Lafayette County Fairgrounds
Park
10 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Downspec · CC BY-SA 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Darlington
97% of residents live within a half mile of a park in Darlington
67 acres are parks and preserves, 28 per 1,000 residents. 1.0 miles of mapped trail cross Darlington, 0.6 per square mile of land. 3% of Darlington’s land is conserved, about 35 acres.
Ahead of 79% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
35 acres · of 1.7 sq mi of land
Trails
1.0 mi
0.6 per sq mi of land
Park land
67 ac
28 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
97%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.8 mi
1.8 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Darlington?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Darlington have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Darlington is ahead of 79% of U.S. towns. 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 Darlington’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.6 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (1 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land28 acres of park per 1,000 residents (67 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home97% 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 79%
LessMore
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 Lafayette County Fairgrounds, with 0.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
35 conserved acres
3% of Darlington’s land. Who manages Darlington’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city35 ac
Unknown Easement · 35 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 35 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 1 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
Things to do
6 places to go in Darlington
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Darlington
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Fishing spots in Darlington
1 fishing spot without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Campgrounds in Darlington
Pecatonica River Trails Park
DirectionsPecatonica River Trails Park CampgroundFee
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail
Named trails
Park Place0.1 mi
Biking & sports
1.8 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.8 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
4Basketball
3Baseball
1Tennis
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
September is the best month for walking in Darlington
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) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 28 | 32 | 45 | 58 | 70 | 79 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 61 | 46 | 33 |
| Rain (in) | 1.3 | 1.4 | 2.2 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 5.5 | 4.5 | 4.1 | 3.8 | 3.1 | 2.4 | 1.7 |
January is the driest month (1.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 5.5 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Darlington →
Questions about parks and trails in Darlington
Where can I hike in Darlington?
The longest trail networks: Lafayette County Fairgrounds, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Darlington is conserved land?
3% 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 Darlington’s trails?
Lafayette County Fairgrounds and Riverside Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Darlington?
1.8 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.8 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Darlington?
5,458 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Darlington or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 67 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Darlington have?
Ahead of 79% 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 Darlington 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 →