Carver Highlands Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
126 acres1.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
C−Outdoors
Outdoors in Dahlgren Township
Few parks or trails are on the map in Dahlgren Township
The biggest trail networks: Carver Highlands Wildlife Management Area (1.2 mi). 4% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 2.0 miles of mapped trail cross Dahlgren Township, 0.1 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 23% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
1%
291 acres · of 34.2 sq mi of land
Trails
2.0 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
20 ac
19 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
4%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.9 mi
1.9 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
3
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Dahlgren Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Dahlgren Township is ahead of 23% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
C−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Dahlgren Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land1% of the land · typical MN town 5% · U.S. 4%CTrails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (2 mi) · MN 0.5 · U.S. 0.4C−Park land19 acres of park per 1,000 residents (20 acres) · MN 24 · U.S. 13BParks 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 23%
LessMore
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Dahlgren 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
The longest trail network is Carver Highlands WMA, with 1.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
291 conserved acres
1% of Dahlgren Township’s land. Who manages Dahlgren Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service176 ac
State natural resources121 ac
Other state land116 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)33 ac
National Wildlife Refuge · 176 acConservation Easement · 149 acState Conservation Area · 121 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 149 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 | 176 | Restricted |
| Carver Highlands Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 121 | Open |
Things to do
2 places to go in Dahlgren Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Dahlgren Township
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Trails & water
3 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
1.9 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.9 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
1Equestrian
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).
King Oscar's SettlementDistrict · listed 1980
About itWhen to get out
The walking year in Dahlgren 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) | 9.2 | 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 | 78 | 82 | 80 | 72 | 58 | 41 | 28 |
| Rain (in) | 0.8 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 3.0 | 4.3 | 5.0 | 4.1 | 4.3 | 3.3 | 2.5 | 1.6 | 1.1 |
January is the driest month (0.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 5.0 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Dahlgren Township →
Next door
Dahlgren Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Chaska20 miCarver8.0 miLaketown Township4.9 miSan Francisco Township2.6 miDahlgren Township2.0 miBenton Township0.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dahlgren Township | 1% | 0.1 | 19 | 4% | C− |
| Carver | 43% | 1.6 | 86 | 91% | A+ |
| Benton Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Laketown Township | under 1% | 0.2 | 22 | 45% | C+ |
| San Francisco Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Chaska | 4% | 1.1 | 31 | 94% | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Dahlgren Township
Where can I hike in Dahlgren Township?
The longest trail networks: Carver Highlands Wildlife Management Area, 1.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Dahlgren 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 Dahlgren Township’s trails?
Carver Highlands Wildlife Management Area doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Dahlgren Township?
1.9 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.9 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Dahlgren Township?
16,049 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Dahlgren Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 20 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Dahlgren Township have?
Ahead of 23% 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 Dahlgren 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 →