Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge
Managed by United States Fish and Wildlife Service
7,021 acres2.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
C−Outdoors
Outdoors in Santiago Township
31% of Santiago Township’s land is conserved: 7,100 acres
The biggest trail networks: Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge (2.7 mi). 2.7 miles of mapped trail cross Santiago Township, 0.1 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 22% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
31%
7,100 acres · of 35.8 sq mi of land
Trails
2.7 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Near a park
under 1%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
6
What kind of outdoors town is Santiago Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Santiago Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Santiago Township is ahead of 22% 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 Santiago Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land31% of the land · typical MN town 5% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (3 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 22%
LessMore
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Santiago 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 Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge, with 2.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Santiago Wildlife Management Area
Managed by Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
85 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Who protects it
7,100 conserved acres
31% of Santiago Township’s land. Who manages Santiago Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service14,039 ac
State fish & wildlife79 ac
National Wildlife Refuge · 14,039 acState Conservation Area · 79 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge National Wildlife Refuge | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 14,039 | Restricted |
| Santiago State Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 79 | Restricted |
Trails & water
6 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
2Softball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
September is the best month for walking in Santiago 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) | 9.1 | 10.3 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 14.9 | 15.7 | 15.3 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.4 | 8.7 |
| High (°F) | 21 | 27 | 40 | 55 | 68 | 77 | 81 | 79 | 71 | 57 | 40 | 26 |
| Rain (in) | 0.7 | 0.8 | 1.5 | 2.7 | 4.0 | 4.2 | 4.1 | 3.9 | 3.1 | 2.7 | 1.4 | 1.0 |
January is the driest month (0.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.2 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Santiago Township →
Next door
Santiago 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Santiago Township | 31% | 0.1 | under 1 | under 1% | C− |
| Becker Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Glendorado Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Blue Hill Township | 64% | 0.5 | 1 | 4% | C+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Santiago Township
Where can I hike in Santiago Township?
The longest trail networks: Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge, 2.7 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Santiago Township is conserved land?
31% 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 Santiago Township’s trails?
Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge and Santiago Wildlife Management Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Santiago Township?
6,277 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Santiago Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), almost none of it inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Santiago Township have?
Ahead of 22% 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 Santiago 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 →