Pachaug State Forest is the largest state forest in Connecticut encompassing 24,000 acres in five towns, with backpack and horse camping facilities.

There are four popular hiking trails, maintained by the that run through Pachaug State Forest.

• The Pachaug Trail runs about 30 miles (48 km) in an east-west route that follows a horse-shoe curve north. It begins at the northern end of Pachaug Pond and ends at Green Fall Pond.
• The Nehantic Trail is a route just under 15 miles (24 km) that begins at Green Fall Pond near the Pachaug Trail trailhead and runs northwest to RT 201 near the Pachaug River.
• The Quinebaug Trail runs North-South for about 7 miles (11 km) from the junction of Breakneck Hill Road and the Nehantic-Quinebaug Trail Crossover to its northern terminus at Spaulding Road.
• The Narragansett Trail runs from the southwest to the northeast, starting from Lantern Hill in North Stonington. The Narragansett Trail leaves the State Forest at the Connecticut/Rhode Island boundary; it enters Yawgoog Scout Reservation in Rhode Island and later ends at Ashville Pond in the village of Canonchet in Hopkinton, Rhode Island.

The Rhododendron Sanctuary Trail is handicap (wheelchair) accessible and is located in the Pachaug State Forest's Herman Haupt Chapman Management Area. The sanctuary becomes spectacularly scenic when the Rhododendron are in bloom (June and July).

Other amenities: Picnicking