Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge
Nature preserve
714 acres2.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Bobak Ha'Eri · CC BY 3.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Carver
43% of Carver’s land is conserved: 1,360 acres
8.0 miles of mapped trail cross Carver, 1.6 per square mile of land. 537 acres are parks and preserves, 86 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge (2.7 mi), Carver Highlands Wildlife Management Area (0.7 mi).
Ahead of 98% of U.S. towns · #10 of 274 in Minnesota. What drives it
Conserved land
43%
1,360 acres · of 4.9 sq mi of land
Trails
8.0 mi
1.6 per sq mi of land
Park land
537 ac
86 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
91%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
15 mi
0.8 mi lanes · 14 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Carver?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Carver have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Carver is ahead of 98% of U.S. towns, #10 of 274 in Minnesota. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; conserved land ranks highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Carver’s overall grade.
Conserved land43% of the land · typical MN town 5% · U.S. 4%A+Trails1.6 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (8 mi) · MN 0.5 · U.S. 0.4APark land86 acres of park per 1,000 residents (537 acres) · MN 24 · U.S. 13AParks close to home91% of residents within a half mile of a park · MN 95% · U.S. 72%B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 98%
LessMore
Minnesota towns of 2,500+ (274)Ahead of 97%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be A+. 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
The longest trail network is Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge, with 2.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Carver Highlands Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
63 acres0.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 7 parks & preserves
Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge714 acres · 2.7 mi of trail
DirectionsCarver Highlands Wildlife Management Area63 acres · 0.7 mi of trail · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Community Park23 acres
DirectionsRiverside Park15 acres
DirectionsMinnesota Valley State Recreation Area - Gifford Lake Unit8 acres
DirectionsLion's Park7 acres
DirectionsHistoric Water Tower Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
1,360 conserved acres
43% of Carver’s land. Who manages Carver’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service2,424 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)313 ac
Town or city135 ac
State natural resources59 ac
National Wildlife Refuge · 2,424 acConservation Easement · 313 acLocal Park · 87 acState Conservation Area · 59 acLocal Recreation Area · 47 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge National Wildlife Refuge | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 2,424 | Restricted |
| Carver Highlands Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 59 | Open |
| Riverside Park Local Park | Town or city | 41 | Open |
| Bluff Park Local Park | Town or city | 21 | Open |
| Riverside Park Open Space Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 21 | Open |
| Carver Creek Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 20 | Open |
| Community Park Local Park | Town or city | 20 | Open |
| Lions Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Overlook Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
Things to do
7 places to go in Carver
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Carver
6 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Carver
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
2 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
15 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.8 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
14 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
6Baseball
5Basketball
2Tennis
2Pickleball
2Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Carver Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1980
About itWhen to get out
The walking year in Carver
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) | 9.2 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.8 | 15.6 | 15.3 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.8 |
| High (°F) | 23 | 28 | 41 | 56 | 69 | 79 | 83 | 80 | 73 | 58 | 41 | 28 |
| Rain (in) | 0.8 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 3.0 | 4.3 | 5.0 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 3.3 | 2.6 | 1.6 | 1.1 |
January is the driest month (0.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 5.0 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Carver →
Next door
Carver and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carver | 43% | 1.6 | 86 | 91% | A+ |
| Dahlgren Township | 1% | 0.1 | 19 | 4% | C− |
| Louisville Township | 15% | 1.5 | 855 | 2% | A− |
| Chaska | 4% | 1.1 | 31 | 94% | A |
| San Francisco Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Carver
Where can I hike in Carver?
The longest trail networks: Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge, 2.7 miles; Carver Highlands Wildlife Management Area, 0.7 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Carver is conserved land?
43% 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 Carver’s trails?
Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge and Carver Highlands Wildlife Management Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Carver?
15 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.8 of painted or protected lanes and 14 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Carver?
16,817 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Carver or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 537 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Carver have?
Ahead of 98% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #10 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 Carver 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 →