Kuhnert Arboretum & Park
Park
102 acres2.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
McGregor House · Photo: Ammodramus · CC0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Aberdeen
Aberdeen has 12 miles of mapped trails, 0.7 for every square mile of land
92% of residents live within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Kuhnert Arboretum & Park (2.7 mi), Wylie Park (1.1 mi). 594 acres are parks and preserves, 21 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns · #7 of 35 in South Dakota. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
541 acres · of 16.6 sq mi of land
Trails
12 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
594 ac
21 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
92%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
39 mi
9.3 mi lanes · 30 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
1 beach
What kind of outdoors town is Aberdeen?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Aberdeen have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Aberdeen is ahead of 80% of U.S. towns, #7 of 35 in South Dakota. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of residents near a park ranks highest, conserved land lowest.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Aberdeen’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical SD town 3% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (12 mi) · SD 0.5 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land21 acres of park per 1,000 residents (594 acres) · SD 13 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home92% of residents within a half mile of a park · SD 87% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 80%
LessMore
South Dakota towns of 2,500+ (35)Ahead of 82%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to 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 Kuhnert Arboretum & Park, with 2.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Aberdeen Athletic Complex
Park
54 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Moccasin Run Stream Valley Park
Park
96 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 13 parks & preserves
Kuhnert Arboretum & Park102 acres · 2.7 mi of trail
DirectionsWylie Park190 acres · 1.1 mi of trail
DirectionsAberdeen Athletic Complex54 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsMoccasin Run Stream Valley Park96 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsCentral Park2 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Lee Park33 acres
DirectionsMelgaard Park24 acres
DirectionsManor Park14 acres
DirectionsAnderson Park9 acres
DirectionsSunshine Park4 acres
DirectionsAldrich Park2 acres
Frontier Park2 acres
DirectionsRoosevelt Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
541 conserved acres
5% of Aberdeen’s land. Who manages Aberdeen’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city541 ac
Local Park · 392 acLocal Recreation Area · 150 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wylie Park Local Park | Town or city | 189 | Open |
| Kuhnert Arboretum Local Park | Town or city | 100 | Open |
| Moccasin Creek Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 82 | Open |
| Aberdeen Sports Complex Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 54 | Open |
| Baird Park Local Park | Town or city | 33 | Open |
| Melgaard Park Local Park | Town or city | 23 | Open |
| Manor Park Local Park | Town or city | 14 | Open |
| Sunshine Park Local Park | Town or city | 14 | Open |
| Aberdeen Aquatic Center Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 11 | Open |
| Anderson Park Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
78 places to go in Aberdeen
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Aberdeen
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Public pools in Aberdeen
Aberdeen Water ParkIn Moccasin Run Stream Valley Park
DirectionsLap & Diving PoolIn Moccasin Run Stream Valley Park
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Aberdeen
Central Park PlaygroundIn Central Park
Directions46 playgrounds are on OpenStreetMap in all; the list shows named ones from the first 30.
Dog parks in Aberdeen
Aberdeen Nature Area Dog Park
DirectionsDog Run
DirectionsPicnic areas in Aberdeen
16 picnic areas without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Campgrounds in Aberdeen
Melgaard Park CampgroundIn Melgaard Park
DirectionsPlus 2 campgrounds without a name on the map.
Community gardens in Aberdeen
Aberdeen Community Gardens - East SiteIn Kuhnert Arboretum & Park
DirectionsAberdeen Community Gardens - East SiteIn Kuhnert Arboretum & Park
DirectionsAberdeen Community Gardens - Northwest Site
DirectionsAberdeen Community Gardens - Northwest Site
DirectionsAberdeen Community Gardens - Taft Street SiteIn Moccasin Run Stream Valley Park
DirectionsAberdeen Community Gardens - Taft Street SiteIn Moccasin Run Stream Valley Park
DirectionsAberdeen Community Gardens - West SiteIn Kuhnert Arboretum & Park
DirectionsAberdeen Community Gardens - West SiteIn Kuhnert Arboretum & Park
DirectionsTrails & water
2 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
39 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
9.3 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
30 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
39Soccer
26Baseball
18Tennis
10Basketball
8Football
4Volleyball
3Pickleball
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →23 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 2 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Easton's CastleBuilding · listed 1973
About itAberdeen Highlands Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1975
About itAberdeen Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1975
About itFirst United Methodist ChurchBuilding · listed 1976
About itBrown County CourthouseBuilding · listed 1976
About itMinneapolis and St. Louis Railroad DepotBuilding · listed 1976
About itWestern Union BuildingBuilding · listed 1976
About itChicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad DepotBuilding · listed 1977
About itWylie Park PavilionBuilding · listed 1978
About itMasonic TempleBuilding · listed 1980
About itWard, Alonzo, HotelBuilding · listed 1982
About itGreat Northern Railway Passenger and Freight DepotBuilding · listed 1983
About it11 more on the History page.
When to get out
The best walking months in Aberdeen: August and September
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) | 22 | 27 | 40 | 56 | 69 | 79 | 84 | 82 | 74 | 58 | 41 | 27 |
| Rain (in) | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.9 | 1.9 | 3.1 | 3.6 | 3.2 | 2.3 | 2.1 | 1.9 | 0.7 | 0.6 |
January is the driest month (0.5 in) and July the warmest (highs of 84 °F). 3.6 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Aberdeen →
Next door
Aberdeen and its neighbors
Aberdeen has the most mapped trails of the 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen | 5% | 0.7 | 21 | 92% | A− |
| Aberdeen Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Bath 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 Aberdeen
Where can I hike in Aberdeen?
The longest trail networks: Kuhnert Arboretum & Park, 2.7 miles; Wylie Park, 1.1 miles; Aberdeen Athletic Complex, 0.4 miles; Moccasin Run Stream Valley Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Aberdeen is conserved land?
5% of its land, against a typical 3% for a South Dakota town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Aberdeen’s trails?
Kuhnert Arboretum & Park and Wylie Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Aberdeen?
39 miles of bike routes are on the map: 9.3 of painted or protected lanes and 30 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Aberdeen?
2,198 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Aberdeen or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 594 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Aberdeen have?
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #7 of 35 in South Dakota. 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 Aberdeen 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 →