Hastings Sand Coulee Scientific and Natural Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
243 acres2.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
C−Outdoors
Outdoors in Marshan Township
Marshan Township has 7.9 miles of mapped trails, 0.2 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Hastings Sand Coulee Scientific and Natural Area (2.1 mi). 5% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 3% of Marshan Township’s land is conserved, about 702 acres.
Ahead of 17% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
702 acres · of 34.4 sq mi of land
Trails
7.9 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Near a park
5%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
4.0 mi
Lakes & rivers
1
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Marshan Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Marshan Township is ahead of 17% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
C−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Marshan Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical MN town 5% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (8 mi) · MN 0.5 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land0.0 acres of park per 1,000 residents (0 acres) · MN 24 · U.S. 13DParks close to home5% 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 17%
LessMore
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Marshan 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 Hastings Sand Coulee Scientific and Natural Area, with 2.1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Chimney Rock Scenic and Natural Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
71 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Hastings Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
40 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
702 conserved acres
3% of Marshan Township’s land. Who manages Marshan Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County386 ac
State natural resources314 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)304 ac
State fish & wildlife79 ac
Other or Unknown Federal Land76 ac
Agricultural Easement · 531 acState Conservation Area · 393 acConservation Easement · 159 acUnknown Easement · 76 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 308 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hastings Sand Coulee State Scientific and Natural Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 240 | Restricted |
| Hastings State Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 79 | Restricted |
| Chimney Rock State Scientific and Natural Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 74 | Restricted |
Trails & water
1 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
4.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
4.0 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The walking year in Marshan 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 | 8.8 |
| High (°F) | 23 | 28 | 41 | 56 | 68 | 78 | 82 | 80 | 72 | 58 | 42 | 28 |
| Rain (in) | 0.9 | 0.9 | 1.7 | 3.0 | 4.2 | 5.1 | 4.2 | 4.5 | 3.5 | 2.7 | 1.6 | 1.2 |
January is the driest month (0.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 5.1 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Marshan Township →
Next door
Marshan Township and its neighbors
Marshan Township has the most mapped trails of the 5 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Marshan Township7.9 miDouglas Township5.5 miHastings2.7 miVermillion Township1.3 miRavenna Township1.3 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marshan Township | 3% | 0.2 | under 1 | 5% | C− |
| Hastings | 14% | 0.3 | 19 | 99%+ | A− |
| Vermillion Township | 3% | under 0.1 | under 1 | under 1% | D |
| Ravenna Township | 2% | 0.1 | under 1 | under 1% | D |
| Douglas 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 Marshan Township
Where can I hike in Marshan Township?
The longest trail networks: Hastings Sand Coulee Scientific and Natural Area, 2.1 miles; Chimney Rock Scenic and Natural Area, 0.1 miles; Hastings Wildlife Management Area, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Marshan Township is conserved land?
3% 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 Marshan Township’s trails?
Hastings Sand Coulee Scientific and Natural Area and Chimney Rock Scenic and Natural Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Marshan Township?
4.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 4.0 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Marshan Township?
13,341 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Marshan Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), almost none of it inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Marshan Township have?
Ahead of 17% 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 Marshan 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 →