McDougall Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
228 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Warren, William, Two Rivers House Site and McDougall, Peter, Farmstead · Photo: McGhiever · CC BY-SA 4.0C−Outdoors
Outdoors in Bellevue Township
Bellevue Township has 7.2 miles of mapped trails, 0.2 for every square mile of land
4% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 3% of Bellevue Township’s land is conserved, about 767 acres.
Ahead of 15% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
767 acres · of 45.0 sq mi of land
Trails
7.2 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Near a park
4%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
2.1 mi
2.1 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
1 boat launch
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Bellevue Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Bellevue Township is ahead of 15% of U.S. towns. All four inputs are below most U.S. towns; conserved land comes closest.
C−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Bellevue Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical MN town 5% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (7 mi) · MN 0.5 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land0.1 acres of park per 1,000 residents (0 acres) · MN 24 · U.S. 13DParks close to home4% 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 15%
LessMore
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Bellevue 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.
Crane Meadows National Wildlife Refuge
Managed by United States Fish and Wildlife Service
132 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Crane Meadows Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
87 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Who protects it
767 conserved acres
3% of Bellevue Township’s land. Who manages Bellevue Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife573 ac
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service263 ac
Other state land63 ac
State Conservation Area · 573 acNational Wildlife Refuge · 263 acConservation Easement · 63 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 63 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| McDougall State Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 470 | Restricted |
| Crane Meadows National Wildlife Refuge National Wildlife Refuge | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 263 | Restricted |
| Crane Meadows State Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 87 | Restricted |
| McDougall State Aquatic Management Area (Morrison) State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 9 | Restricted |
| Mississippi River State Aquatic Management Area (Morrison) State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 4 | Restricted |
| Little Rock Creek State Aquatic Management Area (Benton/Morrison) State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 2 | Restricted |
Things to do
1 places to go in Bellevue Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Boat launches in Bellevue Township
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
2 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 4.4 miUnpaved · 4.6 mi
Soo Line Trail4.4 mi
County Highway 260.4 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
2.1 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.1 mi
off-road bike paths
Soo Line Trail - Southern RouteBike route
4.4 miHistory along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Warren, William, Two Rivers House Site and McDougall, Peter, FarmsteadBuilding · listed 1974
About itWhen to get out
September is the best month for walking in Bellevue 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) | 9.0 | 10.3 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 14.9 | 15.7 | 15.4 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.4 | 8.7 |
| High (°F) | 21 | 26 | 39 | 54 | 68 | 77 | 81 | 79 | 70 | 56 | 39 | 26 |
| Rain (in) | 0.7 | 0.8 | 1.4 | 2.4 | 3.5 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 3.7 | 2.9 | 2.7 | 1.3 | 0.9 |
January is the driest month (0.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.4 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Bellevue Township →
Next door
Bellevue Township and its neighbors
Bellevue Township has the most mapped trails of the 7 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Bellevue Township7.2 miLittle Falls Township3.3 miLangola Township3.1 miBuckman Township1.1 miSwan River Township1.0 miTwo Rivers Township1.0 miRoyalton0.5 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bellevue Township | 3% | 0.2 | under 1 | 4% | C− |
| Swan River Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Two Rivers Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Little Falls Township | 8% | 0.1 | 1 | 12% | C− |
| Langola Township | 2% | 0.1 | 10 | 4% | C− |
| Buckman Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Royalton | under 1% | 0.2 | 7 | 88% | C |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Bellevue Township
How much of Bellevue Township is conserved land?
3% 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 Bellevue Township’s trails?
McDougall Wildlife Management Area and Crane Meadows National Wildlife Refuge don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Bellevue Township?
2.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.1 of off-road paths. Named routes: Soo Line Trail - Southern Route.
Is there public land near Bellevue Township?
1,378 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Bellevue Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), almost none of it inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Bellevue Township have?
Ahead of 15% 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 Bellevue 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 →