Second Mountain Tract - Weiser State Forest
Nature preserve
696 acres1.9 mi of trail
Second Mountain Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: JERRYE & ROY KLOTZ MD · CC BY-SA 3.0BOutdoors
Outdoors in Washington Township
20% of Washington Township’s land is conserved: 3,977 acres
The biggest trail networks: Second Mountain Tract - Weiser State Forest (1.9 mi), State Game Lands Number 80 (0.9 mi), Sweet Arrow Lake County Park (0.9 mi). 108 acres are parks and preserves, 35 per 1,000 residents. 17% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 61% of U.S. towns · #613 of 1,037 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Conserved land
20%
3,977 acres · of 31.0 sq mi of land
Trails
7.9 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
108 ac
35 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
17%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
843 ft
Swatara Hill
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Washington Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Washington Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Washington Township is ahead of 61% of U.S. towns, #613 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 Washington Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land20% of the land · typical PA town 8% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (8 mi) · PA 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land35 acres of park per 1,000 residents (108 acres) · PA 14 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home17% 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 61%
LessMore
Pennsylvania towns of 2,500+ (1,037)Ahead of 41%
Pennsylvania towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 8%; the U.S., 4%), so Washington Township’s 20% is ahead of 80% of Pennsylvania towns, while its trails per square mile lead 37% of them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ 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 Second Mountain Tract - Weiser State Forest, with 1.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
State Game Lands Number 80
Managed by Pennsylvania Game Commission
2,274 acres0.9 mi of trail
Appalachian National Scenic Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Sweet Arrow Lake County Park
Park
10 acres0.9 mi of trail
Sweet Arrow Lake Lakefront Trail
Dogs on leash
No trailhead mapped yet
Weiser State Forest
Managed by Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry
696 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 6 parks & preserves
Second Mountain Tract - Weiser State Forest696 acres · 1.9 mi of trail
State Game Lands Number 802,274 acres · 0.9 mi of trail · Pennsylvania Game Commission
DirectionsSweet Arrow Lake County Park10 acres · 0.9 mi of trail
Weiser State Forest696 acres · Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry
State Game Lands Number 160230 acres · Pennsylvania Game Commission
DirectionsChickagami Beach Fishing Area1 acres · Sweet Arrow Lake County Park
Who protects it
3,977 conserved acres
20% of Washington Township’s land. Who manages Washington Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife2,377 ac
County1,335 ac
State natural resources966 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)203 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits123 ac
Other or Unknown Local Government107 ac
National Park Service71 ac
State Resource Management Area · 3,344 acAgricultural Easement · 1,335 acConservation Easement · 233 acLocal Park · 107 acNational Scenic or Historic Trail · 71 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 469 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| State Game Land 080 State Resource Management Area | State fish & wildlife | 2,148 | Open |
| Weiser State Forest State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 966 | Open |
| State Game Land 160 State Resource Management Area | State fish & wildlife | 229 | Open |
| Sweet Arrow Lake County Park Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 91 | Open |
| Appalachian National Scenic Trail National Scenic or Historic Trail | National Park Service | 71 | Open |
| Schaeffer Land Acquisition Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 23 | Open |
| Washington Township Basketball Court Local Park | Other or Unknown Local Government | 4 | Open |
Things to do
2 places to go in Washington Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Peaks in Washington Township
Swatara Hill843 ft elevation
DirectionsSummerhill784 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
4 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 3.7 mi
Second Mountain Trail1.9 mi
Appalachian National Scenic Trail1.8 mi
Sweet Arrow Lake Lakefront Trail1.1 mi
Big Dam Trail1.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
History along the way
History →2 places 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.
When to get out
The best walking months in Washington Township: April and May
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 | 15.1 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.9 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 36 | 39 | 48 | 61 | 71 | 79 | 84 | 82 | 75 | 63 | 51 | 41 |
| Rain (in) | 3.5 | 2.7 | 3.8 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 5.1 | 4.6 | 3.5 | 4.0 |
February is the driest month (2.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 5.1 inches fall in September, the wettest month. The climate in Washington Township →
Next door
Washington Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Tremont Township27 miBethel Township23 miReilly Township21 miPine Grove Township12 miWayne Township8.8 miWashington Township7.9 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington Township | 20% | 0.3 | 35 | 17% | B |
| Bethel Township | 27% | 0.5 | 3 | 16% | B− |
| Reilly Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Pine Grove Township | 25% | 0.3 | 282 | 38% | A− |
| Wayne Township | 24% | 0.3 | 13 | 48% | B |
| Tremont 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 Washington Township
Where can I hike in Washington Township?
The longest trail networks: Second Mountain Tract - Weiser State Forest, 1.9 miles; State Game Lands Number 80, 0.9 miles; Sweet Arrow Lake County Park, 0.9 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Washington Township is conserved land?
20% 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 Washington Township’s trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Sweet Arrow Lake County Park (on leash). For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Washington Township?
44,061 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Washington Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 3,530 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Washington Township have?
Ahead of 61% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #613 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 Washington 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 →