Moshannon State Forest
Managed by Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry
853 acres2.4 mi of trail
Ridge TrailWoodland TrailAllegheny Front Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Farmers' High School · Photo: Penn State iGEM 2008 · Public domainB−Outdoors
Outdoors in Union Township
33% of Union Township’s land is conserved: 9,557 acres
The biggest trail networks: Moshannon State Forest (2.4 mi), State Game Lands Number 103 (1.1 mi). 5% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 29 acres are parks and preserves, 22 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 49% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
33%
9,557 acres · of 45.6 sq mi of land
Trails
4.3 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
29 ac
22 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
5%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
2,339 ft
Bear Knob
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Union Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Union Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Union Township is ahead of 49% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Union Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land33% of the land · typical PA town 8% · U.S. 4%A+Trails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (4 mi) · PA 0.4 · U.S. 0.4CPark land22 acres of park per 1,000 residents (29 acres) · PA 14 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home5% 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 49%
LessMore
Pennsylvania towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 8%; the U.S., 4%), so Union Township’s 33% is ahead of 92% of Pennsylvania towns, while its trails per square mile lead 19% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B+. 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 Moshannon State Forest, with 2.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
State Game Lands Number 103
Managed by Pennsylvania Game Commission
7,895 acres1.1 mi of trail
Ganderstep Saddle Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Who protects it
9,557 conserved acres
33% of Union Township’s land. Who manages Union Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife7,893 ac
State natural resources1,637 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government28 ac
State Resource Management Area · 9,530 acLocal Recreation Area · 28 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| State Game Land 103 State Resource Management Area | State fish & wildlife | 7,893 | Open |
| Moshannon State Forest State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 1,637 | Open |
| Unionville Playground Local Recreation Area | Other or Unknown Local Government | 28 | Open |
Things to do
3 places to go in Union Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Peaks in Union Township
Bear Knob2,339 ft elevation · In State Game Lands Number 103
DirectionsBear Rocks2,283 ft elevation
DirectionsGanderstep Knob2,159 ft elevation · In State Game Lands Number 103
DirectionsTrails & water
6 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 2.1 miHorses · 0.9 miUnpaved · 1.9 mi
Ganderstep Saddle Trail0.7 mi
Ridge Trail0.6 mi
Woodland Trail0.4 mi
Gravel Loop Trail0.4 mi
Meadow Loop Trail0.3 mi
Allegheny Front Trail0.2 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
4Soccer
1Baseball
1Equestrian
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 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Farmers' High SchoolDistrict · listed 1981
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Union 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) | 9.5 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.1 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.2 |
| High (°F) | 34 | 38 | 47 | 60 | 71 | 78 | 82 | 81 | 74 | 62 | 49 | 39 |
| Rain (in) | 2.9 | 2.4 | 3.4 | 3.7 | 4.0 | 4.1 | 4.0 | 3.9 | 4.2 | 3.6 | 3.1 | 3.2 |
February is the driest month (2.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.2 inches fall in September, the wettest month. The climate in Union Township →
Next door
Union Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Rush Township181 miBenner Township41 miSnow Shoe Township34 miHuston Township7.0 miBoggs Township4.7 miUnion Township4.3 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Union Township | 33% | 0.1 | 22 | 5% | B− |
| Benner Township | 14% | 1.4 | 7 | 24% | B |
| Huston Township | 10% | 0.3 | 13 | 17% | B− |
| Snow Shoe Township | 34% | 0.4 | 154 | 27% | A− |
| Rush Township | 61% | 1.2 | 1,097 | 46% | A |
| Boggs Township | 19% | 0.1 | 8 | 8% | C+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Union Township
Where can I hike in Union Township?
The longest trail networks: Moshannon State Forest, 2.4 miles; State Game Lands Number 103, 1.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Union Township is conserved land?
33% 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 Union Township’s trails?
Moshannon State Forest and State Game Lands Number 103 don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Union Township?
127,312 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Union Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 9,610 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Union Township have?
Ahead of 49% 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 Union 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 →