Coulee Experimental Forest
Nature preserve
1,115 acres5.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
COutdoors
Outdoors in Barre
9% of Barre’s land is conserved: 1,141 acres
The biggest trail networks: Coulee Experimental Forest (5.2 mi). 2% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 1 acre is park or preserve, 0.3 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 26% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
9%
1,141 acres · of 20.7 sq mi of land
Trails
5.4 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
1 ac
0.3 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
2%
of residents within ½ mile
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Barre have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Barre is ahead of 26% 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 Barre’s overall grade.
Conserved land9% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (5 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land0.3 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1 acre) · WI 31 · U.S. 13DParks close to home2% of residents within a half mile of a park · WI 90% · U.S. 72%D
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 26%
LessMore
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 Coulee Experimental Forest, with 5.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
1,141 conserved acres
9% of Barre’s land. Who manages Barre’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources1,140 ac
Private owners20 ac
State Resource Management Area · 1,121 acState Recreation Area · 20 acRecreation or Education Easement · 20 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 1 acre is a conservation easement, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coulee Experimental Forest State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 1,121 | Open |
| La Crosse Area Comprehensive Fishery Area State Recreation Area | Private owners | 20 | Open |
When to get out
The walking year in Barre
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) | 9.3 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.4 | 15.1 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 8.9 |
| High (°F) | 25 | 30 | 43 | 57 | 69 | 78 | 82 | 80 | 72 | 59 | 43 | 30 |
| Rain (in) | 1.2 | 1.1 | 1.8 | 3.8 | 4.8 | 5.2 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 3.9 | 2.8 | 1.9 | 1.4 |
February is the driest month (1.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 5.2 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Barre →
Next door
Barre and its neighbors
Barre 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barre | 9% | 0.3 | under 1 | 2% | C |
| Medary | 2% | 0.4 | 102 | 68% | B+ |
| Greenfield | under 1% | under 0.1 | 4 | 7% | D |
| Bangor | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Hamilton | 2% | 0.1 | 172 | 41% | B− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Barre
Where can I hike in Barre?
The longest trail networks: Coulee Experimental Forest, 5.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Barre is conserved land?
9% 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 Barre’s trails?
Coulee Experimental Forest doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Barre?
9,274 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Barre or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,131 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Barre have?
Ahead of 26% 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 Barre 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 →