
5,929 conserved acres
23% of Orwell’s land. Who manages Orwell’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State conservation6,140 ac
Town or city9 ac
State Conservation Area · 5,771 acUnknown Easement · 231 acConservation Easement · 103 acState Recreation Area · 36 acLocal Park · 9 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 114 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 4 of 13 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chateaugay State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 3,751 | Open |
| Hall Island State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 606 | Open |
| Stave Mill State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 529 | Open |
| Lower Salmon River State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 399 | Restricted |
| Trout Brook State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 334 | Open |
| Salmon River Falls Unique Area State Conservation Area | State conservation | 120 | Open |
| Salmon River Reservoir Boat Launch State Recreation Area | State conservation | 36 | Open |
| Salmon River State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 31 | Open |
| Town Of Orwell (Water) Land Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Unknown |
| Town Of Orwell (Picnic Site) Land Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Unknown |
Things to do
15 places to go in Orwell
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Boat launches in Orwell
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Waterfalls in Orwell
Salmon River FallsIn Salmon River Falls Unique Area
DirectionsScenic views in Orwell
1 scenic view without a name on the map.
Peaks in Orwell
Myers Hill1,115 ft elevation · In Chateaugay State Forest
DirectionsLighthouse Hill719 ft elevation
DirectionsCampgrounds in Orwell
10 campgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Trails & water
10 named trails and 4 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 4.3 miUnpaved · 15.0 mi
Kevin Orwell Trail5.1 mi
Old Hobbit & Elf Trail2.4 mi
Trail 11.8 mi
Trail 20.8 mi
Trail 50.5 mi
Trail 60.4 mi
Trail 30.4 mi
Salmon River Falls Trail0.3 mi
Trail 70.2 mi
Trail 40.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Stillwater BridgeStructure · listed 1997
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Orwell: 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) | 9.3 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.4 | 15.1 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 28 | 30 | 39 | 53 | 66 | 74 | 78 | 77 | 70 | 57 | 45 | 34 |
| Rain (in) | 4.2 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 3.9 | 4.1 | 4.4 | 4.0 | 3.9 | 4.4 | 5.2 | 4.7 | 4.9 |
February is the driest month (3.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 78 °F). 5.2 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Orwell →
Next door
Orwell and its neighbors
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orwell | 23% | 0.4 | 5,958 | 58% | A |
| Redfield | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Boylston | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Albion | 26% | 0.3 | 535 | 44% | A− |
| Williamstown | 18% | 0.4 | 1,166 | 53% | A− |
| Sandy Creek | 5% | under 0.1 | 193 | 23% | B− |
| Richland | 9% | 0.3 | 230 | 58% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Orwell
Where can I hike in Orwell?
The longest trail networks: Chateaugay State Forest, 9.2 miles; Salmon River Falls Unique Area, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Orwell is conserved land?
23% 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 Orwell’s trails?
Chateaugay State Forest and Salmon River Falls Unique Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Orwell?
59,598 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Orwell or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 5,446 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Orwell have?
Ahead of 87% 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 Orwell 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 →