Johnston Memorial Park
Park
26 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Kenneth C. Zirkel · CC BY-SA 4.0B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Johnston
Johnston has 26 miles of mapped trails, 1.1 for every square mile of land
6% of Johnston’s land is conserved, about 982 acres. 35% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 185 acres are parks and preserves, 6.2 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 55% of U.S. towns · #35 of 38 in Rhode Island. What drives it
Conserved land
6%
982 acres · of 23.5 sq mi of land
Trails
26 mi
1.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
185 ac
6.2 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
35%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.8 mi
1.8 mi paths
Highest peak
689 ft
Central Landfill
Lakes & rivers
11
What kind of outdoors town is Johnston?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Johnston have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Johnston is ahead of 55% of U.S. towns, #35 of 38 in Rhode Island. Trail miles hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Johnston’s overall grade.
Conserved land6% of the land · typical RI town 19% · U.S. 4%B+Trails1.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (26 mi) · RI 1.1 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land6.2 acres of park per 1,000 residents (185 acres) · RI 21 · U.S. 13CParks close to home35% of residents within a half mile of a park · RI 72% · U.S. 72%C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 55%
LessMore
Rhode Island towns of 2,500+ (38)Ahead of 8%
Rhode Island towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 19%; the U.S., 4%), so Johnston’s 6% is ahead of 8% of Rhode Island towns, while its trails per square mile lead 49% 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 Johnston Memorial Park, with 0.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Randall Park
Park
31 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
982 conserved acres
6% of Johnston’s land. Who manages Johnston’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Other or Unknown Federal Land203 ac
State natural resources163 ac
Regional Water Districts124 ac
State conservation106 ac
Other state land80 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)60 ac
Private owners30 ac
Conservation Easement · 466 acWatershed Protection Area · 342 acAgricultural Easement · 165 acState Park · 123 acState Other or Unknown · 68 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 402 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 24 of 39 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Snake Den State Park State Park | Not recorded | 122 | Unknown |
| Moswansicut Reservoir Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 105 | Unknown |
| Kimball Reservoir Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 103 | Unknown |
| Deca Real Estate Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 83 | Unknown |
| Powdermill Ledges - Tracey Hill State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 52 | Open |
| Salisbury Farm Private Agricultural | State natural resources | 30 | Unknown |
| Hopkins Avenue Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 28 | Unknown |
| Pine Swamp Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 17 | Unknown |
| Matthewson Farm State Other or Unknown | State natural resources | 15 | Unknown |
| Central Landfill - A Street Realty Private Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 10 | Closed |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
21 places to go in Johnston
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Johnston
Triangle Park
DirectionsPlus 4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Scenic views in Johnston
Gott's Pond
DirectionsGott's Pond
DirectionsPeaks in Johnston
Central Landfill689 ft elevation
DirectionsPine Hill571 ft elevation
DirectionsPeck Hill548 ft elevation
DirectionsSickkibunkiaut Hill449 ft elevation
DirectionsTracy Hill430 ft elevation
DirectionsSnake Den394 ft elevation
DirectionsRound Rocks381 ft elevation
DirectionsSuckatunkanuc Hill364 ft elevation
Directions6 more peaks
Sutamachute Hill361 ft elevation
DirectionsSecesakut Hill344 ft elevation
DirectionsCat Rocks312 ft elevation
DirectionsThe summit295 ft elevation
DirectionsNeutaconkanut Hill292 ft elevation
DirectionsBare Rock259 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
3 named trails and 11 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 13.7 miUnpaved · 6.4 mi
Yellow Trail1.1 mi
Purple Trail0.1 mi
Pinnacle Trail (orange)0.1 mi
Biking & sports
1.8 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.8 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
6Tennis
4Baseball
4Basketball
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →11 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 4 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Brown Avenue Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1973
About itClemence-Irons HouseBuilding · listed 1973
About itEdwin H. Farnum HouseBuilding · listed 1974
About itCovell Street SchoolBuilding · listed 1976
About itThomas H. Hughes HouseBuilding · listed 1979
About itCornell-Randall-Bailey RoadhouseBuilding · listed 1984
About itEddy HomesteadBuilding · listed 1986
About itMathewson FarmBuilding · listed 2001
About itPocasset Worsted Company MillBuilding · listed 2010
About itBelknap SchoolBuilding · listed 2010
About itMechanical Fabric CompanyBuilding · listed 2014
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Johnston: May to September
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 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 37 | 40 | 47 | 59 | 69 | 77 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 63 | 52 | 42 |
| Rain (in) | 4.1 | 3.6 | 4.9 | 4.6 | 3.6 | 4.1 | 3.5 | 4.0 | 4.2 | 5.0 | 4.4 | 4.9 |
July is the driest month (3.5 in) and the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 5.0 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Johnston →
Next door
Johnston and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Smithfield36 miProvidence28 miJohnston26 miCranston16 miGreenville6.6 miScituate4.7 miNorth Providence1.3 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Johnston | 6% | 1.1 | 6 | 35% | B− |
| Providence | 9% | 1.5 | 6 | 99%+ | A− |
| North Providence | 4% | 0.2 | 3 | 83% | B− |
| Cranston | 7% | 0.6 | 12 | 83% | B+ |
| Smithfield | 11% | 1.4 | 18 | 70% | A− |
| Scituate | 37% | 0.1 | 5 | 18% | C+ |
| Greenville | — 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 Johnston
Where can I hike in Johnston?
The longest trail networks: Johnston Memorial Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Johnston is conserved land?
6% of its land, against a typical 19% for a Rhode Island town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Johnston’s trails?
Johnston Memorial Park and Randall Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Johnston?
1.8 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.8 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Johnston?
11,519 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Johnston or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 319 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Johnston have?
Ahead of 55% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #35 of 38 in Rhode Island. 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 Johnston 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 →