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Patterson State Park SignPhoto: User:Ruhrfisch · CC BY-SA 3.0
–Not graded
Outdoors in Summit Township

More than half of Summit Township’s land is conserved: 68%

68% of Summit Township’s land is conserved, about 21,527 acres. The biggest trail networks: Susquehannock State Forest (61.6 mi). 32 acres are parks and preserves, 226 per 1,000 residents.

Conserved land
68%
21,527 acres · of 49.2 sq mi of land
Trails
66 mi
1.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
32 ac
226 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
under 1%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
2,467 ft
Cochran Hill
The map

Conserved land, trails & bike routes

Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.

123
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 Susquehannock State Forest, with 61.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.

Susquehannock State Forest

Managed by Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry
21,288 acres61.6 mi of trail
Susquehannock TrailATV TrailBilly Lewis Ski TrailBilly Lewis Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailheadWebsite ↗

Patterson State Park

Managed by Pennsylvania Bureau of State Parks
19 acres0.3 mi of trail
Billy Lewis Ski TrailSusquehannock Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗

Prouty Place State Park

Managed by Pennsylvania Bureau of State Parks
12 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Who protects it

21,527 conserved acres

68% of Summit Township’s land. Who manages Summit Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.

State natural resources21,375 ac
County484 ac
State parks31 ac
State Resource Management Area · 21,375 acAgricultural Easement · 484 acState Park · 31 ac
Good to know

Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 121 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.

The biggest protected parcels
Parcel (PAD-US)Managed byAcresPublic access
Susquehannock State Forest
State Resource Management Area
State natural resources21,375Open
Patterson State Park
State Park
State parks19Open
Prouty Place State Park
State Park
State parks12Open
Things to do

3 places to go in Summit Township

Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.

Peaks in Summit Township
Cochran Hill2,467 ft elevation
Directions
Kaple Hill2,451 ft elevation
Directions
Trails & water

24 named trails

Named trails
Horses · 36.3 miUnpaved · 8.9 mi
Susquehannock Trail12.2 mi
ATV Trail6.6 mi
Billy Lewis Ski Trail5.1 mi
Billy Lewis Trail4.5 mi
Ridge Fork Trail4.1 mi
Sidewinder Trail2.4 mi
Railroad Grade Trail2.3 mi
Old Cabin Trail2.0 mi
Berger Trail1.9 mi
ATV trail1.7 mi
14 more trails
Clinton Trail
1.5 mi
Palmatier Trail
1.5 mi
Captain Shelton Pipeline
1.2 mi
Beech Hollow Trail
0.9 mi
Berry Patch?
0.8 mi
Gibbs Trail
0.8 mi
Alabama Trail
0.7 mi
Klesa Trail
0.7 mi
West Branch Trail
0.6 mi
Sidewinder Connector
0.6 mi
Shinglebolt Trail
0.5 mi
Big Bertha Loop
0.5 mi
Splash Dam Trail
0.4 mi
Snowmobile/ATV Trail
0.4 mi
When to get out

The best walking months in Summit Township: May 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.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)9.510.511.813.314.515.214.913.812.411.09.89.2
High (°F)303443566875797770584535
Rain (in)3.22.53.23.74.14.44.53.84.43.93.43.4

February is the driest month (2.5 in) and July the warmest (highs of 79 °F). 4.5 inches fall in July, the wettest month. The climate in Summit Township →

Next door

Summit Township and its neighbors

Summit Township has the second most mapped trails of the 6 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.

Wharton Township99 miSummit Township66 miWest Branch Township62 miSweden Township31 miHomer Township29 miSylvania Township13 mi
TownConserved
of land		Trail mi
per sq mi		Park acres
per 1,000		Near a park
½ mile		Outdoors
Summit Township— not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town
Wharton Township— not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town
Homer Township— not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town
Sweden Township— not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town
Sylvania Township— not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town
West Branch 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 Summit Township

Where can I hike in Summit Township?

The longest trail networks: Susquehannock State Forest, 61.6 miles; Patterson State Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.

Are dogs allowed on Summit Township’s trails?

Susquehannock State Forest and Patterson State Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.

Is there public land near Summit Township?

224,711 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Summit Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 21,530 of them inside the town line.

Trail talk

Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Summit Township neighbors.

Town Square →
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 →