Green Mountain National Forest
Managed by United States Forest Service
21,839 acres21.4 mi of trail
Appalachian Trail; Long TrailBranch Pond TrailBranch Pond Connector Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: John Phelan · CC BY-SA 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Sunderland
More than half of Sunderland’s land is conserved: 78%
78% of Sunderland’s land is conserved, about 22,566 acres. 128 acres are parks and preserves, 101 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: Green Mountain National Forest (21.4 mi), Lye Brook Wilderness (6.4 mi).
Ahead of 81% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
78%
22,566 acres · of 45.2 sq mi of land
Trails
32 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
128 ac
101 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
21%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
6
What kind of outdoors town is Sunderland?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Sunderland have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Sunderland is ahead of 81% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Sunderland’s overall grade.
Conserved land78% of the land · typical VT town 14% · U.S. 4%A+Trails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (32 mi) · VT 0.6 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land101 acres of park per 1,000 residents (128 acres) · VT 97 · U.S. 13AParks close to home21% 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 Sunderland’s 78% is ahead of 100% of Vermont towns, while its trails per square mile lead 52% 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 Green Mountain National Forest, with 21.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Lye Brook Wilderness
Managed by United States Forest Service
8,094 acres6.4 mi of trail
Lye Brook TrailBranch Pond Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
22,566 conserved acres
78% of Sunderland’s land. Who manages Sunderland’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
U.S. Forest Service21,843 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits472 ac
State fish & wildlife311 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)40 ac
Not recorded154 ac
National Forest · 21,843 acConservation Easement · 607 acAgricultural Easement · 216 acState Conservation Area · 127 acState Other or Unknown · 28 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 569 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 29 of 71 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Green Mountain National Forest National Forest | U.S. Forest Service | 21,843 | Open |
| Kesick Swamp Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 127 | Open |
| Battenkill Streambank State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 28 | Open |
Things to do
5 places to go in Sunderland
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Sunderland
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Scenic views in Sunderland
Chiselville Covered Bridge
DirectionsPlus 1 scenic view without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Sunderland
North Bourne PondIn Lye Brook Wilderness
DirectionsSouth Bourne PondIn Lye Brook Wilderness
DirectionsTrails & water
4 named trails and 6 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Horses · 3.7 miUnpaved · 19.6 mi
Branch Pond Trail4.9 mi
Appalachian Trail; Long Trail4.4 mi
Lye Brook Trail3.7 mi
Branch Pond Connector Trail0.4 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
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Sunderland: May and July 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) | 9.3 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.1 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 27 | 29 | 36 | 49 | 61 | 69 | 74 | 72 | 65 | 54 | 42 | 31 |
| Rain (in) | 4.0 | 3.5 | 4.1 | 4.4 | 4.6 | 5.6 | 5.1 | 4.9 | 4.7 | 5.6 | 4.5 | 4.8 |
February is the driest month (3.5 in) and July the warmest (highs of 74 °F). 5.6 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Sunderland →
Next door
Sunderland 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunderland | 78% | 0.7 | 101 | 21% | A− |
| Arlington | 25% | 1.6 | 59 | 24% | A− |
| Stratton | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Manchester | 33% | 1.3 | 362 | 43% | A |
| Winhall | 61% | 1.4 | 1,247 | 25% | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Sunderland
Where can I hike in Sunderland?
The longest trail networks: Green Mountain National Forest, 21.4 miles; Lye Brook Wilderness, 6.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Sunderland is conserved land?
78% 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 Sunderland’s trails?
Green Mountain National Forest and Lye Brook Wilderness don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Sunderland?
112,559 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Sunderland or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 13,107 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Sunderland 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 Sunderland 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 →