Carlos Avery Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
10,363 acres9.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: 123dieinafire · Public domainBOutdoors
Outdoors in Columbus
Columbus has 584 acres of parks, 137 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Carlos Avery Wildlife Management Area (9.9 mi), Coon Lake Regional Park (0.8 mi). 23% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 6% of Columbus’ land is conserved, about 1,595 acres.
Ahead of 59% of U.S. towns · #193 of 274 in Minnesota. What drives it
Conserved land
6%
1,595 acres · of 44.8 sq mi of land
Trails
13 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
584 ac
137 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
23%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.3 mi
1.3 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
9
1 beach · 1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Columbus?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Columbus have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Columbus is ahead of 59% of U.S. towns, #193 of 274 in Minnesota. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Columbus’ overall grade.
Conserved land6% of the land · typical MN town 5% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (13 mi) · MN 0.5 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land137 acres of park per 1,000 residents (584 acres) · MN 24 · U.S. 13AParks close to home23% of residents within a half mile of a park · MN 95% · U.S. 72%C−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 59%
LessMore
Minnesota towns of 2,500+ (274)Ahead of 30%
Water is 6% of Columbus’ area (3 of 48 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 5%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to B+. 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 Carlos Avery WMA, with 9.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Coon Lake Regional Park
Managed by Anoka County Parks
107 acres0.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Rice Creek Chain of Lakes Park
Nature preserve
563 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 8 parks & preserves
Carlos Avery Wildlife Management Area10,363 acres · 9.9 mi of trail · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsCoon Lake Regional Park107 acres · 0.8 mi of trail · Anoka County Parks
DirectionsColumbus City Park32 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsRice Creek Chain of Lakes Park563 acres
Houle WMA105 acres
Houle Wildlife Management Area79 acres · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsLamprey Pass Wildlife Management Area1 acres · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Hidden Park1 acres
Who protects it
1,595 conserved acres
6% of Columbus’ land. Water is left out: Columbus has 44.8 square miles of land and 2.8 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Columbus’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife1,035 ac
County368 ac
State natural resources159 ac
Town or city35 ac
State Conservation Area · 1,035 acLocal Conservation Area · 256 acState Resource Management Area · 159 acLocal Park · 147 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lamprey Pass State Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 1,035 | Restricted |
| Columbus Lake Conservation Area Local Conservation Area | County | 256 | Open |
| Miscellaneous State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 159 | Open |
| Coon Lake County Park Local Park | County | 112 | Open |
| Columbus City Park Local Park | Town or city | 29 | Open |
| Howard Lake Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Hidden Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Fireside Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
5 places to go in Columbus
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Columbus
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Columbus
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Columbus
1 dog park without a name on the map.
Boat launches in Columbus
1 boat launch without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 9 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 8.4 mi
Lamprey Pass WMA East Path0.8 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
1.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.3 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
9Soccer
8Baseball
2Pickleball
2Tennis
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).
Avery, Carlos, Game FarmDistrict · listed 1991
About itWhen to get out
The walking year in Columbus
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 | 13.4 | 14.9 | 15.6 | 15.3 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.9 | 9.4 | 8.8 |
| High (°F) | 22 | 28 | 41 | 56 | 68 | 78 | 82 | 80 | 72 | 57 | 41 | 28 |
| Rain (in) | 0.8 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 2.9 | 4.2 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 3.4 | 2.9 | 1.7 | 1.1 |
January is the driest month (0.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.6 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Columbus →
Next door
Columbus and its neighbors
Columbus has the second most mapped trails of the 7 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Lino Lakes18 miColumbus13 miEast Bethel12 miForest Lake6.6 miLinwood Township6.6 miHam Lake6.0 miWyoming0.9 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbus | 6% | 0.3 | 137 | 23% | B |
| East Bethel | 16% | 0.3 | 361 | 64% | A− |
| Lino Lakes | 2% | 0.6 | 15 | 89% | B |
| Forest Lake | 7% | 0.2 | 26 | 83% | B+ |
| Linwood Township | 6% | 0.2 | 287 | 40% | B |
| Wyoming | 1% | under 0.1 | 15 | 71% | C |
| Ham Lake | 1% | 0.2 | 21 | 61% | C+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Columbus
Where can I hike in Columbus?
The longest trail networks: Carlos Avery Wildlife Management Area, 9.9 miles; Coon Lake Regional Park, 0.8 miles; Columbus City Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Columbus is conserved land?
6% 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 Columbus’ trails?
Carlos Avery Wildlife Management Area and Coon Lake Regional Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Columbus?
1.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.3 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Columbus?
18,832 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Columbus or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 743 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Columbus have?
Ahead of 59% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #193 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 Columbus 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 →