Milest Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
216 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Den Svenska Evangeliska Lutherska Christdala Forsamlingen · Photo: Elkman · CC BY-SA 3.0C−Outdoors
Outdoors in Forest Township
Few parks or trails are on the map in Forest Township
4% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 0.8 miles of mapped trail cross Forest Township. 8 acres are parks and preserves, 5.5 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 18% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
4%
826 acres · of 32.2 sq mi of land
Trails
0.8 mi
0.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
8 ac
5.5 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
4%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.4 mi
Lakes & rivers
5
1 boat launch
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Forest Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Forest Township is ahead of 18% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
C−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Forest Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land4% of the land · typical MN town 5% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (1 mi) · MN 0.5 · U.S. 0.4C−Park land5.5 acres of park per 1,000 residents (8 acres) · MN 24 · U.S. 13CParks 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 18%
LessMore
Water is 10% of Forest Township’s area (4 of 36 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 4%.
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Forest 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.
Circle Lake Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
158 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Paulson Marsh Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
63 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Lois Bean Illsley Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
11 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Milest Wildlife Management Area216 acres · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Circle Lake Wildlife Management Area158 acres · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsPaulson Marsh Wildlife Management Area63 acres · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsLois Bean Illsley Wildlife Management Area11 acres · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Circle Lake County Park8 acres · Rice County
DirectionsWho protects it
826 conserved acres
4% of Forest Township’s land. Water is left out: Forest Township has 32.2 square miles of land and 3.5 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Forest Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service361 ac
State fish & wildlife294 ac
State natural resources154 ac
Other state land131 ac
State Conservation Area · 294 acConservation Easement · 264 acResource Management Area · 227 acState Resource Management Area · 154 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 264 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rice County Waterfowl Production Area Resource Management Area | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 227 | Restricted |
| Milest State Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 216 | Restricted |
| Miscellaneous State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 154 | Open |
| Paulson Marsh State Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 63 | Restricted |
| L B Illsley State Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 11 | Restricted |
| Union Lake State Aquatic Management Area (Rice) State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 2 | Restricted |
| Circle Lake State Aquatic Management Area (Rice) State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 2 | Restricted |
Things to do
3 places to go in Forest Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Forest Township
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Boat launches in Forest Township
Circle Lake Public Water AccessIn Circle Lake County Park
DirectionsPicnic areas in Forest Township
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Trails & water
5 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.4 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.4 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Den Svenska Evangeliska Lutherska Christdala ForsamlingenBuilding · listed 1995
About itWhen to get out
The walking year in Forest 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 | 15.5 | 15.2 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.9 |
| High (°F) | 23 | 28 | 40 | 56 | 68 | 78 | 82 | 79 | 72 | 58 | 41 | 28 |
| Rain (in) | 0.9 | 1.0 | 1.8 | 3.2 | 4.4 | 5.4 | 4.5 | 4.6 | 3.6 | 2.6 | 1.7 | 1.2 |
January is the driest month (0.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 5.4 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Forest Township →
Next door
Forest Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Bridgewater Township10 miErin Township1.6 miWebster Township1.2 miForest Township0.8 miWells Township0.1 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forest Township | 4% | under 0.1 | 6 | 4% | C− |
| Erin Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Bridgewater Township | 2% | 0.3 | 1 | 21% | C− |
| Webster Township | 2% | under 0.1 | 21 | 8% | C |
| Wells Township | 2% | under 0.1 | 3 | 21% | D |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Forest Township
How much of Forest Township is conserved land?
4% 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 Forest Township’s trails?
Milest Wildlife Management Area and Circle Lake Wildlife Management Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Forest Township?
0.4 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.4 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Forest Township?
4,985 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Forest Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 164 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Forest Township have?
Ahead of 18% 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 Forest 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 →