Wolf Hill
Nature preserve
288 acres5.4 mi of trail
Mary Mowry Trail (Green)World War II Memorial Trail (yellow)Ken Weber Trail (Red)Wolf Hill Trail (White)+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailhead
Angell-Ballou House · Photo: Kenneth C. Zirkel · CC BY-SA 3.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Smithfield
Smithfield has 36 miles of mapped trails, 1.4 for every square mile of land
11% of Smithfield’s land is conserved, about 1,888 acres. The biggest trail networks: Wolf Hill (5.4 mi), Powder Mill Ledges Wildlife Refuge (2.1 mi), Ken Weber Conservation Area (1.3 mi). 407 acres are parks and preserves, 18 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 83% of U.S. towns · #18 of 38 in Rhode Island. What drives it
Conserved land
11%
1,888 acres · of 26.2 sq mi of land
Trails
36 mi
1.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
407 ac
18 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
70%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.3 mi
0.3 mi paths
Highest peak
509 ft
Rocky Hill
Lakes & rivers
11
7 beaches · 2 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Smithfield?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Smithfield have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Smithfield is ahead of 83% of U.S. towns, #18 of 38 in Rhode Island. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Smithfield’s overall grade.
Conserved land11% of the land · typical RI town 19% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (36 mi) · RI 1.1 · U.S. 0.4APark land18 acres of park per 1,000 residents (407 acres) · RI 21 · U.S. 13BParks close to home70% of residents within a half mile of a park · RI 72% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 83%
LessMore
Rhode Island towns of 2,500+ (38)Ahead of 54%
Rhode Island towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 19%; the U.S., 4%), so Smithfield’s 11% is ahead of 32% of Rhode Island towns, while its trails per square mile lead 62% of them.
Water is 5% of Smithfield’s area (1 of 28 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 11%.
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.
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 Wolf Hill, with 5.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Powder Mill Ledges Wildlife Refuge
Nature preserve
80 acres2.1 mi of trail
Orange TrailBlue TrailYellow TrailOrange Path
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Ken Weber Conservation Area
Nature preserve
26 acres1.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Esmond Park
Managed by Conservation Commison of Smithfield
17 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 12 parks & preserves
Wolf Hill288 acres · 5.4 mi of trail
DirectionsPowder Mill Ledges Wildlife Refuge80 acres · 2.1 mi of trail
DirectionsKen Weber Conservation Area26 acres · 1.3 mi of trail
Esmond Park17 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · Conservation Commison of Smithfield
DirectionsConaty Park57 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsGeorgiaville Pond Beach13 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsDeerfield Park17 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsBryant Pond2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsWhipple Field16 acres
DirectionsMendes Field2 acres
DirectionsBryant University Pond2 acres
DirectionsMemorial Grove1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
1,888 conserved acres
11% of Smithfield’s land. Water is left out: Smithfield has 26.2 square miles of land and 1.4 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Smithfield’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city722 ac
State conservation471 ac
State natural resources222 ac
Other or Unknown Federal Land71 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits37 ac
Other state land13 ac
Regional Water Districts6 ac
Conservation Easement · 910 acWatershed Protection Area · 451 acPrivate Conservation · 421 acUnknown Easement · 297 acLocal Park · 233 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 441 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 60 of 94 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stillwater Reservoir Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 244 | Unknown |
| Lynch-Despres Wildlife Sanctuary Private Conservation | Not recorded | 190 | Unknown |
| Mercer Private Conservation | Not recorded | 186 | Unknown |
| Stillwater Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 104 | Unknown |
| Wolf Hill State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 103 | Unknown |
| Deerfield Park Local Park | Town or city | 98 | Open |
| Hanton City Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 92 | Unknown |
| Newman Wildlife Sanctuary Private Conservation | Not recorded | 71 | Unknown |
| Rocky Hill Road Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 68 | Unknown |
| Sprague Village Local Park | Town or city | 41 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
28 places to go in Smithfield
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Smithfield
Georgiaville BeachIn Georgiaville Pond Beach
DirectionsGeorgiaville Pond BeachIn Georgiaville Pond Beach
DirectionsMountaindale Beach
DirectionsSlacks Pond Beach
DirectionsPlus 3 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in Smithfield
5 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Dog parks in Smithfield
Smithfield Dog Park
DirectionsBoat launches in Smithfield
2 boat launches without a name on the map.
Waterfalls in Smithfield
Cascade Brook FallsIn Ken Weber Conservation Area
DirectionsScenic views in Smithfield
5 scenic views without a name on the map.
Peaks in Smithfield
Rocky Hill509 ft elevation
DirectionsWolf Hill472 ft elevation · In Wolf Hill
DirectionsWionkhiege Hill469 ft elevation
DirectionsForge Hill443 ft elevation
DirectionsWhipple Hill381 ft elevation
DirectionsPicnic areas in Smithfield
1 picnic area without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Community gardens in Smithfield
1 community garden without a name on the map.
Trails & water
25 named trails and 11 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 3.2 miHorses · 0.5 miUnpaved · 21.9 mi
Mary Mowry Trail (Green)1.7 mi
World War II Memorial Trail (yellow)1.5 mi
Stillwater Scenic Trail1.4 mi
Bryant Walking Trail1.1 mi
Ken Weber Trail (Red)1.1 mi
Yellow1.0 mi
Red1.0 mi
Blue Trail1.0 mi
Orange Trail0.6 mi
Yellow Diamond Trail0.6 mi
15 more trails
Yellow Trail
0.6 miWolf Hill Trail (White)
0.5 miMercer Trail (Blue)
0.5 miBlue
0.4 miGreen Dot Trail
0.4 miRed Trail
0.3 miHarris Farm Loop (Orange)
0.3 miWm. Steere Trail (Purple)
0.3 miOrange Dot Trail
0.3 miMemorial Loop (Yellow)
0.2 miLonnie's Loop
0.2 miLeo Bouchard Trail (White)
0.2 miAldrich Trail
0.2 miGreen
0.1 miOrange Path
0.1 miBiking & sports
0.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.3 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
19Baseball
11Tennis
8Pickleball
4Basketball
4Football
2Volleyball
2Soccer
2Softball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →10 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.
Allenville MillBuilding · listed 1972
About itSmith-Appleby HouseBuilding · listed 1974
About itDaniel Angell HouseBuilding · listed 1975
About itStephen Winsor HouseBuilding · listed 1975
About itWaterman-Winsor FarmBuilding · listed 1980
About itGeorgiaville Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1985
About itSaint Thomas Episcopal Church and RectoryBuilding · listed 1987
About itAngell-Ballou HouseBuilding · listed 2004
About itSmithfield Exchange BankBuilding · listed 2006
About itIra B. Sweet HouseBuilding · listed 2010
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Smithfield: 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) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.5 | 15.2 | 14.9 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 37 | 40 | 47 | 59 | 69 | 78 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 63 | 52 | 42 |
| Rain (in) | 4.1 | 3.6 | 4.8 | 4.5 | 3.6 | 4.1 | 3.6 | 4.0 | 4.1 | 5.1 | 4.3 | 4.9 |
July is the driest month (3.6 in) and the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 5.1 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Smithfield →
Next door
Smithfield and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Lincoln55 miGlocester49 miSmithfield36 miJohnston26 miNorth Smithfield9.9 miGreenville6.6 miHarmony1.8 miNorth Providence1.3 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smithfield | 11% | 1.4 | 18 | 70% | A− |
| Lincoln | 16% | 3.0 | 66 | 91% | A+ |
| Johnston | 6% | 1.1 | 6 | 35% | B− |
| North Smithfield | 8% | 0.4 | 28 | 65% | B+ |
| Glocester | 20% | 0.9 | 21 | 32% | B+ |
| Greenville | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| North Providence | 4% | 0.2 | 3 | 83% | B− |
| Harmony | — 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 Smithfield
Where can I hike in Smithfield?
The longest trail networks: Wolf Hill, 5.4 miles; Powder Mill Ledges Wildlife Refuge, 2.1 miles; Ken Weber Conservation Area, 1.3 miles; Esmond Park, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Smithfield is conserved land?
11% 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 Smithfield’s trails?
Wolf Hill and Powder Mill Ledges Wildlife Refuge don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Smithfield?
0.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.3 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Smithfield?
14,984 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Smithfield or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 409 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Smithfield have?
Ahead of 83% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #18 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 Smithfield 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 →