Bell Acres Nature Park
Nature preserve
240 acres1.5 mi of trail
Bell Acres Nature Park Trail
Dogs allowed
Directionsto Bell Acres Nature Park
Photo: Nyttend · Public domainA+Outdoors
Outdoors in Bell Acres
24% of Bell Acres’ land is conserved, and virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 388 acres are parks and preserves, 264 per 1,000 residents. 24% of Bell Acres’ land is conserved, about 837 acres.
Among the top 1% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
24%
837 acres · of 5.4 sq mi of land
Trails
6.7 mi
1.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
388 ac
264 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Bell Acres?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Bell Acres have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Bell Acres is among the top 1% of U.S. towns. All four inputs put Bell Acres near the top nationally; the share of residents near a park ranks highest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Bell Acres’ overall grade.
Conserved land24% of the land · typical PA town 8% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (7 mi) · PA 0.4 · U.S. 0.4APark land264 acres of park per 1,000 residents (388 acres) · PA 14 · U.S. 13AParks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · PA 73% · U.S. 72%A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Among the top 1%
LessMore
Pennsylvania towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 8%; the U.S., 4%), so Bell Acres’ 24% is ahead of 85% of Pennsylvania towns, while its trails per square mile lead 83% of them.
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.
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 Bell Acres Nature Park, with 1.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Devils Hollow Conservation Area
Managed by Allegheny Land Trust
100 acres1.2 mi of trail
Ann Boocock Coburn Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Sewickley Heights Borough Park
Park
93 acres0.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Beadnell Slopes Conservation Area
Nature preserve
35 acres0.5 mi of trail
Beadnell Slopes Trail (Red)
Dogs allowed
Directionsto Beadnell Slopes
Sewickley Valley Conservation Area
Managed by Sewickley Heights Borough
22 acres0.4 mi of trail
Racoon Run Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 9 parks & preserves
Bell Acres Nature Park240 acres · 1.5 mi of trail
DirectionsDevils Hollow Conservation Area100 acres · 1.2 mi of trail · Allegheny Land Trust
Sewickley Heights Borough Park93 acres · 0.9 mi of trail
Beadnell Slopes Conservation Area35 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
DirectionsSewickley Valley Conservation Area22 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Sewickley Heights Borough
Bell Acres Recreation Park37 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsNW Allegheny Conservation Area - ALT95 acres
Hunt Road Conservation Area - ALT26 acres
DirectionsFireman's Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
837 conserved acres
24% of Bell Acres’ land. Who manages Bell Acres’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits2,396 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government307 ac
County4 ac
Not recorded483 ac
Forest Stewardship Easement · 1,204 acConservation Easement · 741 acPrivate Conservation · 604 acLocal Conservation Area · 321 acLocal Park · 219 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 129 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 51 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Devils Hollow Private Conservation | Not recorded | 289 | Open |
| Bell Acres Nature Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 198 | Open |
| Little Sewickley Creek Watershed Conservation Area Local Conservation Area | Not recorded | 158 | Open |
| Rhodes Private Conservation | Not recorded | 104 | Open |
| Wagner's Hollow Local Conservation Area | Other or Unknown Local Government | 92 | Open |
| Lilly Private Conservation | Not recorded | 89 | Open |
| Conservation Area Local Conservation Area | Not recorded | 72 | Open |
| Beadnell Slopes Private Conservation | Not recorded | 69 | Open |
| Hunt Road Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 53 | Open |
| Seeickley Heights Borough Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 15 | Open |
2 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
1 places to go in Bell Acres
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Bell Acres
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
5 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.6 miUnpaved · 3.2 mi
Bell Acres Nature Park Trail0.5 mi
Beadnell Slopes Trail (Red)0.5 mi
High Maintenance Trail0.3 mi
Ann Boocock Coburn Trail0.3 mi
Racoon Run Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & 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
3Basketball
2Baseball
1Equestrian
1Tennis
1Beach volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Bell Acres: April and August
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) | 9.6 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.1 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 37 | 40 | 50 | 63 | 73 | 80 | 84 | 83 | 76 | 64 | 52 | 41 |
| Rain (in) | 2.9 | 2.4 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 3.8 | 4.2 | 4.1 | 3.6 | 3.6 | 2.9 | 2.8 | 3.0 |
February is the driest month (2.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 4.2 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Bell Acres →
Next door
Bell Acres and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Sewickley Heights29 miFranklin Park21 miBell Acres6.7 miEdgeworth2.6 miLeet Township1.3 miEconomy0.8 miHarmony Township0.8 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bell Acres | 24% | 1.3 | 264 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Economy | 3% | under 0.1 | 37 | 42% | C+ |
| Leet Township | 7% | 0.9 | 46 | 99%+ | A |
| Sewickley Heights | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Edgeworth | 2% | 1.7 | 14 | 99%+ | A− |
| Franklin Park | 8% | 1.6 | 34 | 58% | A− |
| Harmony Township | 5% | 0.3 | 29 | 95% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Bell Acres
Where can I hike in Bell Acres?
The longest trail networks: Bell Acres Nature Park, 1.5 miles; Devils Hollow Conservation Area, 1.2 miles; Sewickley Heights Borough Park, 0.9 miles; Beadnell Slopes Conservation Area, 0.5 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Bell Acres is conserved land?
24% of its land, against a typical 8% for a Pennsylvania town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Bell Acres’ trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Bell Acres Nature Park and Beadnell Slopes Conservation Area. For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Bell Acres?
16,814 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Bell Acres or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 870 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Bell Acres have?
Among the top 1% 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 Bell Acres 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 →