North Pawlet Hills Natural Area
Nature preserve
1,407 acres6.7 mi of trail
Haystack mountain trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Doug Kerr · CC BY-SA 2.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Pawlet
Pawlet has 1,416 acres of parks, 957 for every 1,000 residents
22% of Pawlet’s land is conserved, about 6,019 acres. 34 miles of mapped trail cross Pawlet, 0.8 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: North Pawlet Hills Natural Area (6.7 mi), TNC (Future) (1.4 mi).
Ahead of 81% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
22%
6,019 acres · of 42.8 sq mi of land
Trails
34 mi
0.8 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,416 ac
957 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
12%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
2,093 ft
Bald Hill
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Pawlet?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Room to roam957 acres of park per 1,000 residents; the typical U.S. town has 13.Land that stays wild22% of the land is conserved; a typical Vermont town, 14%.A trail town0.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 75% of U.S. towns.History along the way3 places on the National Register.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Pawlet have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Pawlet is ahead of 81% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Pawlet’s overall grade.
Conserved land22% of the land · typical VT town 14% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (34 mi) · VT 0.6 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land957 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,416 acres) · VT 97 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home12% 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 81%
LessMore
Vermont towns conserve more land than most (a typical one, 14%; the U.S., 4%), so Pawlet’s 22% is ahead of 79% of Vermont towns, while its trails per square mile lead 54% 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 North Pawlet Hills Natural Area, with 6.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
TNC (Future)
Managed by THE NATURE CONSERVANCY
220 acres1.4 mi of trail
Dogs usually not allowed
No trailhead mapped yet
Friends of Haystack
Managed by FRIENDS OF HAYSTACK
66 acres0.4 mi of trail
Haystack mountain trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
6,019 conserved acres
22% of Pawlet’s land. Who manages Pawlet’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits9,168 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)2,057 ac
Other state land1,413 ac
State conservation609 ac
State fish & wildlife497 ac
Other or Unknown Federal Land142 ac
Joint114 ac
Conservation Easement · 6,736 acAgricultural Easement · 4,798 acPrivate Conservation · 1,450 acUnknown Easement · 1,053 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 4,579 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 76 of 270 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Pawlet Hills Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 810 | Closed |
| North Pawlet Hills Natural Area Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 603 | Closed |
| Vermont Land Trust Private Conservation | Not recorded | 36 | Closed |
Things to do
31 places to go in Pawlet
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Scenic views in Pawlet
6 scenic views without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Peaks in Pawlet
Bald Hill2,093 ft elevation · In North Pawlet Hills Natural Area
DirectionsMiddle Mountain1,949 ft elevation · In North Pawlet Hills Natural Area
DirectionsHaystack Mountain1,860 ft elevation · In Friends of Haystack
DirectionsThe Pattern1,841 ft elevation
DirectionsThe Fox Cobble1,627 ft elevation
DirectionsLong Hill1,591 ft elevation
DirectionsPine Top1,585 ft elevation
DirectionsTadmer Hill1,565 ft elevation
Directions14 more peaks
Scott Mountain1,545 ft elevation
DirectionsRock Hill1,506 ft elevation
DirectionsThe Cobble1,493 ft elevation
DirectionsOrcutt Hill1,440 ft elevation
DirectionsCleveland Hill1,371 ft elevation · In North Pawlet Hills Natural Area
DirectionsTown Hill1,335 ft elevation
DirectionsSpruce Top1,329 ft elevation
DirectionsHighgo Hill1,296 ft elevation
DirectionsSimonds Hill1,220 ft elevation · In North Pawlet Hills Natural Area
DirectionsCole Hill1,214 ft elevation
DirectionsBurt Hill1,165 ft elevation
DirectionsEdgerton Hill1,102 ft elevation
DirectionsSargent Hill1,099 ft elevation
DirectionsIndian Hill1,017 ft elevation
DirectionsPlus 3 peaks without a name on the map.
Trails & water
2 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 3.9 miUnpaved · 23.9 mi
Delaware & Hudson Rail Trail3.9 mi
Haystack mountain trail1.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
History along the way
History →3 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Pawlet: 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 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 30 | 33 | 41 | 55 | 67 | 76 | 80 | 78 | 71 | 59 | 46 | 35 |
| Rain (in) | 3.0 | 2.3 | 2.9 | 3.2 | 3.7 | 4.5 | 4.4 | 4.1 | 3.6 | 4.1 | 3.2 | 3.5 |
February is the driest month (2.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 80 °F). 4.5 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Pawlet →
Next door
Pawlet and its neighbors
Pawlet has the second most mapped trails of the 6 towns around it. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pawlet | 22% | 0.8 | 957 | 12% | A− |
| West Pawlet | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Wells | 6% | 0.5 | 63 | 26% | B |
| Rupert | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Danby | 26% | 0.5 | 89 | 18% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Pawlet
Where can I hike in Pawlet?
The longest trail networks: North Pawlet Hills Natural Area, 6.7 miles; TNC (Future), 1.4 miles; Friends of Haystack, 0.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Pawlet is conserved land?
22% 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 Pawlet’s trails?
North Pawlet Hills Natural Area and TNC (Future) don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Pawlet?
20,964 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Pawlet or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,434 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Pawlet have?
Ahead of 81% 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 Pawlet 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 →