Norristown Farm Park
Park
109 acres1.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Globe Knitting Mills · Photo: Smallbones · CC0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Norristown
11% of Norristown’s 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. 11% of Norristown’s land is conserved, about 251 acres. 3.3 miles of mapped trail cross Norristown, 0.9 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 86% of U.S. towns · #203 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Conserved land
11%
251 acres · of 3.5 sq mi of land
Trails
3.3 mi
0.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
302 ac
8.4 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
4.7 mi
0.4 mi lanes · 4.3 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Norristown?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Norristown have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Norristown is ahead of 86% of U.S. towns, #203 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Norristown’s overall grade.
Conserved land11% of the land · typical PA town 8% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (3 mi) · PA 0.4 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land8.4 acres of park per 1,000 residents (302 acres) · PA 14 · U.S. 13C+Parks 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)Ahead of 86%
LessMore
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,037)Ahead of 81%
Pennsylvania towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 8%; the U.S., 4%), so Norristown’s 11% is ahead of 61% of Pennsylvania towns, while its trails per square mile lead 75% of them.
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 Norristown Farm Park, with 1.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Elmwood Park
Managed by Municipality of Norristown
38 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Bartash Park
Managed by Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
40 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Simmons/MLK Park Complex
Managed by Municipality of Norristown
16 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 16 parks & preserves
Norristown Farm Park109 acres · 1.3 mi of trail
DirectionsElmwood Park38 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Municipality of Norristown
DirectionsSimmons/MLK Park Complex16 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Municipality of Norristown
DirectionsBartash Park40 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
Crawford Park6 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Crawford Foundation
DirectionsMcCann Park7 acres · Municipality of Norristown
Lafayette Street Gateway6 acres · Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
DirectionsRiverfront Park5 acres
DirectionsAckey's Park2 acres · Municipality of Norristown
Poley Skate Park2 acres · Municipality of Norristown
DirectionsEngro Field2 acres · Municipality of Norristown
Scag Cottman Park2 acres · Municipality of Norristown
Hancock Square1 acres
DirectionsGuardino Park1 acres · Municipality of Norristown
Thomas Barone Park1 acres · Municipality of Norristown
Walnut Street Playground1 acres · Municipality of Norristown
Who protects it
251 conserved acres
11% of Norristown’s land. Who manages Norristown’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Other or Unknown Local Government160 ac
State parks90 ac
Town or city1 ac
Not recorded7 ac
Local Park · 159 acState Other or Unknown · 90 acLocal Recreation Area · 7 acLocal Other or Unknown · 1 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 19 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Norristown Farm Park State Other or Unknown | State parks | 90 | Open |
| Elmwood Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 74 | Open |
| Bartash Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 39 | Open |
| McCann Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 12 | Open |
| Riverfront Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 10 | Open |
| Martin Luther King Jr Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 8 | Open |
| Simmons Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 6 | Open |
| Engro Field Local Recreation Area | Other or Unknown Local Government | 5 | Open |
| Scagg Cottman Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 3 | Open |
| Ackey's Field Local Recreation Area | Other or Unknown Local Government | 2 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
12 places to go in Norristown
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Norristown
8 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Norristown
2 boat launches without a name on the map.
Picnic areas in Norristown
2 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Biking & sports
4.7 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.4 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
4.3 mi
off-road bike paths
0.1 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
10Baseball
6Basketball
6Tennis
2Soccer
1Softball
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).
Central Norristown Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1984
About itWest Norristown Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1984
About itStewart, Gen. Thomas J., Memorial ArmoryBuilding · listed 1991
About itRittenhouse, David, Junior High SchoolBuilding · listed 1996
About itGlobe Knitting MillsBuilding · listed 2003
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Norristown: April to June 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 | 14.8 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 40 | 43 | 52 | 64 | 74 | 83 | 88 | 85 | 78 | 66 | 55 | 45 |
| Rain (in) | 3.4 | 2.8 | 4.1 | 3.7 | 4.0 | 4.4 | 4.7 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 4.0 | 3.3 | 4.3 |
February is the driest month (2.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 88 °F). 4.7 inches fall in July, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 88 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Norristown →
Next door
Norristown and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Upper Merion Township21 miWest Norriton Township7.9 miPlymouth Township7.4 miEast Norriton Township6.5 miNorristown3.3 miSwedesburg0.2 miBridgeport0.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Norristown | 11% | 0.9 | 8 | 99%+ | A |
| Bridgeport | 7% | under 0.1 | 6 | 99%+ | B− |
| West Norriton Township | 12% | 1.3 | 20 | 99% | A |
| Plymouth Township | 5% | 0.9 | 10 | 93% | B+ |
| East Norriton Township | 13% | 1.1 | 36 | 94% | A |
| Swedesburg | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Upper Merion Township | 17% | 1.2 | 16 | 96% | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Norristown
Where can I hike in Norristown?
The longest trail networks: Norristown Farm Park, 1.3 miles; Elmwood Park, 0.3 miles; Bartash Park, 0.1 miles; Simmons/MLK Park Complex, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Norristown is conserved land?
11% 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 Norristown’s trails?
Norristown Farm Park and Elmwood Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Norristown?
4.7 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.4 of painted or protected lanes, 4.3 of off-road paths and 0.1 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Norristown?
22,730 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Norristown or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 304 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Norristown have?
Ahead of 86% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #203 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 Norristown 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 →