Bemidji Slough Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
49 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: McGhiever · CC BY-SA 3.0DOutdoors
Outdoors in Bemidji Township
Bemidji Township has 6.1 miles of mapped trails, 0.3 for every square mile of land
3% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 14% of U.S. towns · #268 of 274 in Minnesota. What drives it
Conserved land
1%
110 acres · of 20.4 sq mi of land
Trails
6.1 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Near a park
3%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
2.0 mi
2.0 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
5
1 beach · 1 boat launch
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Bemidji Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Bemidji Township is ahead of 14% of U.S. towns, #268 of 274 in Minnesota. Trail miles hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
D
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Bemidji Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land1% of the land · typical MN town 5% · U.S. 4%CTrails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · MN 0.5 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land0.1 acres of park per 1,000 residents (0 acres) · MN 24 · U.S. 13DParks close to home3% 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 14%
LessMore
Minnesota towns of 2,500+ (274)Ahead of 2%
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Bemidji 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
110 conserved acres
1% of Bemidji Township’s land. Who manages Bemidji Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife67 ac
State natural resources43 ac
State Conservation Area · 67 acState Resource Management Area · 43 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bemidji Slough State Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 49 | Restricted |
| Miscellaneous State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 43 | Open |
| Preece Point State Aquatic Management Area (Beltrami) State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 18 | Restricted |
Things to do
5 places to go in Bemidji Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Bemidji Township
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Bemidji Township
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Bemidji Township
1 boat launch without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Bemidji Township
Silver Maple CampsiteState of Minnesota
DirectionsTrails & water
3 named trails and 5 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 0.9 miUnpaved · 3.5 mi
Diversity Trail1.1 mi
Van Buren Avenue Southeast0.7 mi
North Plantagenet Road Southeast0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
2.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.0 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
1Baseball
1Basketball
1Beach volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The walking year in Bemidji 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) | 8.8 | 10.2 | 11.8 | 13.6 | 15.1 | 15.9 | 15.6 | 14.2 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.2 | 8.5 |
| High (°F) | 17 | 23 | 37 | 51 | 65 | 74 | 79 | 77 | 68 | 53 | 36 | 23 |
| Rain (in) | 0.7 | 0.7 | 1.0 | 1.8 | 2.9 | 4.2 | 3.6 | 3.2 | 2.9 | 2.6 | 1.2 | 0.9 |
February is the driest month (0.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 79 °F). 4.2 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Bemidji Township →
Next door
Bemidji Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Bemidji18 miGrant Valley Township11 miBemidji Township6.1 miFrohn Township3.4 miHelga Township2.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bemidji Township | 1% | 0.3 | under 1 | 3% | D |
| Bemidji | 6% | 1.1 | 20 | 93% | A− |
| Grant Valley Township | 11% | 0.3 | 2 | 2% | C |
| Frohn Township | 2% | 0.1 | under 1 | under 1% | D |
| Helga Township | 4% | 0.1 | under 1 | under 1% | D |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Bemidji Township
How much of Bemidji 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 Bemidji Township’s trails?
Bemidji Slough Wildlife Management Area doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Bemidji Township?
2.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.0 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Bemidji Township?
33,462 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Bemidji Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 40 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Bemidji Township have?
Ahead of 14% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #268 of 274 in Minnesota. 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 Bemidji 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 →