Photo: Tim Kiser (w:User:Malepheasant) · CC BY-SA 2.596% of residents live within a half mile of a park in Granite Falls
89 acres are parks and preserves, 33 per 1,000 residents. 4% of Granite Falls’ land is conserved, about 86 acres. 1.0 miles of mapped trail cross Granite Falls, 0.3 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 73% of U.S. towns · #139 of 274 in Minnesota. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Granite Falls?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Granite Falls have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Granite Falls is ahead of 73% of U.S. towns, #139 of 274 in Minnesota. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
Water is 6% of Granite Falls’ area (0 of 4 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 4%.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
86 conserved acres
4% of Granite Falls’ land. Water is left out: Granite Falls has 3.5 square miles of land and 0.2 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Granite Falls’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 55 | Open |
| Richter Field Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 11 | Open |
| Highland Park Baseball Field Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Rice Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| 9Th Avenue Park Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Sorlien Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Blue Devil Valley State Scientific and Natural Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 1 | Restricted |
| Granite Falls Overlook Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
6 places to go in Granite Falls
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Plus 1 campground without a name on the map.
1 lakes & rivers
1.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
2 places on the National Register, one a National Historic Landmark
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
The walking year in Granite Falls
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 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.8 | 15.6 | 15.3 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.8 |
| High (°F) | 23 | 28 | 40 | 56 | 70 | 80 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 59 | 42 | 28 |
| Rain (in) | 0.7 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 2.6 | 3.6 | 4.5 | 3.8 | 3.8 | 2.9 | 2.3 | 1.2 | 0.9 |
January is the driest month (0.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.5 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Granite Falls →
Granite Falls and its neighbors
Granite Falls has the second most mapped trails of the 4 towns around it. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Granite Falls | 4% | 0.3 | 33 | 96% | B+ |
| Granite Falls Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Minnesota Falls Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Stony Run 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 Granite Falls
How much of Granite Falls 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.
Where can I bike in Granite Falls?
1.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.0 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Granite Falls?
1,220 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Granite Falls or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 89 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Granite Falls have?
Ahead of 73% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #139 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 Granite Falls neighbors.
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 →