1
Institute Woods
Nature preserve
289 acres5.5 mi of trail
Pipeline TrailMiddle TrailFar TrailFounders' WalkRiver's Edge Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Outdoors · Princeton
Princeton, NJ parks, trails & bike paths
About 20% of Princeton is conserved land, roughly 2,343 acres. There are about 48 miles of mapped trails, and the biggest networks are in Institute Woods (5.5 mi), Herrontown Woods (4.5 mi), and Woodfield Reservation (2.7 mi).
Conserved land, trails, parks and bike routes in Princeton, measured from OpenStreetMap and USGS data.
At a glance
Princeton outdoors
Conserved land
20%
2,343 of 11,717 acres
Trails
48 mi
2.6 mi per sq mi · 33 on conserved land
Parks & preserves
28
76 conserved acres per 1,000 residents
Bike routes
31.2 mi
0.6 mi lanes · 18.8 mi off-road paths
Conserved land is a share of the whole town area. Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number or a place below to zoom in© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Parks & preserves with trails
Ranked by mapped trail miles. Directions go to the nearest marked trailhead or public parking.
2
Herrontown Woods
Nature preserve
142 acres4.5 mi of trail
RedYellowWhiteBlueGreen White
Dog rules not recorded
DirectionsTo Herrontown Woods Parking
3
Woodfield Reservation
Nature preserve
134 acres2.7 mi of trail
Yellow / Great Road-Stewart TrailBlur / Scout LoopWhite / South TrailRed / Pond View SpurGreen / Drake's Corner Spur
Dog rules not recorded
DirectionsTo the parking lot
4
Billy Johnson Mountain Lakes Nature Preserve
Nature preserve
76 acres2.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
DirectionsTo the parking lot
5
Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park
Managed by New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry
152 acres2.1 mi of trail
Delaware & Raritan Canal Towpath
Dogs on leashMapped in OpenStreetMap
6
Autumn Hill Reservation
Nature preserve
76 acres2 mi of trail
Unmarked
Dog rules not recorded
DirectionsTo the parking lot
7
Community Park North
Nature preserve
70 acres1.3 mi of trail
Yellow trail
Dog rules not recorded
DirectionsTo the parking lot
8
Public Open Space
Nature preserve
59 acres1.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
DirectionsTo the parking lot
All 28 parks & preserves
Showing 1–10 of 28 parks & preserves
Institute Woods289 acres · 5.5 mi of trail
Herrontown Woods142 acres · 4.5 mi of trail
Woodfield Reservation134 acres · 2.7 mi of trail
Billy Johnson Mountain Lakes Nature Preserve76 acres · 2.5 mi of trail
Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park152 acres · 2.1 mi of trail · New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry
Autumn Hill Reservation76 acres · 2 mi of trail
Community Park North70 acres · 1.3 mi of trail
Public Open Space59 acres · 1.3 mi of trail
John Witherspoon Woods41 acres · 1.2 mi of trail
Greenway Meadows49 acres · 1.1 mi of trail
Things to do
Beaches, playgrounds, falls & more
Pick a kind of place for the list, directions, or pins on the map above.
Playgrounds in Princeton
Showing 1–10 of 22 playgrounds
Maggie's PlaygroundIn Quarry Park
Marquard Park
Unnamed playground
Unnamed playground
Unnamed playground
Unnamed playground
Unnamed playground
Unnamed playground
Unnamed playground
Unnamed playground
Trails
Named trails
Open to bikes 3.7 miHorses 2.2 miUnpaved 14.7 mi
Showing 1–10 of 25 trails
- Delaware & Raritan Canal Towpath2.2 mi
- Red1.3 mi
- Stony Brook Trails1.3 mi
- Pipeline Trail1.1 mi
- Ettl Farm Trail1.1 mi
- All Saints Trail0.9 mi
- Yellow / Great Road-Stewart Trail0.9 mi
- Yellow0.7 mi
- Middle Trail0.5 mi
- Far Trail0.5 mi
Water
Lakes & rivers
Tap a name for directions.
Who protects the land
2,343 conserved acres
Who manages it, from PAD-US. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn't always mean open to visitors. 409 acres are conservation easements, which are usually private land. Public access isn't recorded for 3 of 93 parcels. The places listed above are parks and preserves people visit.
Biking & sports
Bike routes, courts & fields
- Painted or protected bike lanes0.6 mi
- Off-road bike paths18.8 mi
- Shoulders & shared lanes11.8 mi
- Delaware & Raritan Canal Towpath (bike route)2.2 mi
- 9/11 National Memorial Trail (New Jersey thru route) (bike route)2.2 mi
- East Coast Greenway (NJ South) (bike route)2.2 mi
Courts & fields
- Tennis117
- Basketball25
- Baseball25
- Soccer23
- Golf19
- Football6
- Beach volleyball3
Counts include school and college facilities, which aren't always open to the public.
Public lands
The biggest protected places in Princeton
From USGS PAD-US: who manages each one and whether visitors are welcome.
Agricultural Easement 1,045 acLocal Conservation Area 787 acLocal Park 539 acOther Easement 315 acState Park 223 ac
Showing 1–10 of 15 places
| Place | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Institute WoodsPrivate Agricultural | Land trusts & nonprofits | 262 | Closed |
| Woodfield ReservationLocal Conservation Area | Town or city | 261 | Open |
| Stony BrookLocal Conservation Area | Town or city | 150 | Open |
| Delaware and Raritan Canal State ParkState Park | Not recorded | 143 | Open |
| Herrontown WoodsLocal Resource Management Area | County | 140 | Open |
| Princeton Battlefield State ParkState Park | State natural resources | 80 | Open |
| Autumn Hill ReserveLocal Conservation Area | Town or city | 75 | Open |
| Central Stony Brook GreenwayPrivate Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 73 | Closed |
| Mountain LakesLocal Park | Town or city | 69 | Open |
| Van Dyke WightLocal Park | Not recorded | 68 | Open |
History
Historic places to visit
Clarke HouseIn Princeton Battlefield State Park · Building
Heritage Tour - 19Plaque
Iconic ColonadeIn Princeton Battlefield State Park · War memorial
Princeton Battle MonumentMemorial
Veblen HouseIn Herrontown Woods · Building
Friends Burial GroundCemetery
Princeton CemeteryCemetery
Princeton CemeteryCemetery
Saint Paul's CemeteryCemetery
Nearby
Princeton and its neighbors
Towns whose outdoors data has been built so far.
| Town | Conserved | Trails | Parks & preserves |
|---|---|---|---|
| Princeton | 20% | 47.7 mi | 28 |
| Montgomery | 26.6% | 27.3 mi | 13 |
| West Windsor | 27.4% | 39.6 mi | 8 |
| Lawrence | 21.8% | 27.9 mi | 17 |
| Franklin | 25.9% | 58.2 mi | 18 |
| Plainsboro | 27.6% | 8.6 mi | 4 |
| Hopewell | 34.4% | 96.2 mi | 20 |
Trail talk
Conditions & tips from neighbors
No recent posts about Princeton's trails yet. Muddy, icy, a bridge out, where to park: a quick post helps the next person.
Sources: trails, parks, preserves, courts and bike lanes © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), map data as of 2026-09-28. Conserved land: USGS Gap Analysis Project, Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US). Measured against the Census town boundary.
How we measure
"Trails" are OpenStreetMap paths, bridleways, public tracks and unpaved footways, plus footways inside a park or preserve or on a named trail route. Sidewalks are left out. Areas are counted on a 20-meter grid, so overlapping parcels count once. "Conserved" includes conservation easements, which protect land from development but are usually private property. Trailheads are the nearest marked trailhead, public parking lot or information board within about 150 meters of a preserve. Dog rules come from OpenStreetMap when someone has tagged them; otherwise we show what's typical for the land manager, or say the rules aren't recorded.