Hartman Creek State Park
Managed by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
956 acres13.2 mi of trail
Ice Age Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: BaronLarf · CC BY-SA 3.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Dayton
Dayton has 2,278 acres of parks, 867 for every 1,000 residents
10% of Dayton’s land is conserved, about 2,303 acres. The biggest trail networks: Hartman Creek State Park (13.2 mi). 39% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 75% of U.S. towns · #135 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it
Conserved land
10%
2,303 acres · of 35.1 sq mi of land
Trails
14 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
2,278 ac
867 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
39%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.7 mi
0.7 mi paths
Highest peak
915 ft
Mount Joel
Lakes & rivers
32
1 beach
What kind of outdoors town is Dayton?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Dayton have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Dayton is ahead of 75% of U.S. towns, #135 of 362 in Wisconsin. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Dayton’s overall grade.
Conserved land10% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (14 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4BPark land867 acres of park per 1,000 residents (2,278 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home39% of residents within a half mile of a park · WI 90% · U.S. 72%C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 75%
LessMore
Wisconsin towns of 2,500+ (362)Ahead of 63%
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 Hartman Creek State Park, with 13.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Mud Lake-Radley Creek Savanna State Natural Area
Nature preserve
97 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Nelson Park
Park
1 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
2,303 conserved acres
10% of Dayton’s land. Who manages Dayton’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources2,291 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)26 ac
Private owners12 ac
County8 ac
State Recreation Area · 1,360 acState Park · 930 acConservation Easement · 26 acRecreation or Education Easement · 14 acLocal Park · 8 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 28 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Radley Creek Fishery Area State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 1,151 | Open |
| Hartman Creek State Park State Park | State natural resources | 930 | Open |
| Emmons Creek Fishery Area State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 187 | Open |
| Radley Creek Fishery Area 3 State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 17 | Open |
| Oakwood Park Local Park | County | 8 | Open |
| Emmons Creek Fishery Area 2 State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 5 | Open |
Things to do
6 places to go in Dayton
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Dayton
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Dayton
1 playground without a name on the map.
Peaks in Dayton
Mount Joel915 ft elevation · In Hartman Creek State Park
DirectionsPicnic areas in Dayton
2 picnic areas without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Campgrounds in Dayton
Hartman Creek State Park CampgroundIn Hartman Creek State Park
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails and 32 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 5.2 mi
Ice Age Trail0.4 mi
Old road alignment0.3 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Allen LakeBass LakelakeBeasley LakelakeCasino ChannelColumbia LakelakeCrystal LakelakeDake LakelakeEmmons LakeGooseneck LakelakeGrebe LakelakeHartman LakeHolman LakelakeJenson LakelakeJunction LakelakeKnight LakelakeLake SolitudelakeLong LakelakeManomin LakelakeMarl LakelakeMcAllister LakelakeMcLean LakelakeMid LakeMiner LakelakeMud LakelakeMynyard LakelakeNewsome LakelakePope LakelakeRound LakelakeSandbar LakeslakeSpencer LakelakeStratton LakelakeCrystal River
Biking & sports
0.7 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.7 mi
off-road bike paths
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The walking year in Dayton
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) | 25 | 30 | 41 | 56 | 68 | 78 | 82 | 80 | 72 | 58 | 43 | 30 |
| Rain (in) | 1.2 | 1.0 | 1.9 | 3.3 | 3.9 | 4.4 | 3.5 | 3.8 | 3.4 | 2.6 | 1.9 | 1.6 |
February is the driest month (1.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.4 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Dayton →
Next door
Dayton and its neighbors
Dayton has the second most mapped trails of the 4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dayton | 10% | 0.4 | 867 | 39% | A− |
| Farmington | 2% | 0.3 | 95 | 44% | B− |
| Springwater | 10% | 0.1 | 1,432 | 56% | B+ |
| Belmont | — 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 Dayton
Where can I hike in Dayton?
The longest trail networks: Hartman Creek State Park, 13.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Dayton is conserved land?
10% 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 Dayton’s trails?
Hartman Creek State Park and Mud Lake-Radley Creek Savanna State Natural Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Dayton?
0.7 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.7 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Dayton?
10,030 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Dayton or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,278 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Dayton have?
Ahead of 75% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #135 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 Dayton 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 →