Chengwatana State Forest
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
5,018 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
DOutdoors
Outdoors in Rock Creek
7% of Rock Creek’s land is conserved: 1,837 acres
1.1 miles of mapped trail cross Rock Creek.
Ahead of 12% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
1,837 acres · of 43.0 sq mi of land
Trails
1.1 mi
0.0 per sq mi of land
Near a park
under 1%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
2
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Rock Creek have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Rock Creek is ahead of 12% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
D
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Rock Creek’s overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical MN town 5% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (1 mi) · MN 0.5 · U.S. 0.4C−Park land0.0 acres of park per 1,000 residents (0 acres) · MN 24 · U.S. 13DParks close to home0% 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 12%
LessMore
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Rock Creek. 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.
Rock Marsh Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
616 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Who protects it
1,837 conserved acres
7% of Rock Creek’s land. Who manages Rock Creek’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources912 ac
State fish & wildlife616 ac
National Park Service345 ac
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service182 ac
Other or Unknown Federal Land56 ac
State Resource Management Area · 912 acState Conservation Area · 616 acConservation Easement · 293 acWild and Scenic River · 289 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 234 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chengwatana State Forest State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 872 | Open |
| Rock Marsh State Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 616 | Restricted |
| Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway Wild and Scenic River | National Park Service | 289 | Open |
| Miscellaneous State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 40 | Open |
Things to do
1 places to go in Rock Creek
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Rock Creek
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
2 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
2Tennis
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The walking year in Rock Creek
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) | 9.0 | 10.3 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 14.9 | 15.7 | 15.4 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.4 | 8.7 |
| High (°F) | 22 | 27 | 40 | 55 | 68 | 77 | 81 | 79 | 71 | 56 | 40 | 27 |
| Rain (in) | 0.8 | 0.8 | 1.5 | 2.8 | 3.9 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 4.0 | 3.4 | 3.0 | 1.6 | 1.1 |
January is the driest month (0.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.4 inches fall in July, the wettest month. The climate in Rock Creek →
Next door
Rock Creek and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Grantsburg14 miRushseba Township4.0 miPine City Township2.1 miRock Creek1.1 miRoyalton Township0.3 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rock Creek | 7% | under 0.1 | under 1 | under 1% | D |
| Pine City Township | 3% | 0.1 | 44 | 9% | C |
| Rushseba Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Royalton Township | 1% | under 0.1 | under 1 | under 1% | D |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Rock Creek
How much of Rock Creek is conserved land?
7% 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 Rock Creek’s trails?
Chengwatana State Forest and Rock Marsh Wildlife Management Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Rock Creek?
66,791 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Rock Creek or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,002 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Rock Creek have?
Ahead of 12% 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 Rock Creek 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 →