Huyck Preserve
Nature preserve
1,788 acres10.5 mi of trail
Loop 1Loop 3Lake Trail (west)Lake Trail (east)+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Potter Hollow District No. 19 School · Photo: Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States · CC BY-SA 2.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Rensselaerville
Rensselaerville has 4,261 acres of parks, 2,241 for every 1,000 residents
14% of Rensselaerville’s land is conserved, about 5,479 acres. The biggest trail networks: Huyck Preserve (10.5 mi), Rensselaerville State Forest (7.6 mi). 35% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 76% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
14%
5,479 acres · of 61.5 sq mi of land
Trails
21 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
4,261 ac
2,241 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
35%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
2,001 ft
Cheese Hill
Lakes & rivers
4
1 beach
What kind of outdoors town is Rensselaerville?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Rensselaerville have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Rensselaerville is ahead of 76% 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 Rensselaerville’s overall grade.
Conserved land14% of the land · typical NY town 5% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (21 mi) · NY 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land2,241 acres of park per 1,000 residents (4,261 acres) · NY 31 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home35% 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 76%
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 Huyck Preserve, with 10.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Rensselaerville State Forest
Nature preserve
1,974 acres7.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Scott Patent State Forest
Nature preserve
157 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Partridge Run Wildlife Management Area
Nature preserve
5 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Who protects it
5,479 conserved acres
14% of Rensselaerville’s land. Who manages Rensselaerville’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits4,318 ac
State conservation2,149 ac
Town or city14 ac
Private Conservation · 2,162 acState Conservation Area · 2,142 acConservation Easement · 1,153 acAgricultural Easement · 480 acOther Easement · 464 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 1,153 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 4 of 34 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rensselaerville State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 1,984 | Open |
| Edmund Niles Huyck Preserve Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 1,872 | Closed |
| Mohawk Hudson Land Conservancy Land Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 291 | Open |
| Scott Patent State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 158 | Open |
| Town Of Rensselaerville Land Local Park | Town or city | 14 | Unknown |
| Partridge Run Wma State Resource Management Area | State conservation | 6 | Open |
| Catskill Creek Fishing Access State Recreation Area | State conservation | 1 | Open |
Things to do
16 places to go in Rensselaerville
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Rensselaerville
Lake Myosotis Swimming AreaIn Huyck Preserve
DirectionsSwimming spots in Rensselaerville
Lake Myosotis Swimming AreaIn Huyck Preserve
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Rensselaerville
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Fishing spots in Rensselaerville
Catskill Creek Fishing Access
DirectionsWaterfalls in Rensselaerville
Rensselaerville Lower FallsIn Huyck Preserve
DirectionsRensselaerville Middle FallsIn Huyck Preserve
DirectionsRensselaerville Upper FallsIn Huyck Preserve
DirectionsPlus 2 waterfalls without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Rensselaerville
Lower Falls viewIn Huyck Preserve
DirectionsMiddle Falls viewIn Huyck Preserve
DirectionsWaldron OverlookIn Huyck Preserve
DirectionsPeaks in Rensselaerville
Cheese Hill2,001 ft elevation
DirectionsNorth Hill1,988 ft elevation · In Huyck Preserve
DirectionsPicnic areas in Rensselaerville
1 picnic area without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
14 named trails and 4 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Horses · 5.2 miUnpaved · 17.0 mi
Loop 11.4 mi
Loop 31.3 mi
Lake Trail (west)1.3 mi
Lake Trail (east)1.2 mi
Loop 21.1 mi
Partridge Path0.7 mi
Lincoln Pond Trail0.7 mi
Wheeler-Watson Trail0.5 mi
Ordway Trail0.4 mi
Race Track0.4 mi
4 more trails
Upper Falls Trail
0.3 miMyosotis Dam Trail
0.3 miLower Falls Trail
0.2 miPost Office Trail
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
3Tennis
1Baseball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →4 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 4 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Rensselaerville: May, July and 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 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 31 | 34 | 42 | 55 | 67 | 75 | 79 | 78 | 71 | 58 | 46 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 2.6 | 2.2 | 3.3 | 3.3 | 3.6 | 4.2 | 3.9 | 4.1 | 3.9 | 4.3 | 3.0 | 3.2 |
February is the driest month (2.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 79 °F). 4.3 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Rensselaerville →
Next door
Rensselaerville and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Berne45 miConesville25 miRensselaerville21 miBroome18 miDurham8.7 miWesterlo4.6 miPreston-Potter Hollow0.4 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rensselaerville | 14% | 0.3 | 2,241 | 35% | A− |
| Broome | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Westerlo | 8% | 0.1 | 159 | 16% | B− |
| Preston-Potter Hollow | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Berne | 18% | 0.7 | 1,041 | 26% | A− |
| Durham | 3% | 0.2 | 246 | 19% | B− |
| Conesville | — 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 Rensselaerville
Where can I hike in Rensselaerville?
The longest trail networks: Huyck Preserve, 10.5 miles; Rensselaerville State Forest, 7.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Rensselaerville 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 Rensselaerville’s trails?
Huyck Preserve and Rensselaerville State Forest don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Rensselaerville?
42,342 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Rensselaerville or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 4,269 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Rensselaerville have?
Ahead of 76% 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 Rensselaerville 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 →