Little Crum Creek Park
Park
5 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Ugen64 at English Wikipedia · Public domainA−Outdoors
Outdoors in Swarthmore
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park in Swarthmore
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 4.2 miles of mapped trail cross Swarthmore, 3.0 per square mile of land. 43 acres are parks and preserves, 6.6 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 82% of U.S. towns · #282 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Conserved land
4%
31 acres · of 1.4 sq mi of land
Trails
4.2 mi
3.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
43 ac
6.6 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Swarthmore?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Swarthmore have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Swarthmore is ahead of 82% of U.S. towns, #282 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. Trail miles hold the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Swarthmore’s overall grade.
Conserved land4% of the land · typical PA town 8% · U.S. 4%B−Trails3.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (4 mi) · PA 0.4 · U.S. 0.4A+Park land6.6 acres of park per 1,000 residents (43 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 82%
LessMore
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,037)Ahead of 73%
Pennsylvania towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 8%; the U.S., 4%), so Swarthmore’s 4% is ahead of 25% of Pennsylvania towns, while its trails per square mile lead 97% 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
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Henderson Sports Complex
Park
3 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Umoja Park
Park
2 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Parrish Beach4 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsLittle Crum Creek Park5 acres
Henderson Sports Complex3 acres
Umoja Park2 acres
Science Center Green1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
31 conserved acres
4% of Swarthmore’s land. Who manages Swarthmore’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Other or Unknown Local Government26 ac
Not recorded5 ac
Local Recreation Area · 23 acLocal Park · 7 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clothier Field Local Recreation Area | Other or Unknown Local Government | 15 | Open |
| Little Crum Creek Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 5 | Open |
| Swarthmore Swim Club Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 5 | Open |
| Henderson Field Local Recreation Area | Other or Unknown Local Government | 4 | Open |
| Umoja Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 1 | Open |
| Keystone Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 1 | Open |
Things to do
1 places to go in Swarthmore
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Swarthmore
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
The Toboggan Run0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.1 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.1 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
7Tennis
3Baseball
2Basketball
1Soccer
1Lacrosse
1Softball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 places on the National Register, one a National Historic Landmark
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.
When to get out
The best walking months in Swarthmore: 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 | 14.7 | 13.7 | 12.4 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 41 | 44 | 52 | 64 | 74 | 83 | 88 | 85 | 79 | 67 | 56 | 46 |
| Rain (in) | 3.3 | 2.8 | 4.1 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 4.3 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.7 | 3.8 | 3.2 | 4.1 |
February is the driest month (2.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 88 °F). 4.7 inches fall in September, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 88 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Swarthmore →
Next door
Swarthmore and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Springfield Township19 miNether Providence Township11 miSwarthmore4.2 miRidley Township1.6 miWoodlyn1.3 miFolsom0.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swarthmore | 4% | 3.0 | 7 | 99%+ | A− |
| Nether Providence Township | 7% | 2.4 | 14 | 99%+ | A |
| Springfield Township | 7% | 2.9 | 13 | 99%+ | A |
| Ridley Township | 5% | 0.3 | 5 | 99%+ | B+ |
| Folsom | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Woodlyn | — 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 Swarthmore
Where can I hike in Swarthmore?
The longest trail networks: Parrish Beach, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Swarthmore is conserved land?
4% 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 Swarthmore’s trails?
Little Crum Creek Park and Parrish Beach don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Swarthmore?
0.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.1 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Swarthmore?
19,072 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Swarthmore or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 43 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Swarthmore have?
Ahead of 82% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #282 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 Swarthmore 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 →