Silver Lake State Park
Managed by Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation
35 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: User:Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Barnard
Barnard has 2,613 acres of parks, 2,158 for every 1,000 residents
24% of Barnard’s land is conserved, about 7,289 acres. 16% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 11 miles of mapped trail cross Barnard, 0.2 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 71% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
24%
7,289 acres · of 48.0 sq mi of land
Trails
11 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
2,613 ac
2,158 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
16%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
2,434 ft
The Lookout
Lakes & rivers
8
1 beach
What kind of outdoors town is Barnard?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Barnard have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Barnard is ahead of 71% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Barnard’s overall grade.
Conserved land24% of the land · typical VT town 14% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (11 mi) · VT 0.6 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land2,158 acres of park per 1,000 residents (2,613 acres) · VT 97 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home16% of residents within a half mile of a park · VT 38% · U.S. 72%C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 71%
LessMore
Vermont towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 14%; the U.S., 4%), so Barnard’s 24% is ahead of 85% of Vermont towns, while its trails per square mile lead 11% 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.
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 Silver Lake State Park, with 0.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Green Mountain National Forest
Managed by United States Forest Service
33 acres0.4 mi of trail
Appalachian Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
7,289 conserved acres
24% of Barnard’s land. Who manages Barnard’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits7,595 ac
National Park Service657 ac
U.S. Forest Service33 ac
Not recorded2,725 ac
Conservation Easement · 4,360 acAgricultural Easement · 2,941 acState Conservation Area · 2,493 acNational Scenic or Historic Trail · 657 acUnknown Easement · 293 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 3,929 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 42 of 108 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Les Newell Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 2,493 | Open |
| Appalachian National Scenic Trail National Scenic or Historic Trail | National Park Service | 657 | Open |
| Vermont Land Trust Private Conservation | Not recorded | 102 | Closed |
| Barnard Town Forest Local Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 81 | Unknown |
| Silver Lake State Park State Park | Not recorded | 35 | Open |
| Green Mountain National Forest National Forest | U.S. Forest Service | 33 | Open |
| Barnard Fen Natural Area Private Conservation | Not recorded | 7 | Open |
| White River Streambank State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 3 | Open |
| Barnard Central School Forest Local Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 3 | Unknown |
| Barnard Fen Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 2 | Closed |
Things to do
10 places to go in Barnard
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Barnard
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Barnard
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Peaks in Barnard
The Lookout2,434 ft elevation
DirectionsDelectable Mountain2,415 ft elevation
DirectionsMount Hunger2,408 ft elevation
DirectionsCowdrey Outlook2,044 ft elevation
DirectionsDelectable Mountain2,008 ft elevation
DirectionsHawks Hill1,555 ft elevation
DirectionsPicnic areas in Barnard
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Trails & water
2 named trails and 8 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Appalachian Trail1.0 mi
Town Highway 540.2 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
3Tennis
1Soccer
1Baseball
1Basketball
1Beach volleyball
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).
Aiken Stand ComplexBuilding · listed 1983
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Barnard: May, August and 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) | 9.3 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.4 | 15.1 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 8.9 |
| High (°F) | 28 | 31 | 39 | 52 | 65 | 73 | 78 | 76 | 69 | 56 | 44 | 33 |
| Rain (in) | 3.3 | 2.9 | 3.4 | 3.8 | 3.8 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.3 | 3.7 | 4.7 | 3.5 | 4.0 |
February is the driest month (2.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 78 °F). 4.7 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Barnard →
Next door
Barnard and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barnard | 24% | 0.2 | 2,158 | 16% | B+ |
| Royalton | 5% | 0.2 | 88 | 22% | B− |
| Pomfret | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Bridgewater | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Stockbridge | — 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 Barnard
Where can I hike in Barnard?
The longest trail networks: Silver Lake State Park, 0.4 miles; Green Mountain National Forest, 0.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Barnard is conserved land?
24% of its land, against a typical 14% for a Vermont town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Barnard’s trails?
Silver Lake State Park and Green Mountain National Forest don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Barnard?
61,240 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Barnard or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 3,273 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Barnard have?
Ahead of 71% 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 Barnard 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 →