North Chagrin Reservation
Managed by Cleveland Metroparks
462 acres2.4 mi of trail
Bridle Trail - NC4Bridle Trail - NC3Chagrin River Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailheadWebsite ↗
Photo: Jf1123581321 · CC BY-SA 3.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Gates Mills
17% of Gates Mills’ land is conserved: 997 acres
202 acres are parks and preserves, 92 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: North Chagrin Reservation (2.4 mi). 55% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 76% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
17%
997 acres · of 9.0 sq mi of land
Trails
2.5 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
202 ac
92 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
55%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.4 mi
0.4 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Gates Mills?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Gates Mills have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Gates Mills is ahead of 76% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Gates Mills’ overall grade.
Conserved land17% of the land · typical OH town 3% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (3 mi) · OH 0.2 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land92 acres of park per 1,000 residents (202 acres) · OH 15 · U.S. 13AParks close to home55% of residents within a half mile of a park · OH 60% · U.S. 72%B−
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 North Chagrin Reservation, with 2.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
997 conserved acres
17% of Gates Mills’ land. Who manages Gates Mills’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city620 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits387 ac
Private owners74 ac
Joint51 ac
Local Park · 468 acConservation Easement · 343 acLocal Recreation Area · 146 acLocal Conservation Area · 58 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 47 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 233 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 17 of 31 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Chagrin Reservation Local Park | Town or city | 444 | Restricted |
| Vacant Municipal Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 194 | Open |
| Gates Mills Land Conservancy Private Conservation Land Local Conservation Area | Private owners | 52 | Closed |
| Wick Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 24 | Open |
| Chagrin Valley Hunt Club State Conservation Area | Private owners | 19 | Closed |
| Unknown Park Local Park | Town or city | 13 | Open |
| Clark Municipal Park Local Park | Town or city | 11 | Open |
| Beecher's Brook Forest Acquisition Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Soltz Private Conservation Land Private Conservation | Private owners | 2 | Closed |
Things to do
1 places to go in Gates Mills
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Gates Mills
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
3 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Horses · 1.2 miUnpaved · 1.7 mi
Bridle Trail - NC40.7 mi
Bridle Trail - NC30.3 mi
Chagrin River Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.4 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.4 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
23Tennis
5Baseball
4Soccer
1Multi-sport
1Basketball
1Beach volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →5 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Gates Mills Methodist Episcopal ChurchBuilding · listed 1975
About itGates Mills Village Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1979
About itGideon Keyt HouseBuilding · listed 1982
About itE. J. Kulas Estate Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1988
About itGates Mills Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1991
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Gates Mills: 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 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 34 | 36 | 45 | 59 | 70 | 78 | 82 | 80 | 74 | 62 | 49 | 38 |
| Rain (in) | 3.0 | 2.3 | 3.0 | 3.7 | 3.8 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 3.8 | 4.2 | 3.9 | 3.6 | 3.3 |
February is the driest month (2.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.2 inches fall in July, the wettest month. The climate in Gates Mills →
Next door
Gates Mills and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Willoughby Hills21 miMayfield9.8 miChester Township6.3 miGates Mills2.5 miChesterland2.4 miMayfield Heights0.5 miHunting Valley0.2 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gates Mills | 17% | 0.3 | 92 | 55% | A− |
| Mayfield | 30% | 2.5 | 33 | 50% | A |
| Mayfield Heights | 2% | 0.1 | 2 | 84% | C |
| Chester Township | 5% | 0.3 | 46 | 46% | B |
| Chesterland | 1% | 0.2 | 14 | 34% | C |
| Willoughby Hills | 19% | 1.9 | 33 | 72% | A |
| Hunting Valley | — 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 Gates Mills
Where can I hike in Gates Mills?
The longest trail networks: North Chagrin Reservation, 2.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Gates Mills is conserved land?
17% of its land, against a typical 3% for an Ohio town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Gates Mills’ trails?
North Chagrin Reservation doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Gates Mills?
0.4 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.4 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Gates Mills?
15,473 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Gates Mills or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 202 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Gates Mills 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 Gates Mills 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 →