Pinchot State Forest
Managed by Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry
601 acres0.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Mizdail Parking EastWebsite ↗
C−Outdoors
Outdoors in Jackson Township
8% of Jackson Township’s land is conserved: 691 acres
The biggest trail networks: Pinchot State Forest (0.7 mi). 6% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 6 acres are parks and preserves, 1.4 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 23% of U.S. towns · #982 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Conserved land
8%
691 acres · of 13.2 sq mi of land
Trails
1.6 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
6 ac
1.4 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
6%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,585 ft
Larksville Mountain
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Jackson Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Jackson Township is ahead of 23% of U.S. towns, #982 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
C−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Jackson Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land8% of the land · typical PA town 8% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (2 mi) · PA 0.4 · U.S. 0.4CPark land1.4 acres of park per 1,000 residents (6 acres) · PA 14 · U.S. 13C−Parks close to home6% of residents within a half mile of a park · PA 73% · U.S. 72%D
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 23%
LessMore
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,037)Ahead of 5%
Pennsylvania towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 8%; the U.S., 4%), so Jackson Township’s 8% is ahead of 50% of Pennsylvania towns, while its trails per square mile lead 22% of them.
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Jackson Township. OpenStreetMap is mapped by volunteers and coverage varies from town to town, so a town with unmapped parks scores low on them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from D to C+. 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 Pinchot State Forest, with 0.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Jackson Township Park
Park
3 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
691 conserved acres
8% of Jackson Township’s land. Who manages Jackson Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources603 ac
County298 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government6 ac
Not recorded621 ac
State Resource Management Area · 1,204 acLocal Other or Unknown · 317 acLocal Recreation Area · 6 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 2 of 6 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pinchot State Forest State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 604 | Open |
| Harvey's Creek Tract State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 601 | Open |
| Luzerne County Property Local Other or Unknown | County | 317 | Unknown |
| Huntsville Road Recreation Park Local Recreation Area | Other or Unknown Local Government | 6 | Open |
Things to do
1 places to go in Jackson Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Peaks in Jackson Township
Larksville Mountain1,585 ft elevation
DirectionsWhen to get out
The best walking months in Jackson Township: May to 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) | 9.5 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.1 | 14.9 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 33 | 36 | 45 | 59 | 69 | 77 | 81 | 79 | 72 | 61 | 48 | 38 |
| Rain (in) | 3.2 | 2.4 | 3.3 | 3.9 | 3.7 | 4.1 | 4.0 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 3.2 | 3.4 |
February is the driest month (2.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.4 inches fall in September, the wettest month. The climate in Jackson Township →
Next door
Jackson Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Plymouth Township62 miKingston Township14 miJackson Township1.6 miLehman Township1.1 miLarksville1.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jackson Township | 8% | 0.1 | 1 | 6% | C− |
| Plymouth Township | 45% | 3.9 | 511 | 67% | A+ |
| Larksville | 1% | 0.2 | 9 | 89% | B− |
| Lehman Township | 15% | 0.1 | 44 | 16% | B− |
| Kingston Township | 12% | 1.1 | 144 | 56% | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Jackson Township
Where can I hike in Jackson Township?
The longest trail networks: Pinchot State Forest, 0.7 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Jackson Township is conserved land?
8% 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 Jackson Township’s trails?
Pinchot State Forest and Jackson Township Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Jackson Township?
38,091 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Jackson Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 611 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Jackson Township have?
Ahead of 23% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #982 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. 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 Jackson Township 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 →