Bruce B. Purdy Nature Preserve
Managed by Apple Creek YMCA
145 acres2.8 mi of trail
Aldo Leopold Prairie LoopSigurd Olson TrailJohn Muir Woodland TrailGaylord Nelson Pond Loop+1
No dogs
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Jasperthedog28 · CC BY-SA 4.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Appleton
Appleton has 12 miles of mapped trails, 0.5 for every square mile of land
92% of residents live within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Bruce B. Purdy Nature Preserve (2.8 mi), Appleton Memorial Park (1.7 mi), Plamann County Park (0.8 mi). 5% of Appleton’s land is conserved, about 832 acres.
Ahead of 70% of U.S. towns · #176 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
832 acres · of 25.4 sq mi of land
Trails
12 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
915 ac
12 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
92%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
46 mi
23 mi lanes · 18 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
10
2 beaches · 3 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Appleton?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Appleton have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Appleton is ahead of 70% of U.S. towns, #176 of 362 in Wisconsin. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of residents near a park ranks highest, park acres per resident lowest.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Appleton’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (12 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4BPark land12 acres of park per 1,000 residents (915 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home92% of residents within a half mile of a park · WI 90% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 70%
LessMore
Wisconsin towns of 2,500+ (362)Ahead of 52%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B to B+. 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 Bruce B. Purdy Nature Preserve, with 2.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Appleton Memorial Park
Park
146 acres1.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Plamann County Park
Managed by Outagamie County Parks
248 acres0.8 mi of trail
Cow TrailBird Trail
No dogs
Directionsto Pop Warner Lot
Lundgaard Park
Managed by Appleton Parks and Rec.
7 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 40 parks & preserves
Bruce B. Purdy Nature Preserve145 acres · 2.8 mi of trail · Apple Creek YMCA
DirectionsAppleton Memorial Park146 acres · 1.7 mi of trail
DirectionsPlamann County Park248 acres · 0.8 mi of trail · Outagamie County Parks
DirectionsLundgaard Park7 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Appleton Parks and Rec.
Fox River Academy Ravine8 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsVosters Park6 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Alicia Park13 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Appleton Parks and Rec.
Einstein Park7 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsYouth Sport Complex73 acres
DirectionsRiverview Gardens69 acres
DirectionsTelulah Park44 acres · Appleton Parks & Rec
DirectionsPierce Park37 acres
DirectionsErb Park27 acres
DirectionsHighview Park13 acres
Peabody Park12 acres
DirectionsHoover Park12 acres
Linwood Park10 acres
Woodland Park9 acres
Derks Park9 acres
Goodland Field9 acres
DirectionsCity Park9 acres
DirectionsColoney Oaks Park8 acres
Mead Park8 acres
DirectionsKiwanis Park7 acres
Ellen Kort Peace Park7 acres
DirectionsSchaefer Park6 acres
Lions Park6 acres
DirectionsJones Park6 acres · City of Appleton
DirectionsGreen Meadows Park5 acres
Summit Park5 acres
Jaycee Park5 acres
DirectionsVeterans Park4 acres
DirectionsLutz Park4 acres
DirectionsArbutus Park4 acres
DirectionsIsland Park4 acres
DirectionsProvidence Park3 acres
Vulcan Heritage Park1 acres
DirectionsHoudini Plaza1 acres
DirectionsPioneer Park1 acres · Appleton Parks and Rec.
DirectionsSkyline Triangle1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
832 conserved acres
5% of Appleton’s land. Who manages Appleton’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city485 ac
County254 ac
Private owners93 ac
Local Park · 721 acPrivate Park · 93 acLocal Recreation Area · 18 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plamann Park Local Park | County | 254 | Open |
| Appleton Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 142 | Open |
| Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 93 | Open |
| Youth Sport Complex Local Park | Town or city | 75 | Open |
| Telulah Park Local Park | Town or city | 38 | Open |
| Pierce Park Local Park | Town or city | 36 | Open |
| Erb Park Local Park | Town or city | 28 | Open |
| Newberry Trail Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 15 | Open |
| Alicia Park Local Park | Town or city | 13 | Open |
| Highview Park Local Park | Town or city | 13 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
103 places to go in Appleton
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Appleton
2 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Swimming spots in Appleton
Plamann LakeIn Plamann County Park
DirectionsPublic pools in Appleton
50-Meter PoolIn Erb Park
DirectionsMead PoolIn Mead Park
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Appleton
Alicia Park PlaygroundIn Alicia Park
DirectionsJefforson School Playground
DirectionsSummit AASD
DirectionsUniversal PlaygroundIn Appleton Memorial Park
Directions80 playgrounds are on OpenStreetMap in all; the list shows named ones from the first 30.
Boat launches in Appleton
Appleton Fireboat Launch
DirectionsKayak/Canoe Launch
DirectionsPlus 1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Fishing spots in Appleton
2 fishing spots without a name on the map.
Picnic areas in Appleton
PavilionIn City Park
DirectionsPlus 9 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Disc golf in Appleton
Plamann Park Disc GolfIn Plamann County Park
DirectionsTelulah Park Disc GolfIn Telulah Park · Appleton Parks and Rec.
DirectionsCommunity gardens in Appleton
Marilyn Spieth Communitty Garden and Classroom
DirectionsTrails & water
10 named trails and 10 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.5 miUnpaved · 10.3 mi
Aldo Leopold Prairie Loop0.8 mi
John Muir Woodland Trail0.5 mi
Sigurd Olson Trail0.5 mi
Gaylord Nelson Pond Loop0.4 mi
Cow Trail0.3 mi
Bird Trail0.3 mi
Deer Trail0.2 mi
Increase Lapham Pass0.2 mi
William Horvath Trail0.2 mi
George Archibald Trail0.1 mi
Biking & sports
46 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
23 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
18 mi
off-road bike paths
4.7 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
61Tennis
57Baseball
38Soccer
31Basketball
16Football
8Tracks
6Beach volleyball
5Pickleball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →21 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 15 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Main Hall, Lawrence UniversityBuilding · listed 1974
About itJohn Hart Whorton HouseBuilding · listed 1974
About itRogers, Henry J,. and Cremora, HouseBuilding · listed 1974
About itTemple Zion and SchoolBuilding · listed 1978
About itCollege Avenue Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1982
About itWashington SchoolBuilding · listed 1984
About itMasonic TempleBuilding · listed 1985
About itJames Tompkins HouseBuilding · listed 1986
About itZion Lutheran ChurchBuilding · listed 1986
About itFox River Paper Company Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1990
About itCourtney, J. B., Woolen MillsBuilding · listed 1993
About itAppleton Lock 4 Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1993
About it9 more on the History page.
When to get out
September is the best month for walking in Appleton
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) | 9.2 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.8 | 15.5 | 15.2 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.9 |
| High (°F) | 26 | 30 | 41 | 55 | 67 | 77 | 81 | 79 | 72 | 58 | 43 | 31 |
| Rain (in) | 1.4 | 1.1 | 1.9 | 3.1 | 3.8 | 4.6 | 3.9 | 3.5 | 3.4 | 2.9 | 2.0 | 1.6 |
February is the driest month (1.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.6 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Appleton →
Next door
Appleton and its neighbors
Appleton has the second most mapped trails of the 8 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Harrison17 miAppleton12 miGrand Chute12 miCenter6.7 miFreedom6.0 miFox Crossing4.2 miMenasha4.2 miHarrison0.1 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Appleton | 5% | 0.5 | 12 | 92% | B+ |
| Grand Chute | 4% | 0.5 | 27 | 85% | B+ |
| Harrison | 5% | 0.5 | 70 | 62% | B+ |
| Freedom | 1% | 0.2 | 12 | 42% | C |
| Fox Crossing | 3% | 0.3 | 16 | 94% | B |
| Menasha | 5% | 0.7 | 13 | 98% | A− |
| Center | under 1% | 0.2 | 15 | 13% | C− |
| Harrison | — 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 Appleton
Where can I hike in Appleton?
The longest trail networks: Bruce B. Purdy Nature Preserve, 2.8 miles; Appleton Memorial Park, 1.7 miles; Plamann County Park, 0.8 miles; Lundgaard Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Appleton is conserved land?
5% 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 Appleton’s trails?
Bruce B. Purdy Nature Preserve and Appleton Memorial Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Appleton?
46 miles of bike routes are on the map: 23 of painted or protected lanes, 18 of off-road paths and 4.7 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Appleton?
9,571 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Appleton or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 915 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Appleton have?
Ahead of 70% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #176 of 362 in Wisconsin. 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 Appleton 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 →