Kings Gap Environmental Education Center
Managed by Pennsylvania Bureau of State Parks
916 acres1.9 mi of trail
Two Hollows TrailBoundary Trail
Dogs on leash
Directionsto Irish Gap Access AreaWebsite ↗
B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Penn Township
32% of Penn Township’s land is conserved: 6,048 acres
996 acres are parks and preserves, 341 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: Kings Gap Environmental Education Center (1.9 mi). 20% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 68% of U.S. towns · #508 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Conserved land
32%
6,048 acres · of 29.6 sq mi of land
Trails
4.1 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
996 ac
341 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
20%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,604 ft
Chimney Rocks
Lakes & rivers
1
9 beaches
What kind of outdoors town is Penn Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Penn Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Penn Township is ahead of 68% of U.S. towns, #508 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 Penn Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land32% of the land · typical PA town 8% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (4 mi) · PA 0.4 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land341 acres of park per 1,000 residents (996 acres) · PA 14 · U.S. 13AParks close to home20% 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 68%
LessMore
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,037)Ahead of 51%
Pennsylvania towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 8%; the U.S., 4%), so Penn Township’s 32% is ahead of 92% of Pennsylvania towns, while its trails per square mile lead 25% 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 Kings Gap Environmental Education Center, with 1.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Michaux State Forest
Managed by Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry
1,015 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Centerville Community Park
Park
6 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Food Plot
Park
2 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
6,048 conserved acres
32% of Penn Township’s land. Who manages Penn Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County14,190 ac
State natural resources1,052 ac
State parks885 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)567 ac
State fish & wildlife150 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits57 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government31 ac
Agricultural Easement · 14,723 acState Resource Management Area · 2,066 acState Other or Unknown · 1,035 acState Park · 959 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 113 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 3,742 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 3 of 141 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michaux State Forest State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 2,066 | Open |
| Kings Gap State Park State Park | Not recorded | 959 | Unknown |
| Kings Gap Environmental Education Center State Other or Unknown | State parks | 900 | Open |
| Huntsdale State Fish Hatchery State Other or Unknown | State fish & wildlife | 150 | Closed |
| South Mountain Private Other or Unknown | Land trusts & nonprofits | 113 | Closed |
| Penn Township Volunteer Fire Company Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 23 | Open |
| Bream, J.W. Private Agricultural | Not recorded | 23 | Closed |
| Centerville Community Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 8 | Open |
Things to do
10 places to go in Penn Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Penn Township
9 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Peaks in Penn Township
Chimney Rocks1,604 ft elevation · In Michaux State Forest
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Two Hollows Trail1.2 mi
Boundary Trail0.7 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
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Penn Township: April 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) | 9.6 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.0 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 38 | 42 | 50 | 63 | 73 | 81 | 86 | 84 | 77 | 65 | 53 | 42 |
| Rain (in) | 3.1 | 2.6 | 3.8 | 3.8 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 4.0 | 3.6 | 4.6 | 3.8 | 3.2 | 3.5 |
February is the driest month (2.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 86 °F). 4.6 inches fall in September, the wettest month. The climate in Penn Township →
Next door
Penn Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Cooke Township87 miDickinson Township54 miSouth Newton Township10 miWest Pennsboro Township4.3 miPenn Township4.1 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penn Township | 32% | 0.1 | 341 | 20% | B+ |
| South Newton Township | 29% | 0.9 | 5 | 11% | B |
| West Pennsboro Township | 23% | 0.1 | 26 | 34% | B |
| Dickinson Township | 40% | 1.2 | 325 | 24% | A |
| Cooke Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Penn Township
Where can I hike in Penn Township?
The longest trail networks: Kings Gap Environmental Education Center, 1.9 miles; Michaux State Forest, 0.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Penn Township is conserved land?
32% 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 Penn Township’s trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Kings Gap Environmental Education Center (on leash). For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Penn Township?
68,094 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Penn Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,068 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Penn Township have?
Ahead of 68% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #508 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 Penn 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 →