Ruth Wales DuPont Sanctuary
Nature preserve
31 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Hayden Soloviev · CC BY 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Southampton
97% of residents live within a half mile of a park in Southampton
132 acres are parks and preserves, 28 per 1,000 residents. 3.0 miles of mapped trail cross Southampton, 0.5 per square mile of land. 4% of Southampton’s land is conserved, about 150 acres.
Ahead of 77% of U.S. towns · #258 of 758 in New York. What drives it
Conserved land
4%
150 acres · of 6.5 sq mi of land
Trails
3.0 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
132 ac
28 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
97%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.5 mi
1.5 mi lanes
Lakes & rivers
7
1 beach
What kind of outdoors town is Southampton?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Southampton have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Southampton is ahead of 77% of U.S. towns, #258 of 758 in New York. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of residents near a park ranks highest, conserved land lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Southampton’s overall grade.
Conserved land4% of the land · typical NY town 5% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (3 mi) · NY 0.4 · U.S. 0.4BPark land28 acres of park per 1,000 residents (132 acres) · NY 31 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home97% of residents within a half mile of a park · NY 70% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 77%
LessMore
New York towns of 2,500+ (758)Ahead of 66%
Water is 12% of Southampton’s area (1 of 7 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 3%.
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 Ruth Wales DuPont Sanctuary, with 0.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Shinnecock Bay Tidal Wetlands Area
Nature preserve
16 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Downs Family Recreational Park
Park
15 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 8 parks & preserves
Ruth Wales DuPont Sanctuary31 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsSouth East Field5 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsShinnecock Bay Tidal Wetlands Area16 acres
DirectionsDowns Family Recreational Park15 acres
Agawam Park3 acres
DirectionsLola Prentice Memorial Park1 acres
Robert Welsh Garden1 acres
DirectionsWindward Way Park1 acres
Who protects it
150 conserved acres
4% of Southampton’s land. Water is left out: Southampton has 6.5 square miles of land and 0.9 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Southampton’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits80 ac
Town or city69 ac
County63 ac
State conservation17 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government6 ac
Regional Water Districts3 ac
American Indian Lands2 ac
Local Park · 126 acPrivate Conservation · 80 acState Conservation Area · 17 acLocal Conservation Area · 11 acLocal Other or Unknown · 5 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 5 of 17 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ruth Wales Dupont Sanctuary Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 64 | Open |
| SUFFOLK COUNTY Land Local Park | County | 32 | Unknown |
| SOUTHAMPTON VILLAGE Land Local Park | Town or city | 32 | Unknown |
| Shinnecock County Park East Local Park | County | 31 | Open |
| Down'S Family Park Local Park | Town or city | 17 | Open |
| Shinnecock Bay State Tidal Wetland State Conservation Area | State conservation | 17 | Open |
| Archibald Manning Brown Preserve Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 11 | Closed |
| Richard Fowler Nature Walk Local Park | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| Orson D. Munn Preserve Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Agawam Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
11 places to go in Southampton
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Southampton
Southampton Beach
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Southampton
5 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Scenic views in Southampton
1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Picnic areas in Southampton
3 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Southampton
Chinnecock Bay
DirectionsTrails & water
3 named trails and 7 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 0.6 mi
Road F0.2 mi
B0.1 mi
C0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
1.5 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.5 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
Courts & fields
316Tennis
10Basketball
10Baseball
6Pickleball
3Soccer
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Southampton: 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) | 9.5 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.1 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 40 | 41 | 47 | 57 | 66 | 75 | 81 | 80 | 74 | 64 | 54 | 45 |
| Rain (in) | 3.5 | 3.2 | 4.5 | 3.9 | 3.3 | 3.7 | 3.0 | 3.7 | 3.9 | 4.4 | 3.7 | 4.6 |
July is the driest month (3.0 in) and the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.6 inches fall in December, the wettest month. The climate in Southampton →
Next door
Southampton 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southampton | 4% | 0.5 | 28 | 97% | A− |
| Water Mill | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| North Sea | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Shinnecock Hills | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Tuckahoe | — 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 Southampton
Where can I hike in Southampton?
The longest trail networks: Ruth Wales DuPont Sanctuary, 0.2 miles; South East Field, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Southampton is conserved land?
4% 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 Southampton’s trails?
Ruth Wales DuPont Sanctuary and Shinnecock Bay Tidal Wetlands Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Southampton?
1.5 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.5 of painted or protected lanes.
Is there public land near Southampton?
15,741 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Southampton or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 132 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Southampton have?
Ahead of 77% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #258 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 Southampton 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 →