Head Lake Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
423 acres1.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
DOutdoors
Outdoors in Rush Lake Township
Few parks or trails are on the map in Rush Lake Township
The biggest trail networks: Head Lake Wildlife Management Area (1.4 mi). 1.8 miles of mapped trail cross Rush Lake Township, 0.1 per square mile of land. 3% of Rush Lake Township’s land is conserved, about 479 acres.
Ahead of 10% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
479 acres · of 26.7 sq mi of land
Trails
1.8 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Near a park
under 1%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
7
3 boat launches
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Rush Lake Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Rush Lake Township is ahead of 10% of U.S. towns. All four inputs are below most U.S. towns; conserved land comes closest.
D
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Rush Lake Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical MN town 5% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (2 mi) · MN 0.5 · U.S. 0.4CPark 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 10%
LessMore
Water is 23% of Rush Lake Township’s area (8 of 35 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 2%.
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Rush Lake 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 Head Lake WMA, with 1.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
479 conserved acres
3% of Rush Lake Township’s land. Water is left out: Rush Lake Township has 26.7 square miles of land and 8.1 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Rush Lake Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife430 ac
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service96 ac
State Conservation Area · 430 acResource Management Area · 96 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Head Lake State Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 423 | Restricted |
| Otter Tail County Waterfowl Production Area Resource Management Area | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 96 | Restricted |
| Rice-Boedigheimer State Aquatic Management Area (Otter Tail) State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 7 | Restricted |
Things to do
5 places to go in Rush Lake Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Boat launches in Rush Lake Township
Public Access
DirectionsRound Lake Public Boat Ramp
DirectionsPlus 1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Campgrounds in Rush Lake Township
2 campgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Trails & water
7 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
When to get out
The walking year in Rush Lake 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) | 9.0 | 10.2 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 15.0 | 15.8 | 15.5 | 14.2 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.3 | 8.6 |
| High (°F) | 18 | 24 | 36 | 53 | 67 | 76 | 80 | 78 | 70 | 54 | 37 | 24 |
| Rain (in) | 0.7 | 0.7 | 1.1 | 2.0 | 3.3 | 4.5 | 4.2 | 3.1 | 2.9 | 2.6 | 1.0 | 0.8 |
January is the driest month (0.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 80 °F). 4.5 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Rush Lake Township →
Next door
Rush Lake Township and its neighbors
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rush Lake Township | 3% | 0.1 | under 1 | under 1% | D |
| Dead Lake Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Otter Tail Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Otto 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 Rush Lake Township
Where can I hike in Rush Lake Township?
The longest trail networks: Head Lake Wildlife Management Area, 1.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Rush Lake 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 Rush Lake Township’s trails?
Head Lake Wildlife Management Area doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Rush Lake Township?
2,553 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Rush Lake Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), almost none of it inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Rush Lake Township have?
Ahead of 10% 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 Rush Lake 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 →