Lake Wissota State Park
Managed by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
1,047 acres2.9 mi of trail
Lake TrailWild Flower Walking Path
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Anson
Anson has 3,128 acres of parks, 1,249 for every 1,000 residents
14% of Anson’s land is conserved, about 3,324 acres. The biggest trail networks: Lake Wissota State Park (2.9 mi). 4.4 miles of mapped trail cross Anson, 0.1 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 77% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
14%
3,324 acres · of 37.3 sq mi of land
Trails
4.4 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
3,128 ac
1,249 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
70%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
10 mi
10 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
1 beach · 6 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Anson?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Anson have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Anson is ahead of 77% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Anson’s overall grade.
Conserved land14% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (4 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4CPark land1,249 acres of park per 1,000 residents (3,128 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home70% of residents within a half mile of a park · WI 90% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 77%
LessMore
Water is 6% of Anson’s area (3 of 40 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 13%.
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 Lake Wissota State Park, with 2.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Tom Lawin Wildlife Area
Managed by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
1,945 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Cadott School Forest
Nature preserve
155 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Anson Park
Managed by Town of Anson
5 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
3,324 conserved acres
14% of Anson’s land. Water is left out: Anson has 37.3 square miles of land and 2.5 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Anson’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources3,353 ac
Private owners148 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)63 ac
Bureau of Land Management7 ac
State Recreation Area · 1,980 acState Park · 1,182 acUnknown Easement · 186 acPrivate Park · 148 acConservation Easement · 67 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 8 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Lawin Wildlife Area State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 1,978 | Open |
| Lake Wissota State Park State Park | State natural resources | 1,051 | Open |
| Lake Wissota Golf Private Park | Private owners | 148 | Restricted |
| Old Abe State Trail State Park | State natural resources | 130 | Open |
| Northeastern States District Office National Public Lands | Bureau of Land Management | 7 | Open |
| Statewide Public Access State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 1 | Open |
| Statewide Public Access - Wd State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 1 | Open |
Things to do
9 places to go in Anson
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Anson
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Swimming spots in Anson
1 swimming spot without a name on the map.
Boat launches in Anson
Anson Boat Launch
DirectionsPlus 5 boat launches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Campgrounds in Anson
Lake Wissota State Park CampgroundIn Lake Wissota State Park
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 2.3 miUnpaved · 2.3 mi
Lake Trail2.3 mi
Wild Flower Walking Path0.5 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
10 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
10 mi
off-road bike paths
When to get out
The walking year in Anson
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 | 13.4 | 14.8 | 15.6 | 15.3 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.8 |
| High (°F) | 23 | 28 | 41 | 55 | 68 | 77 | 81 | 79 | 71 | 57 | 41 | 28 |
| Rain (in) | 1.0 | 1.1 | 1.7 | 3.0 | 3.9 | 4.7 | 3.9 | 4.0 | 3.6 | 2.9 | 1.8 | 1.3 |
January is the driest month (1.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.7 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Anson →
Next door
Anson and its neighbors
Anson has the second most mapped trails of the 5 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anson | 14% | 0.1 | 1,249 | 70% | A− |
| Lafayette | under 1% | under 0.1 | 43 | 26% | C− |
| Eagle Point | under 1% | 0.1 | 84 | 25% | C |
| Goetz | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Arthur | — 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 Anson
Where can I hike in Anson?
The longest trail networks: Lake Wissota State Park, 2.9 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Anson is conserved land?
14% of its land, against a typical 4% for a Wisconsin town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Anson’s trails?
Lake Wissota State Park and Tom Lawin Wildlife Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Anson?
10 miles of bike routes are on the map: 10 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Anson?
23,200 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Anson or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 3,135 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Anson have?
Ahead of 77% 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 Anson 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 →