Dells of the Wisconsin River State Natural Area
Managed by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
455 acres1.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
COutdoors
Outdoors in Dell Prairie
Few parks or trails are on the map in Dell Prairie
The biggest trail networks: Dells of the Wisconsin River State Natural Area (1.2 mi). 13% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 38 acres are parks and preserves, 24 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 33% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
2%
456 acres · of 31.5 sq mi of land
Trails
3.6 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
38 ac
24 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
13%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,152 ft
Blue Mound
Lakes & rivers
3
1 beach · 2 boat launches
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Dell Prairie have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Dell Prairie is ahead of 33% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
C
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Dell Prairie’s overall grade.
Conserved land2% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%C+Trails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (4 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4CPark land24 acres of park per 1,000 residents (38 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home13% 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 33%
LessMore
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C− 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 Dells of the Wisconsin River State Natural Area, with 1.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
456 conserved acres
2% of Dell Prairie’s land. Who manages Dell Prairie’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources456 ac
State Conservation Area · 455 acConservation Easement · 1 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dells Of The Wisconsin River Natural Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 455 | Restricted |
Things to do
5 places to go in Dell Prairie
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Dell Prairie
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Public pools in Dell Prairie
Wading Pool
DirectionsBoat launches in Dell Prairie
2 boat launches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Peaks in Dell Prairie
Blue Mound1,152 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
3 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
2Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
September is the best month for walking in Dell Prairie
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) | 26 | 31 | 43 | 57 | 69 | 79 | 82 | 80 | 73 | 59 | 44 | 32 |
| Rain (in) | 1.3 | 1.3 | 2.2 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 5.1 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 3.7 | 2.9 | 2.1 | 1.6 |
February is the driest month (1.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 5.1 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Dell Prairie →
Next door
Dell Prairie and its neighbors
Dell Prairie 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dell Prairie | 2% | 0.1 | 24 | 13% | C |
| Wisconsin Dells | 19% | 0.8 | 40 | 80% | A |
| Lyndon | 4% | 0.1 | 392 | 8% | B− |
| Kildare | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Newport | — 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 Dell Prairie
Where can I hike in Dell Prairie?
The longest trail networks: Dells of the Wisconsin River State Natural Area, 1.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Dell Prairie is conserved land?
2% 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 Dell Prairie’s trails?
Dells of the Wisconsin River State Natural Area doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Dell Prairie?
9,925 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Dell Prairie or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 38 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Dell Prairie have?
Ahead of 33% 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 Dell Prairie 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 →