Buchanan State Forest
Managed by Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry
772 acres1.6 mi of trail
Gracey trailOld RR GradeWinter TrailKing Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
C−Outdoors
Outdoors in Taylor Township
Taylor Township has 5.2 miles of mapped trails, 0.2 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Buchanan State Forest (1.6 mi). 5% of Taylor Township’s land is conserved, about 948 acres.
Ahead of 15% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
948 acres · of 32.6 sq mi of land
Trails
5.2 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Near a park
under 1%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.6 mi
1.6 mi paths
Highest peak
2,093 ft
King Knob
Lakes & rivers
1
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Taylor Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Taylor Township is ahead of 15% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
C−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Taylor Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical PA town 8% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (5 mi) · PA 0.4 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land0.0 acres of park per 1,000 residents (0 acres) · PA 14 · U.S. 13DParks close to home0% of residents within a half mile of a park · PA 73% · U.S. 72%D−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 15%
LessMore
Pennsylvania towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 8%; the U.S., 4%), so Taylor Township’s 5% is ahead of 32% of Pennsylvania towns, while its trails per square mile lead 27% of them.
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Taylor Township. OpenStreetMap is mapped by volunteers and coverage varies from town to town, so a town with unmapped parks scores low on them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from D to C. 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 Buchanan State Forest, with 1.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
948 conserved acres
5% of Taylor Township’s land. Who manages Taylor Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources772 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits346 ac
State Resource Management Area · 772 acAgricultural Easement · 255 acPrivate Conservation · 90 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 85 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buchanan State Forest State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 772 | Open |
| Abandoned Pennsylvania Turnpike Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 90 | Closed |
Things to do
1 places to go in Taylor Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Peaks in Taylor Township
King Knob2,093 ft elevation · In Buchanan State Forest
DirectionsTrails & water
5 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Horses · 1.5 mi
Gracey trail0.5 mi
Old RR Grade0.4 mi
Winter Trail0.3 mi
King Trail0.2 mi
King trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
1.6 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.6 mi
off-road bike paths
When to get out
The best walking months in Taylor Township: April, July 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) | 38 | 41 | 50 | 63 | 73 | 81 | 85 | 83 | 76 | 65 | 52 | 42 |
| Rain (in) | 2.8 | 2.4 | 3.5 | 3.6 | 4.2 | 4.1 | 3.8 | 3.4 | 4.0 | 3.4 | 3.0 | 3.2 |
February is the driest month (2.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 85 °F). 4.2 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Taylor Township →
Next door
Taylor Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Wells Township63 miDublin Township19 miLicking Creek Township7.7 miTaylor Township5.2 miClay Township2.4 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Taylor Township | 5% | 0.2 | under 1 | under 1% | C− |
| Wells Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Dublin Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Licking Creek Township | 9% | 0.2 | under 1 | under 1% | C− |
| Clay 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 Taylor Township
Where can I hike in Taylor Township?
The longest trail networks: Buchanan State Forest, 1.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Taylor Township is conserved land?
5% 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 Taylor Township’s trails?
Buchanan State Forest doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Taylor Township?
1.6 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.6 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Taylor Township?
62,142 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Taylor Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 775 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Taylor Township have?
Ahead of 15% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Taylor 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 →