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Richmond Historical Society, Bell School, Richmond RIPhoto: John Phelan · CC BY-SA 4.0
A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Richmond

34% of Richmond’s land is conserved: 8,831 acres

59 miles of mapped trail cross Richmond, 1.5 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Arcadia Management Area (8.2 mi), Crawley Preserve (2.1 mi), Grass Pond Preserve (1.2 mi). 182 acres are parks and preserves, 22 per 1,000 residents.

Ahead of 78% of U.S. towns · #23 of 38 in Rhode Island. What drives it

Conserved land
34%
8,831 acres · of 40.3 sq mi of land
Trails
59 mi
1.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
182 ac
22 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
21%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
486 ft
Tefft Hill
Lakes & rivers
17
1 beach

What kind of outdoors town is Richmond?

Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.

Land that stays wild34% of the land is conserved; a typical Rhode Island town, 19%.A trail town1.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 88% of U.S. towns.History along the way6 places on the National Register.
Outdoors grade

How much outdoors does Richmond have?

On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Richmond is ahead of 78% of U.S. towns, #23 of 38 in Rhode Island. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.

A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Richmond’s overall grade.
Conserved land34% of the land · typical RI town 19% · U.S. 4%A+Trails1.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (59 mi) · RI 1.1 · U.S. 0.4APark land22 acres of park per 1,000 residents (182 acres) · RI 21 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home21% 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 78%
LessMore
Rhode Island towns of 2,500+ (38)Ahead of 41%

Rhode Island towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 19%; the U.S., 4%), so Richmond’s 34% is ahead of 86% of Rhode Island towns, while its trails per square mile lead 68% 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.

12345
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 Arcadia Management Area, with 8.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.

Arcadia Management Area

Nature preserve
1,478 acres8.2 mi of trail
North South TrailArcadia trail95 TrailArcadia white trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailhead

Crawley Preserve

Nature preserve
84 acres2.1 mi of trail
Red Fox Trail (Red)Crawley Trail (Blue)Brook Trail (Yellow)Box Turtle Trail (Orange)+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot

Grass Pond Preserve

Nature preserve
183 acres1.2 mi of trail
Yellow Loop TrailWilbur Hill TrailBlue Loop Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet

Grass Pond Management Area

Managed by Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management
242 acres0.7 mi of trail
Blue Loop Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet

Richmond Heritage Trail

Managed by Town of Richmond
56 acres0.4 mi of trail
Richmond Heritage Trail All-Persons Loop
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 9 parks & preserves
Arcadia Management Area1,478 acres · 8.2 mi of trail
Directions
Crawley Preserve84 acres · 2.1 mi of trail
Directions
Grass Pond Preserve183 acres · 1.2 mi of trail
Grass Pond Management Area242 acres · 0.7 mi of trail · Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management
Richmond Heritage Trail56 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Town of Richmond
Directions
Beaver River160 acres
Dawley Memorial State Park132 acres
Audobon Society87 acres
Dawley Memorial Park18 acres
Who protects it

8,831 conserved acres

34% of Richmond’s land. Who manages Richmond’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.

State conservation4,832 ac
State natural resources2,429 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits1,095 ac
Other state land581 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)63 ac
Other or Unknown Federal Land6 ac
Joint2 ac
Conservation Easement · 5,346 acState Other or Unknown · 4,354 acState Resource Management Area · 4,184 acAgricultural Easement · 634 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 571 ac
Good to know

Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 623 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 101 of 128 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.

The biggest protected parcels
Parcel (PAD-US)Managed byAcresPublic access
Carolina Management Area
State Resource Management Area
Not recorded1,963Unknown
Decoppet Estate
State Other or Unknown
State natural resources1,817Open
Beaver River - deCoppett
State Other or Unknown
Not recorded1,817Open
Arcadia Management Area
State Resource Management Area
Not recorded1,443Unknown
Subdivision
Private Other or Unknown
Not recorded504Unknown
Tuckahoe Turf Farm
State Other or Unknown
Not recorded472Unknown
Great Swamp Management Area
State Resource Management Area
Not recorded405Unknown
American Fish
State Resource Management Area
Not recorded330Unknown
Delbonis Sand & Gravel Co.
State Other or Unknown
State natural resources244Open
Grass Pond Fee
Private Conservation
Land trusts & nonprofits170Unknown

5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.

Things to do

10 places to go in Richmond

Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.

Peaks in Richmond
Tefft Hill486 ft elevation
Directions
Pine Hill361 ft elevation
Directions
Wilbur Hill289 ft elevation · In Grass Pond Preserve
Directions
Shannock Hill269 ft elevation
Directions
Kenyon Hill266 ft elevation
Directions
Bailey Hill187 ft elevation
Directions
Trails & water

25 named trails and 17 lakes & rivers

Named trails
Open to bikes · 16.0 miHorses · 15.7 miUnpaved · 40.0 mi
North South Trail6.6 mi
Punchbowl Trail1.9 mi
Arcadia trail1.7 mi
Red Trail1.7 mi
Essex Trail1.6 mi
95 Trail1.6 mi
Fisher Cat Trail1.6 mi
Two Pines trail1.3 mi
Blue Trail1.2 mi
Blue Loop Trail1.1 mi
15 more trails
Old North-South Trail
1.0 mi
Yellow Trail
0.9 mi
Arcadia white trail
0.8 mi
Carolina Curves
0.8 mi
Essex Trail - south spur
0.8 mi
Route 112 path
0.8 mi
Pine Carpet trail
0.8 mi
Red Fox Trail (Red)
0.7 mi
North/South bypass
0.7 mi
Crawley Trail (Blue)
0.6 mi
Jabba’s Lair
0.6 mi
Essex Trail - east spur
0.6 mi
"Take the Bait" Trail
0.6 mi
Chariho Trail
0.6 mi
Yellow Loop Trail
0.6 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Alton PondBailey PondpondCanob PondpondCarolina Trout PondpondDiamond PondpondDuck PondpondGrass PondpondLillibridge PondpondLong PondpondMeadow Brook PondpondMoonshine SwampNo Bottom PondpondSandy Pond RoadpondWells PondpondWoodville PondreservoirUsquepaug RiverWood River
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
11Tennis
7Tracks
3Baseball
3Multi-sport
2Softball
2Soccer
2Lacrosse
2Volleyball

Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.

History along the way

6 places on the National Register

The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 3 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.

History →
Wyoming Village Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1974
About it
Carolina Village Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1974
About it
John Hoxsie HouseBuilding · listed 1978
About it
Shannock Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1983
About it
Samuel Clarke FarmBuilding · listed 2019
About it
Beaver River Road Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2021
About it
When to get out

The best walking months in Richmond: 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.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)9.510.511.813.314.515.214.913.812.411.09.89.2
High (°F)384047586877828174645344
Rain (in)3.73.24.74.23.53.73.23.73.94.63.94.6

July is the driest month (3.2 in) and the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.7 inches fall in March, the wettest month. The climate in Richmond →

Next door

Richmond and its neighbors

Tap a town to see its outdoors.

Exeter112 miCharlestown60 miRichmond59 miHopkinton52 miSouth Kingstown50 miCarolina3.1 miHope Valley2.3 mi
TownConserved
of land		Trail mi
per sq mi		Park acres
per 1,000		Near a park
½ mile		Outdoors
Richmond34%1.52221%A−
Hopkinton20%1.216932%A
Charlestown35%1.634140%A
South Kingstown32%0.97692%A+
Hope Valley— not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town
Carolina— not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town
Exeter35%1.92619%A−

The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.

Questions about parks and trails in Richmond

Where can I hike in Richmond?

The longest trail networks: Arcadia Management Area, 8.2 miles; Crawley Preserve, 2.1 miles; Grass Pond Preserve, 1.2 miles; Grass Pond Management Area, 0.7 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.

How much of Richmond is conserved land?

34% 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 Richmond’s trails?

Arcadia Management Area and Crawley Preserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.

Is there public land near Richmond?

16,870 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Richmond or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,371 of them inside the town line.

How much outdoors does Richmond have?

Ahead of 78% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #23 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 Richmond neighbors.

Town Square →
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 →