Athens Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
188 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Edward Erickson Farmstead · Photo: Elkman · CC BY-SA 3.0DOutdoors
Outdoors in Athens Township
Few parks or trails are on the map in Athens Township
6% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 0.8 miles of mapped trail cross Athens Township. 15 acres are parks and preserves, 6.8 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 13% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
1%
225 acres · of 30.8 sq mi of land
Trails
0.8 mi
0.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
15 ac
6.8 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
6%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
3
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Athens Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Athens Township is ahead of 13% of U.S. towns. All four inputs are below most U.S. towns; park acres per resident come closest.
D
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Athens Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land1% of the land · typical MN town 5% · U.S. 4%CTrails0.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (1 mi) · MN 0.5 · U.S. 0.4C−Park land6.8 acres of park per 1,000 residents (15 acres) · MN 24 · U.S. 13C+Parks close to home6% of residents within a half mile of a park · MN 95% · U.S. 72%D
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 13%
LessMore
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Athens Township. OpenStreetMap is mapped by volunteers and coverage varies from town to town, so a town with unmapped parks scores low on them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from D to C−. 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
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
225 conserved acres
1% of Athens Township’s land. Who manages Athens Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife211 ac
Joint11 ac
Other state land3 ac
State Conservation Area · 211 acLocal Conservation Area · 11 acConservation Easement · 3 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 3 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Athens State Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 190 | Restricted |
| Bethel State Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 21 | Restricted |
| Cedar Creek Nha Local Conservation Area | Joint | 11 | Open |
Trails & water
1 named trail and 3 lakes & rivers
Named trails
297th Avenue Northeast0.3 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Edward Erickson FarmsteadBuilding · listed 1980
About itWhen to get out
The walking year in Athens Township
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) | 9.1 | 10.3 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 14.9 | 15.6 | 15.3 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.4 | 8.7 |
| High (°F) | 22 | 28 | 41 | 55 | 68 | 77 | 82 | 79 | 71 | 57 | 41 | 27 |
| Rain (in) | 0.7 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 2.8 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 4.5 | 4.1 | 3.4 | 2.8 | 1.6 | 1.1 |
January is the driest month (0.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.5 inches fall in July, the wettest month. The climate in Athens Township →
Next door
Athens Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
East Bethel12 miOxford Township5.5 miIsanti5.0 miSt. Francis3.3 miStanford Township1.3 miAthens Township0.8 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Athens Township | 1% | under 0.1 | 7 | 6% | D |
| Stanford Township | 2% | under 0.1 | 2 | 3% | D |
| St. Francis | 6% | 0.1 | 25 | 85% | B |
| Isanti | 5% | 1.0 | 25 | 92% | A− |
| Oxford Township | 2% | 0.2 | 224 | 8% | B− |
| East Bethel | 16% | 0.3 | 361 | 64% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Athens Township
How much of Athens Township is conserved land?
1% of its land, against a typical 5% for a Minnesota town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Athens Township’s trails?
Athens Wildlife Management Area doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Athens Township?
9,926 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Athens Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 15 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Athens Township have?
Ahead of 13% 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 Athens Township 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 →