Speedwell Mountain Unit
Managed by New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
3,668 acres4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Common School 32 · Photo: Daniel Case · CC BY-SA 3.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Tompkins
Tompkins has 3,603 acres of parks, 3,035 for every 1,000 residents
26% of Tompkins’ land is conserved, about 16,375 acres. The biggest trail networks: Speedwell Mountain Unit (4 mi), Barbour Brook State Forest (2.6 mi), Fletcher Hollow Unit (0.9 mi). 10% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 73% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
26%
16,375 acres · of 98.1 sq mi of land
Trails
33 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
3,603 ac
3,035 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
10%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
2,395 ft
Rock Rift Mountain
Lakes & rivers
7
What kind of outdoors town is Tompkins?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Tompkins have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Tompkins is ahead of 73% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Tompkins’ overall grade.
Conserved land26% of the land · typical NY town 5% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (33 mi) · NY 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land3,035 acres of park per 1,000 residents (3,603 acres) · NY 31 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home10% 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 73%
LessMore
Water is 6% of Tompkins’ area (6 of 104 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 25%.
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 Speedwell Mountain Unit, with 4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Barbour Brook State Forest
Nature preserve
650 acres2.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Fletcher Hollow Unit
Managed by New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
397 acres0.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Johnny Brook Unit
Managed by New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
3,667 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 24 parks & preserves
Speedwell Mountain Unit3,668 acres · 4 mi of trail · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
DirectionsBarbour Brook State Forest650 acres · 2.6 mi of trail
Fletcher Hollow Unit397 acres · 0.9 mi of trail · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
DirectionsBeerston Unit109 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
DirectionsJohnny Brook Unit3,667 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Steam Mill State Forest1,638 acres
Sands Creek Unit1,587 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Kerryville State Forest693 acres
Tompkins Forest Preserve Detached Parcel498 acres
Barbour Brook Unit414 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Fish Brook Unit364 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Roods Creek Unit334 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Windfall Road Unit135 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Tower Mountain Unit105 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Cross Road Unit100 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Dryden Brook Unit85 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Herrick Hill Unit83 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Wagon Wheel Unit69 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Cleaver Unit55 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Finch Hollow Unit47 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Mountain Top Unit41 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
South Finch Hollow Unit38 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Herrick Hollow Unit36 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Read Creek Unit12 acres · New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Water Supply
Who protects it
16,375 conserved acres
26% of Tompkins’ land. Water is left out: Tompkins has 98.1 square miles of land and 6.3 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Tompkins’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State conservation9,079 ac
Town or city7,821 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits81 ac
Local Other or Unknown · 7,169 acRecreation or Education Easement · 4,408 acState Conservation Area · 3,501 acOther Easement · 1,170 acWatershed Protection Area · 566 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 5,094 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 10 of 29 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johnny Brook Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 3,692 | Unknown |
| Steam Mill State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 1,646 | Open |
| Sands Creek Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 1,595 | Unknown |
| Cannonsville Fishing Access Area Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 1,407 | Unknown |
| Kerryville State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 697 | Open |
| Barbour Brook State Forest State Conservation Area | State conservation | 653 | Open |
| Tompkins Fp Detached Parcel State Conservation Area | State conservation | 504 | Open |
| New York City Watershed Watershed Protection Area | Town or city | 399 | Closed |
| Roods Creek Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 347 | Unknown |
| New York City Dept. of Environmental Protection 1 Watershed Protection Area | Town or city | 167 | Closed |
3 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
7 places to go in Tompkins
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Peaks in Tompkins
Rock Rift Mountain2,395 ft elevation
DirectionsTower Mountain2,320 ft elevation
DirectionsClabber Peak2,152 ft elevation · In Tompkins Forest Preserve Detached Parcel
DirectionsCarroll Hill2,149 ft elevation · In Steam Mill State Forest
DirectionsSpeedwell Mountain2,028 ft elevation · In Speedwell Mountain Unit
DirectionsBullock Hill1,982 ft elevation
DirectionsCampgrounds in Tompkins
Kingswood Campsite
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails and 7 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 21.2 mi
Jungle Pass0.2 mi
Alger Road Spur0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The best walking months in Tompkins: May and July 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) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.2 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 32 | 35 | 43 | 57 | 69 | 76 | 81 | 79 | 72 | 60 | 47 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 3.0 | 2.6 | 3.2 | 3.8 | 4.0 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.5 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 3.4 | 3.3 |
February is the driest month (2.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.6 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Tompkins →
Next door
Tompkins and its neighbors
Tompkins has the second most mapped trails of the 5 towns around it. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tompkins | 26% | 0.3 | 3,035 | 10% | B+ |
| Walton | 11% | 0.3 | 48 | 55% | B+ |
| Deposit | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Hancock | 3% | 0.3 | 1,006 | 40% | B |
| Masonville | 23% | 0.4 | 6,511 | 36% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Tompkins
Where can I hike in Tompkins?
The longest trail networks: Speedwell Mountain Unit, 4 miles; Barbour Brook State Forest, 2.6 miles; Fletcher Hollow Unit, 0.9 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Tompkins is conserved land?
26% 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 Tompkins’ trails?
Speedwell Mountain Unit and Barbour Brook State Forest don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Tompkins?
51,513 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Tompkins or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 3,603 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Tompkins have?
Ahead of 73% 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 Tompkins 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 →