Photo: Mfwills · CC BY-SA 3.0Essex Junction has 14 miles of mapped trails, 3.0 for every square mile of land
19% of Essex Junction’s land is conserved, about 551 acres. The biggest trail networks: Maple Street Park (0.8 mi). 64 acres are parks and preserves, 5.9 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns · #31 of 71 in Vermont. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Essex Junction?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Essex Junction have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Essex Junction is ahead of 80% of U.S. towns, #31 of 71 in Vermont. Trail miles hold the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
Vermont towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 14%; the U.S., 4%), so Essex Junction’s 19% is ahead of 67% of Vermont towns, while its trails per square mile lead 97% of them.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Maple Street Park, with 0.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Stevens Park
551 conserved acres
19% of Essex Junction’s land. Who manages Essex Junction’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 409 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 34 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| State Tree Nursery State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 92 | Open |
| Maple Street Park & Pool Local Park | Town or city | 24 | Open |
| Essex Dog Park Local Park | Town or city | 11 | Open |
| Cascade Park Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Stevens Park Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Essex Dam Picnic Area Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Schillingford Crossing Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Pearl Street Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
19 places to go in Essex Junction
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Plus 11 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
2 scenic views without a name on the map.
1 picnic area without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Plus 1 community garden without a name on the map.
1 named trail and 1 lakes & rivers
10 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
The best walking months in Essex Junction: May 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) | 9.2 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.8 | 15.5 | 15.2 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.8 |
| High (°F) | 28 | 31 | 40 | 54 | 68 | 76 | 81 | 79 | 71 | 58 | 45 | 34 |
| Rain (in) | 2.4 | 2.0 | 2.5 | 3.3 | 3.8 | 4.5 | 4.2 | 4.1 | 3.8 | 4.1 | 3.0 | 2.9 |
February is the driest month (2.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.5 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Essex Junction →
Essex Junction 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essex Junction | 19% | 3.0 | 6 | 73% | A− |
| Williston | 14% | 2.0 | 40 | 63% | A |
| Essex | 7% | 2.1 | 32 | 72% | A |
| South Burlington | 8% | 2.5 | 22 | 85% | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Essex Junction
Where can I hike in Essex Junction?
The longest trail networks: Maple Street Park, 0.8 miles; Stevens Park, 0.3 miles; Cascade Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Essex Junction is conserved land?
19% 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 Essex Junction’s trails?
Maple Street Park and Stevens Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Essex Junction?
10 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.6 of painted or protected lanes and 7.6 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Essex Junction?
9,206 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Essex Junction or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 85 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Essex Junction have?
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #31 of 71 in Vermont. 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 Essex Junction neighbors.
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 →