Buchanan State Forest
Managed by Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry
4,391 acres28.6 mi of trail
Broad Mountain TrailThree Bears TrailLittle Mountain Fire TrailBear Valley Ski Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Skinner Tavern · Photo: Smallbones · CC0BOutdoors
Outdoors in Letterkenny Township
19% of Letterkenny Township’s land is conserved: 8,385 acres
The biggest trail networks: Buchanan State Forest (28.6 mi), Lurgan Township Recreation Center (0.5 mi). 14% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 34 miles of mapped trail cross Letterkenny Township, 0.5 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 60% of U.S. towns · #625 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Conserved land
19%
8,385 acres · of 70.4 sq mi of land
Trails
34 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
44 ac
18 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
14%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
2,326 ft
Clarks Knob
Lakes & rivers
4
What kind of outdoors town is Letterkenny Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Letterkenny Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Letterkenny Township is ahead of 60% of U.S. towns, #625 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Letterkenny Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land19% of the land · typical PA town 8% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (34 mi) · PA 0.4 · U.S. 0.4BPark land18 acres of park per 1,000 residents (44 acres) · PA 14 · U.S. 13BParks close to home14% of residents within a half mile of a park · PA 73% · U.S. 72%C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 60%
LessMore
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,037)Ahead of 40%
Pennsylvania towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 8%; the U.S., 4%), so Letterkenny Township’s 19% is ahead of 77% of Pennsylvania towns, while its trails per square mile lead 53% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ 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 Buchanan State Forest, with 28.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Lurgan Township Recreation Center
Park
28 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
State Game Lands Number 76
Managed by Pennsylvania Game Commission
2,743 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
State Game Lands Number 235
Managed by Pennsylvania Game Commission
442 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 5 parks & preserves
Buchanan State Forest4,391 acres · 28.6 mi of trail · Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry
DirectionsLurgan Township Recreation Center28 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
State Game Lands Number 762,743 acres · Pennsylvania Game Commission
DirectionsState Game Lands Number 235442 acres · Pennsylvania Game Commission
DirectionsLetterkenny Township Supervisors2 acres
Who protects it
8,385 conserved acres
19% of Letterkenny Township’s land. Who manages Letterkenny Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources4,627 ac
State fish & wildlife3,196 ac
County1,410 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)363 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government28 ac
Not recorded231 ac
State Resource Management Area · 8,055 acAgricultural Easement · 1,774 acLocal Park · 28 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 539 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 12 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buchanan State Forest State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 4,627 | Open |
| State Game Land 076 State Resource Management Area | State fish & wildlife | 2,753 | Open |
| State Game Land 235 State Resource Management Area | State fish & wildlife | 443 | Open |
| Tuscarora Mountains State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 231 | Unknown |
| Roxbury Lion's Club Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 28 | Open |
Things to do
3 places to go in Letterkenny Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Scenic views in Letterkenny Township
Clark's KnobIn Buchanan State Forest
DirectionsPeaks in Letterkenny Township
Clarks Knob2,326 ft elevation · In Buchanan State Forest
DirectionsPicnic areas in Letterkenny Township
Bear Valley Picnic AreaIn Buchanan State Forest
DirectionsTrails & water
17 named trails and 4 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 25.3 miHorses · 12.6 miUnpaved · 0.9 mi
Broad Mountain Trail6.6 mi
Three Bears Trail3.7 mi
Little Mountain Fire Trail3.5 mi
Bear Valley Ski Trail3.3 mi
North Mountain Trail2.8 mi
Rexroth Trail0.9 mi
Smith Trail0.8 mi
Lookout Trail0.8 mi
One Mile Trail0.7 mi
Green Spring Trail0.6 mi
7 more trails
Two Mile Trail
0.5 miBerger Trail
0.4 miLehman Trail
0.4 miMackey Fire Trail
0.3 miPole Bridge Trail
0.3 miBurner Trail
0.3 miThomas Fire Trail
0.2 miLakes & 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
2Baseball
1Beach volleyball
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 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 Letterkenny Township: 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 | 15.0 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 39 | 42 | 51 | 64 | 74 | 82 | 86 | 85 | 77 | 66 | 54 | 43 |
| Rain (in) | 2.9 | 2.4 | 3.6 | 3.7 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 3.9 | 3.6 | 4.3 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 3.3 |
February is the driest month (2.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 86 °F). 4.3 inches fall in September, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 86 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Letterkenny Township →
Next door
Letterkenny Township and its neighbors
Letterkenny Township has the second most mapped trails of the 8 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Greene Township37 miLetterkenny Township34 miFannett Township26 miMetal Township22 miSouthampton Township20 miSt. Thomas Township14 miHamilton Township8.0 miLurgan Township7.7 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Letterkenny Township | 19% | 0.5 | 18 | 14% | B |
| Lurgan Township | 15% | 0.2 | under 1 | 3% | C |
| Metal Township | 12% | 0.5 | 105 | 4% | B+ |
| Hamilton Township | 5% | 0.2 | 3 | 14% | C |
| Fannett Township | 11% | 0.4 | under 1 | under 1% | C |
| Greene Township | 25% | 0.7 | 66 | 42% | A− |
| Southampton Township | 21% | 0.5 | 25 | 21% | B+ |
| St. Thomas Township | 22% | 0.3 | 5 | 10% | C+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Letterkenny Township
Where can I hike in Letterkenny Township?
The longest trail networks: Buchanan State Forest, 28.6 miles; Lurgan Township Recreation Center, 0.5 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Letterkenny Township is conserved land?
19% 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 Letterkenny Township’s trails?
Buchanan State Forest and Lurgan Township Recreation Center don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Letterkenny Township?
69,300 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Letterkenny Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 7,900 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Letterkenny Township have?
Ahead of 60% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #625 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 Letterkenny 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 →