Anson B. Nixon Park
110 acres stretching from Kennett Square Borough into Kennett Township, just off State Street, with two ponds, three miles of walking trails, a 250-year-old beech grove, and disc golf. Open sunrise to sunset, every day.
Trails in the burbs
Every trails spot we vouch for, across every town we cover. Cross a town line for the good ones. That's the whole point.
The picks
- Anson B. Nixon Park
- Aquetong Spring Park
- Battle of the Clouds Park
- Black Rock Sanctuary
- Bowman's Hill Wildflower Preserve
- Briar Bush Nature Center
- Cedar Hill Road Park
- Central Park & Kids' Castle
- Chandler Mill Nature Preserve
- ChesLen Preserve
- Chester Valley Trail (Exton Trailhead)
- Cholet Historic Farm & Pond
- Clark Nature Center
- Core Creek Park
- Cross County Trail
- Cynwyd Heritage Trail
- Deep Meadow Park
- Dowlin Forge Park
- Evansburg State Park
- Exton Park
- Fischer's Park
- Five Mile Woods Nature Preserve
- Fonthill Park
- Four Mills Nature Reserve
- Franconia Community Park
- Green Ribbon Trail
- Green Ribbon Trail (Parkside Place Trailhead)
- Gwynedd Preserve
- Harmony Hill Nature Area
- The Harriton Preserve
- Haverford College Arboretum
- Heckler Plains Farmstead
- Hibernia County Park
- Honey Hollow Nature Center
- Jarrett Nature Center
- Lake Towhee Park
- Lock 60 at the Schuylkill Canal Park
- Lorimer Park
- Lower Perkiomen Valley Park
- Macclesfield Park
- Marshall Mill House Preserve
- Natural Lands' Stroud Preserve
- Oakbourne Park & Arboretum
- Palmer Park
- Peace Valley Park
- Power Line Trail
- Roberts Ridge Park
- Rolling Hill Park
- Sadsbury Woods Preserve
- Samuel Carpenter Park
- Schuylkill River Trail
- Schuylkill River Trail - Port Providence Trailhead
- Spring Mill Trailhead
- Stateline Woods Preserve
- Stony Creek Park
- Stroud Preserve
- Struble Trail
- Tyler State Park
- Willisbrook Preserve
- Wissahickon Park
Aquetong Spring Park
Spring water cascades over a waterfall and meanders downstream through 48 township acres off Route 202 at Lower Mountain Road, acquired by Solebury Township in 2009. The build-out stays light: trails, benches, overlooks, and directional signs.
Battle of the Clouds Park
East Whiteland township park named for the Battle of the Clouds, marked on site by a state historical marker. Sports fields plus direct access onto the Chester Valley Trail.
Black Rock Sanctuary
Wetland preserve just north of town where the Schuylkill's dredge basins turned into birding habitat. Boardwalk loop, herons, zero admission. A 119-acre Chester County sanctuary of wetlands, woodlands, and meadows on Route 113, open daily from 8 a.m. to sunset. The sky above it is a migration flyway for East Coast birds, so walk the 0.8-mile ADA-accessible interpretive trail with binoculars.
Bowman's Hill Wildflower Preserve
More than 700 native plant species grow along the trails of the Pidcock Creek valley, a few minutes south of town on River Road. The on-site nursery sells over 200 native species, many grown from locally sourced seed, so the garden can follow you home.
Briar Bush Nature Center
A 12.5-acre preserve in the middle of suburban Abington with about a mile of trails, a pond, and the free Dede Long Nature Museum of live animals and a touch table. The Griscom Bird Observatory is a climate-controlled cabin where you watch the feeder traffic through big windows; kids get a Nature Playscape of balancing logs, stumps, and boulders.
Cedar Hill Road Park
87 acres where the real draw is the nature trail with bird blinds and an outdoor classroom, not the playground. A limestone walking trail and grass volleyball courts fill out the rest.
Central Park & Kids' Castle
Kids' Castle, the town's multi-level castle playground, sits at the center of Doylestown Township's 155.5-acre flagship park. Three-plus miles of trail link out to the 202 Parkway Trail, with an amphitheater, a sensory trail, and pickleball courts besides.
Chandler Mill Nature Preserve
45 acres at the meeting of the Red Clay and Bucktoe creeks, part of an Audubon-designated Important Bird Area and a 30-year Cornell Lab of Ornithology bird study. The 47-foot Chandler Mill Bridge, on the National Register of Historic Places, reopened to walkers and bikes in 2020; no dogs on the trails.
ChesLen Preserve
1,282 acres of meadow, woodland, and Brandywine country, the largest privately owned nature preserve open to the public in Chester County. The Star Gazers' Stone from the 1763 Mason-Dixon survey sits on the property, Ollie Owl's NaturePlayGround covers the kids, and gates are open Friday through Wednesday, dawn to dusk.
Chester Valley Trail (Exton Trailhead)
A paved, ADA-accessible rail trail running 13.5 miles in Chester County plus 5.1 more in Montgomery, connecting east to the Schuylkill River Trail. The Exton Park trailhead at Church Farm Lane puts you near the western end, with the first mile of a five-mile Downingtown extension under construction.
Cholet Historic Farm & Pond
A township historic farm on Creamery Road with a walking trail and a flower field.
Clark Nature Center
A 50.6-acre township preserve on Route 413 with a wilderness trail that loops the whole property along two seasonal streams. Turkey and deer turn up regularly, and a fenced community herb garden behind the garage is open for residents to tend and harvest.
Core Creek Park
Bucks County's 1,200-acre park about a ten-minute drive south of town, open dawn to dusk. Rowboats, kayaks, and pedalboats rent on the water, and there's an off-leash dog park plus 11 rentable pavilions.
Cross County Trail
An offshoot of the Schuylkill River Trail that climbs north from Conshohocken toward Plymouth Meeting. A quieter, wooded alternative when the main river path fills up on weekends.
Cynwyd Heritage Trail
A 2-mile multi-use trail running from Cynwyd Station to the Manayunk Viaduct along an unused stretch of SEPTA's R-6 tracks, with separate paved and soft-surface paths. Three trailheads, and leashed dogs are welcome (8-foot leash max).
Deep Meadow Park
Horsham's baseball headquarters: 11 fields across 55 acres, home turf for Horsham Little League, ringed by a one-mile limestone walking loop. A playground, a batting cage, and a 10-station exercise circuit cover everyone not in cleats.
Dowlin Forge Park
Uwchlan Township park with parking and picnic tables near the upper end of the Struble Trail, open dawn to dusk. The 2-mile Uwchlan Trail branches off just beyond Dowlin Forge Road, and the special-regulation trout water runs between Dowlin Forge and Dorlan Mill Roads.
Evansburg State Park
A 3,349-acre state park cut through by Skippack Creek, with hiking and horseback trails, picnic groves, trout fishing, and an 18-hole golf course. Mill buildings and houses from the 1700s and 1800s still dot the old Mennonite farmland.
Exton Park
A 701-acre park bought jointly by Chester County and West Whiteland Township, with 19.1 developed acres holding two playgrounds, a sand volleyball court, picnic tables, and a half-mile walking trail with a story-walk funded by the Chester County Library. It is also the only county-owned trailhead on the Chester Valley Trail, so one parking spot buys you miles of riding.
Fischer's Park
Towamencin's largest park at 77 acres, with more than 3 miles of walking trails, a fishing pier on the Towamencin Creek pond, and the Arneth Entertainment Center for performances. Five covered pavilions and two playgrounds handle the picnic logistics.
Five Mile Woods Nature Preserve
A 300-acre woodland Lower Makefield Township bought back in 1979, sitting on the Fall Line where the Atlantic Coastal Plain meets the Piedmont. A 675-foot ADA boardwalk takes wheels and strollers; the rest of the trails want sturdy shoes.
Fonthill Park
The wooded park wrapped around Henry Mercer's concrete castle: trails, old trees, and a dog run. The castle charges admission; the woods never do.
Four Mills Nature Reserve
A 56-acre preserve along the Wissahickon Creek and the headquarters of Wissahickon Trails, with two half-mile loop trails of hard-packed dirt. The 1891 Four Mills Barn on the grounds was designed by Philadelphia architect Horace Trumbauer for an estate called Abendruh.
Franconia Community Park
Nearly 50 acres next to the Franconia Township building, with 2 miles of walking trails, a playground rebuilt in 2022 with equipment accessible to all, a roller hockey rink, and ice skating when winter cooperates. Entrances sit off both Allentown and Godshall Roads.
Green Ribbon Trail
A 10.5-mile creekside trail running from Skippack Pike in Fort Washington to Parkside Place in Upper Gwynedd, mostly hard-packed dirt with wooden bridges and boardwalks. Pick it up in Ambler at Four Mills Nature Reserve, or ride SEPTA's Lansdale-Doylestown line and walk on from the Ambler station.
Green Ribbon Trail (Parkside Place Trailhead)
A 10.5-mile foot trail along the Wissahickon Creek from Parkside Place in Upper Gwynedd, just outside Lansdale, down to Fort Washington. Expect six stepping-stone creek crossings, the 1745 Evans-Mumbower gristmill near mile 8, and no bikes.
Gwynedd Preserve
A 279-acre Natural Lands preserve of native wildflower meadow and woodland on Swedesford Road, with unpaved trails, leashed dogs welcome, and Northern Harriers on the birding list. Free, dawn to dusk, closed Tuesdays.
Harmony Hill Nature Area
East Bradford's largest park: 240 acres with 7 miles of natural-surface trails open to hikers and mountain bikers, a few minutes from the borough. The second lot at 1183 Harmony Hill Road sits just before Gibson's covered bridge and connects to the paved East Branch Brandywine Trail.
The Harriton Preserve
Township open space off Harriton Road, the fields and woodland next to the Harriton House farmstead. Walking trails rather than a formal park.
Haverford College Arboretum
The whole Haverford College campus doubles as an arboretum: labeled trees, open lawns and a pond, all of it off Lancaster Avenue and open to walk.
Heckler Plains Farmstead
A historic Pennsylvania German farmstead at the center of a 36-acre Lower Salford park, ringed by a nature trail, bike path, playground, ball fields, and a pavilion. The old house and barn are the draw; the park around them does the everyday work.
Hibernia County Park
More than 900 acres of woods, meadows, and trails wrapped around a 19th-century ironmaster's mansion just north of town. Chambers Lake handles the boating and fishing, mansion tours run many Sunday afternoons, and the campground opens weekends April through mid-November.
Honey Hollow Nature Center
Four miles of trails cross the Honey Hollow watershed, a National Historic Landmark since 1969 for proving neighboring farms could manage soil and water together. The Audubon chapter behind it shortened its name from Bucks County Audubon Society in 2026; the trails stay open dawn to dusk.
Jarrett Nature Center
A half-mile loop past pond, woods, meadow, and wetland, with interpretive signs illustrated by Hatboro-Horsham student artists. Trails are open dawn to dusk; leave the dog at home, per the center's own rule.
Lake Towhee Park
A 549-acre Bucks County park around a lake in Applebachsville, about ten minutes northeast of the borough. Fishing, boating, hiking, camping, and a playground, open dawn to dusk.
Lock 60 at the Schuylkill Canal Park
A fully restored, working 1820s lock on the old Schuylkill Canal, just across the river in Mont Clare, with the original locktender's house still standing. Between guided tours run with the Schuylkill Canal Association, the park earns its keep with fishing, a boat launch, birding trails, and a five-mile water loop trail.
Lorimer Park
230 acres of woods and meadows along Pennypack Creek, bequeathed by Saturday Evening Post editor George Horace Lorimer and stocked with trout by the PA Fish & Boat Commission. Council Rock, a boulder overlooking the creek, is a favorite photo spot, and the 6.2-mile crushed-stone Pennypack Trail runs from Rockledge north to County Line Road for level hiking and biking.
Lower Perkiomen Valley Park
A 107-acre county park in Oaks that serves as a trailhead for both the Perkiomen Trail and the Schuylkill River Trail. Pavilions, a playground, and creek-side fishing on the Perkiomen fill out the rest.
Macclesfield Park
Ninety-two acres on the Delaware in Lower Makefield, anchored by the popular paved bike path — 4,222 family-friendly feet made for training wheels and strollers. Picnic areas, walking trails, and playgrounds fill in the rest.
Marshall Mill House Preserve
40 acres of class 1 woodland with intact forest interior and a 1.5-mile loop trail that earns its incline and steps. Open dawn to dusk, leashed dogs allowed.
Natural Lands' Stroud Preserve
571 free acres of hiking trails along the East Branch of the Brandywine, where Stroud Water Research Center scientists run stream experiments that last decades. Open dawn to dusk every day but Wednesday.
Oakbourne Park & Arboretum
A late-1800s Queen Anne mansion and its water tower anchor this Westtown Township park, with 1.2 miles of trails, a pond, playground, and pavilion around them. Grounds are open sunrise to sunset; the mansion itself rents out for weddings.
Palmer Park
Skippack Township park where a 2-mile walking trail loops past tennis, pickleball, bocce, ballfields, and a playground. The pavilion has restrooms, and there's a Little Free Library on site.
Peace Valley Park
1,500 county acres a few minutes north of the borough, with seasonal rentals of rowboats, canoes, pedal boats, and kayaks. A nature center, fishing, playgrounds, and five picnic pavilions fill out the park.
Power Line Trail
5.3 miles of 12-foot-wide asphalt running from Blair Mill Road to Biwood Road along a utility right-of-way. Flat and paved the whole way, which makes it the township's default bike-and-evening-walk route.
Roberts Ridge Park
A 22.8-acre township park whose main event is a large inclusive playground built for kids ages 2 to 12. The Newtown Trail crosses the property, so you can walk from the swings clear into Tyler State Park.
Rolling Hill Park
A 103-acre township nature park in Gladwyne with hiking and equestrian trails. It is the park Narberth people drive to when the borough starts to feel small.
Sadsbury Woods Preserve
511 acres within the largest remaining unfragmented woodlands in Chester County, at the headwaters of Buck Run. Spring means ephemeral wildflowers; summer means Scarlet Tanagers and Ovenbirds, deep-forest songbirds that need woods this big.
Samuel Carpenter Park
The courts end of Horsham's park system — three tennis, three basketball, and two sand volleyball courts on 31 acres along Horsham Road. The 3/4-mile limestone loop is there for laps between sets.
Schuylkill River Trail
The paved riverside path runs right through Conshohocken, with the SEPTA station doubling as the trailhead. Head south toward Manayunk and Philadelphia or north toward Valley Forge, all flat and car-free.
Schuylkill River Trail - Port Providence Trailhead
A Schuylkill River Trail trailhead with its own parking lot on Port Providence Road, minutes from downtown. Park, unload the bike, and pick a direction.
Spring Mill Trailhead
The Spring Mill access point to the Schuylkill River Trail, tucked in the SEPTA lot off Conshohocken Road. A lower-key place to hop on the trail than the downtown trailhead.
Stateline Woods Preserve
86 acres and four miles of trails through fields and woodlands, home to a 300-year-old oak, saved from a housing development when neighbors and the Land Conservancy bought the land outright. Open dawn to dusk with leashed dogs welcome; mountain bikes and horses (ride-in only) too.
Stony Creek Park
21.5 acres with a 1-acre pond, a walking labyrinth, a 0.6-mile nature trail, and a tot lot for the small people. A gazebo, an overlook, and 55 parking spots round it out.
Stroud Preserve
571 acres of grasslands, working farmland, and woods along the East Branch of the Brandywine, free and open dawn to dusk every day but Wednesday. The 19th-century farmhouse and barn are on the National Register; the birds are the real draw.
Struble Trail
A paved 2.6 miles along the East Branch of the Brandywine, from Norwood Road at Kardon Park up to Dorlan Mill Road, named for county commissioner Robert Struble. The stretch between Dorlan Mill and Dowlin Forge Roads is a special-regulation artificial-lure trout area, so expect fly rods in the shallows.
Tyler State Park
1,711 acres of former farmland and woods where Neshaminy Creek winds through and divides the park into sections, starting right at the edge of town. Biking, bridle paths, boating, and disc golf, with gates open 8 a.m. to sunset every day of the year.
Willisbrook Preserve
126 acres of Natural Lands woods and meadow, including 20-plus acres of the rare Sugartown Serpentine Barrens, a state-designated Wild Plant Sanctuary since 2010. Free, open dawn to dusk, dogs on leash with no exceptions.
Wissahickon Park
A 17.8-acre spread of borough green at the east end of Main Street, most of it open space threaded by a foot path. The simple kind of park — which is exactly the point.
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