Lacawac Sanctuary
Nature preserve
444 acres6.9 mi of trail
Big Lake Trail (Red)Ledges Trail (Orange)Lake Lacawac Trail (Blue)Maurice Broun Trail (Green)+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: JERRYE & ROY KLOTZ. M.D. · CC BY-SA 4.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Paupack Township
Paupack Township has 463 acres of parks, 125 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Lacawac Sanctuary (6.9 mi), Shuman Point Natural Area (3.6 mi). 7% of Paupack Township’s land is conserved, about 1,313 acres. 24% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 66% of U.S. towns · #547 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
1,313 acres · of 28.0 sq mi of land
Trails
12 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
463 ac
125 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
24%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,398 ft
Briar Hill
Lakes & rivers
15
5 beaches · 1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Paupack Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Paupack Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Paupack Township is ahead of 66% of U.S. towns, #547 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Paupack Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical PA town 8% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (12 mi) · PA 0.4 · U.S. 0.4BPark land125 acres of park per 1,000 residents (463 acres) · PA 14 · U.S. 13AParks close to home24% 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 66%
LessMore
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,037)Ahead of 47%
Pennsylvania towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 8%; the U.S., 4%), so Paupack Township’s 7% is ahead of 46% of Pennsylvania towns, while its trails per square mile lead 48% of them.
Water is 15% of Paupack Township’s area (5 of 33 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 6%.
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 Lacawac Sanctuary, with 6.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Shuman Point Natural Area
Nature preserve
312 acres3.6 mi of trail
(faded blue blazes)(uncleared)(blowdowns)
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Shuman Point Trail parking
Who protects it
1,313 conserved acres
7% of Paupack Township’s land. Water is left out: Paupack Township has 28.0 square miles of land and 5.1 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Paupack Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits2,462 ac
County357 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government11 ac
Town or city3 ac
Not recorded445 ac
Conservation Easement · 1,396 acPrivate Conservation · 838 acRecreation or Education Easement · 416 acAgricultural Easement · 357 acUnknown Easement · 239 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 856 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lacawac Sanctuary Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 769 | Open |
| Ledges Tract Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 50 | Open |
| Reed Acquisition Private Recreation or Education | Land trusts & nonprofits | 19 | Open |
| Reed Property Acquisition Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 18 | Open |
| Lakeville Recreation Complex Local Recreation Area | Other or Unknown Local Government | 9 | Open |
| Christophersen Land Acquisition Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 5 | Open |
Things to do
12 places to go in Paupack Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Paupack Township
Plus 2 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Public pools in Paupack Township
Beaver Pool
DirectionsRockledge Pool
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Paupack Township
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Boat launches in Paupack Township
1 boat launch without a name on the map.
Waterfalls in Paupack Township
Wangum Falls
DirectionsPeaks in Paupack Township
Briar Hill1,398 ft elevation
DirectionsPlus 1 peak without a name on the map.
Trails & water
21 named trails and 15 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 2.3 miUnpaved · 2.3 mi
(faded blue blazes)2.8 mi
Big Lake Trail (Red)1.3 mi
Ledges Trail (Orange)0.7 mi
Lake Lacawac Trail (Blue)0.6 mi
Maurice Broun Trail (Green)0.6 mi
(uncleared)0.5 mi
Historic Camp Trail (15 mph)0.5 mi
Big Lake Trail (red)0.5 mi
Warbler Trail (light blue)0.3 mi
Lakefront Trail (red)0.3 mi
11 more trails
Osprey Trail (pink)
0.2 miTurkey Trail (red)
0.2 miWarbler Trail (green)
0.2 miArthur Watres Trail (purple)
0.2 miWhite Oak Trail (yellow)
0.2 miRhododendron Trail (blue)
0.2 miLakefront Trail
0.2 miLake Lacawac Spur (blue)
0.1 miCarriage Trail
0.1 miMoss Trail (white)
0.1 mi(blowdowns)
0.1 miBiking & 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
3Tennis
2Baseball
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 2 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
LacawacBuilding · listed 1979
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Paupack Township: May and July 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 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 32 | 35 | 44 | 57 | 68 | 76 | 81 | 79 | 72 | 60 | 48 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 2.9 | 2.6 | 3.6 | 3.8 | 3.8 | 4.7 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 3.2 | 3.6 |
February is the driest month (2.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.7 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Paupack Township →
Next door
Paupack Township and its neighbors
Paupack Township has the second most mapped trails of the 6 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Palmyra Township26 miPaupack Township12 miLake Township3.3 miPalmyra Township3.1 miSalem Township2.8 miWallenpaupack Lake Estates0.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paupack Township | 7% | 0.4 | 125 | 24% | B+ |
| Palmyra Township | 36% | 0.8 | 181 | 5% | A− |
| Palmyra Township | under 1% | 0.2 | 2 | 11% | D |
| Wallenpaupack Lake Estates | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Salem Township | 4% | 0.1 | 23 | 17% | C+ |
| Lake Township | 10% | 0.1 | 31 | 7% | B− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Paupack Township
Where can I hike in Paupack Township?
The longest trail networks: Lacawac Sanctuary, 6.9 miles; Shuman Point Natural Area, 3.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Paupack Township is conserved land?
7% 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 Paupack Township’s trails?
Lacawac Sanctuary and Shuman Point Natural Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Paupack Township?
48,300 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Paupack Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 991 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Paupack Township have?
Ahead of 66% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #547 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 Paupack 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 →