Carver Park Reserve
Managed by Three Rivers Parks
3,985 acres16.9 mi of trail
Tamarack TrailMaple TrailAspen TrailLake Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Myotus · CC BY 4.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Victoria
More than half of Victoria’s land is conserved: 55%
55% of Victoria’s land is conserved, about 4,502 acres. Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 4,637 acres are parks and preserves, 411 per 1,000 residents.
Among the top 1% of U.S. towns · #1 of 274 in Minnesota. What drives it
Conserved land
55%
4,502 acres · of 12.8 sq mi of land
Trails
23 mi
1.8 per sq mi of land
Park land
4,637 ac
411 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
52 mi
0.5 mi lanes · 52 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
17
1 beach
What kind of outdoors town is Victoria?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Victoria have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Victoria is among the top 1% of U.S. towns, #1 of 274 in Minnesota. All four inputs put Victoria near the top nationally; conserved land ranks highest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Victoria’s overall grade.
Conserved land55% of the land · typical MN town 5% · U.S. 4%A+Trails1.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (23 mi) · MN 0.5 · U.S. 0.4APark land411 acres of park per 1,000 residents (4,637 acres) · MN 24 · U.S. 13AParks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · MN 95% · U.S. 72%A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Among the top 1%
LessMore
Minnesota towns of 2,500+ (274)#1 of 274
Water is 17% of Victoria’s area (3 of 15 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 46%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be A+. 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 Carver Park Reserve, with 16.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Minnesota Landscape Arboretum
Managed by University of Minnesota
225 acres4.7 mi of trail
Western LoopUnder the Oak
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Wassermann Lake Preserve
Managed by City of Victoria
43 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 6 parks & preserves
Carver Park Reserve3,985 acres · 16.9 mi of trail · Three Rivers Parks
DirectionsMinnesota Landscape Arboretum225 acres · 4.7 mi of trail · University of Minnesota
DirectionsWassermann Lake Preserve43 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · City of Victoria
Lions Park22 acres
DirectionsMadelyn Creek Park2 acres
South Lake Virginia Shores Park1 acres · City of Victoria
DirectionsWho protects it
4,502 conserved acres
55% of Victoria’s land. Water is left out: Victoria has 12.8 square miles of land and 2.6 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Victoria’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources4,033 ac
Town or city458 ac
Other state land88 ac
State Conservation Area · 4,031 acLocal Conservation Area · 187 acLocal Park · 110 acState Other or Unknown · 82 acOther Easement · 79 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carver Highlands Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 4,031 | Open |
| Open Space Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 256 | Open |
| U of M Landscape Arboretum (Ts Property) State Other or Unknown | Other state land | 82 | Open |
| Diethelm Park Local Park | Town or city | 37 | Open |
| Lions Park Local Park | Town or city | 24 | Open |
| Laketown Park Local Park | Town or city | 12 | Open |
| Goodman Park Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Swiss Mountain Open Space Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Open Space/Trail Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Lakebridge Park Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
21 places to go in Victoria
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Victoria
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Swimming spots in Victoria
1 swimming spot without a name on the map.
Playgrounds in Victoria
9 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Scenic views in Victoria
Life in a Cattail MarshIn Carver Park Reserve
DirectionsPlus 7 scenic views without a name on the map.
Picnic areas in Victoria
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Victoria
lake auburn campgroundIn Carver Park Reserve · Three Rivers Parks
DirectionsTrails & water
11 named trails and 17 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.8 miHorses · 8.8 miUnpaved · 19.2 mi
Tamarack Trail1.3 mi
Western Loop1.2 mi
Maple Trail1.2 mi
Aspen Trail0.7 mi
Lake Trail0.6 mi
Cattail Trail0.3 mi
Oak Trail0.3 mi
Acorn Trail0.2 mi
Repear0.1 mi
Under the Oak0.1 mi
1 more trails
John's Jam
0.1 miBiking & sports
52 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.5 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
52 mi
off-road bike paths
Monarch SingletrackBike route
0.3 miThresh ItBike route
0.3 miEasy RiderBike route
0.3 miCourts & fields
13Tracks
11Baseball
11Tennis
4Basketball
3Soccer
2Beach volleyball
1Volleyball
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The walking year in Victoria
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 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.8 |
| High (°F) | 22 | 27 | 41 | 56 | 68 | 78 | 82 | 79 | 72 | 58 | 41 | 28 |
| Rain (in) | 0.8 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 3.0 | 4.3 | 5.0 | 4.1 | 4.3 | 3.4 | 2.6 | 1.5 | 1.1 |
January is the driest month (0.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 5.0 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Victoria →
Next door
Victoria and its neighbors
Victoria has the second most mapped trails of the 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Victoria | 55% | 1.8 | 411 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Laketown Township | under 1% | 0.2 | 22 | 45% | C+ |
| Chanhassen | 11% | 1.5 | 71 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Chaska | 4% | 1.1 | 31 | 94% | A |
| Minnetrista | 4% | 0.5 | 82 | 87% | A− |
| Shorewood | 4% | 0.3 | 17 | 88% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Victoria
Where can I hike in Victoria?
The longest trail networks: Carver Park Reserve, 16.9 miles; Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, 4.7 miles; Wassermann Lake Preserve, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Victoria is conserved land?
55% 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 Victoria’s trails?
Carver Park Reserve and Minnesota Landscape Arboretum don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Victoria?
52 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.5 of painted or protected lanes and 52 of off-road paths. Named routes: Monarch Singletrack, Thresh It and Easy Rider.
Is there public land near Victoria?
19,733 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Victoria or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 4,637 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Victoria have?
Among the top 1% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #1 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 Victoria 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 →