More than half of Philipstown’s land is conserved: 55%
55% of Philipstown’s land is conserved, about 17,149 acres. 12,210 acres are parks and preserves, 1,236 per 1,000 residents. 105 miles of mapped trail cross Philipstown, 2.2 per square mile of land.
Among the top 1% of U.S. towns · #4 of 758 in New York. What drives it
Conserved land
55%
17,149 acres · of 48.8 sq mi of land
Trails
105 mi
2.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
12,210 ac
1,236 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
97%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
8.2 mi
Highest peak
1,260 ft
Breakneck Ridge
Lakes & rivers
24
2 beaches · 3 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Philipstown?
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, Philipstown is among the top 1% of U.S. towns, #4 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 Philipstown’s overall grade.
Water is 5% of Philipstown’s area (3 of 52 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 52%.
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.
55% of Philipstown’s land. Water is left out: Philipstown has 48.8 square miles of land and 2.8 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Philipstown’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State parks12,271 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits6,458 ac
National Park Service705 ac
Town or city675 ac
State conservation537 ac
Other state land459 ac
Joint160 ac
State Park · 6,891 acState Conservation Area · 5,545 acPrivate Conservation · 2,601 acOther Easement · 2,539 acConservation Easement · 1,533 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 2,982 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 13 of 206 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
Parcel (PAD-US)
Managed by
Acres
Public access
Clarence Fahnestock Memorial State Park
State Park
State parks
6,883
Open
Hudson Highlands State Park Preserve
State Conservation Area
State parks
4,921
Open
Scofield Ridge
Private Conservation
Land trusts & nonprofits
1,798
Closed
Appalachian National Scenic Trail
National Scenic or Historic Trail
National Park Service
595
Open
Constitution Island
State Conservation Area
Other state land
451
Open
Open Space Institute Land
Private Conservation
Land trusts & nonprofits
322
Open
Highland Country Club (Golf Course)
Private Conservation
Land trusts & nonprofits
300
Closed
City Of Beacon Land
Local Park
Town or city
224
Unknown
New York City Lands
Local Resource Management Area
Town or city
176
Open
West Point Foundry Preserve
Private Park
Land trusts & nonprofits
173
Closed
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
88 places to go in Philipstown
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Philipstown
2 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
8.2 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
22Tennis
7Baseball
4Basketball
3Soccer
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
39 places on the National Register, one a National Historic Landmark
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 14 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
The best walking months in Philipstown: 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
15.2
14.9
13.8
12.4
11.0
9.8
9.2
High (°F)
36
40
48
61
71
80
85
83
75
64
52
41
Rain (in)
3.4
2.7
3.9
3.8
3.8
4.3
4.4
4.5
4.3
4.6
3.7
4.1
February is the driest month (2.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 4.6 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Philipstown →
Next door
Philipstown and its neighbors
Philipstown has the most mapped trails of the 8 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Philipstown
Where can I hike in Philipstown?
The longest trail networks: Hudson Highlands State Park, 34.7 miles; Clarence Fahnestock Memorial State Park, 34.5 miles; Garrison School Forest, 3.5 miles; Castle Rock Unique Area, 1.8 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Philipstown is conserved land?
55% 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 Philipstown’s trails?
Hudson Highlands State Park and Clarence Fahnestock Memorial State Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Philipstown?
8.2 miles of bike routes are on the map: 8.2 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Philipstown?
103,781 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Philipstown or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 12,870 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Philipstown have?
Among the top 1% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #4 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 Philipstown neighbors.
Photo: Daniel Case · CC BY-SA 3.0