Danky-Schleshorn Prairie
Managed by Historic Cooksville Trust
11 acres0.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Ingebretson, Gaute, Loft House · Photo: TheCatalyst31 · CC0C−Outdoors
Outdoors in Dunkirk
Dunkirk has 12 acres of parks, 8.0 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Danky-Schleshorn Prairie (0.7 mi). 0.9 miles of mapped trail cross Dunkirk. 1% of Dunkirk’s land is conserved, about 200 acres.
Ahead of 23% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
1%
200 acres · of 30.9 sq mi of land
Trails
0.9 mi
0.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
12 ac
8.0 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
53%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.5 mi
0.2 mi lanes · 0.3 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
3
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Dunkirk have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Dunkirk is ahead of 23% of U.S. towns. All four inputs are below most U.S. towns; the share of residents near a park comes closest.
C−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Dunkirk’s overall grade.
Conserved land1% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%CTrails0.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (1 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4C−Park land8.0 acres of park per 1,000 residents (12 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13C+Parks close to home53% 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 23%
LessMore
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Dunkirk. OpenStreetMap is mapped by volunteers and coverage varies from town to town, so a town with unmapped parks scores low on them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C− 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 Danky-Schleshorn Prairie, with 0.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Helen Johnson Trail
Park
2 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Virgin Lake Park
Park
1 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Dunkirk Township Park
Park
1 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
200 conserved acres
1% of Dunkirk’s land. Who manages Dunkirk’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
USDA easements (NRCS)129 ac
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service108 ac
County9 ac
Town or city7 ac
State natural resources1 ac
Conservation Easement · 129 acResource Management Area · 108 acLocal Park · 8 acState Conservation Area · 8 acState Recreation Area · 1 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 129 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dane County Waterfowl Production Area Resource Management Area | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 108 | Restricted |
| Extensive Wl Habitat - Public Hunting Ground State Conservation Area | County | 8 | Restricted |
| Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Pleasant Hill Heights Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Virgin Lake Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Viking Park Local Park | County | 1 | Open |
| Statewide Small Lake Creation - Sd State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 1 | Restricted |
Things to do
1 places to go in Dunkirk
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Dunkirk
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
3 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.5 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.2 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
0.3 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
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
September is the best month for walking in Dunkirk
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 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 28 | 32 | 44 | 58 | 70 | 79 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 61 | 45 | 33 |
| Rain (in) | 1.5 | 1.6 | 2.1 | 3.7 | 4.2 | 5.6 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 3.6 | 3.0 | 2.4 | 1.8 |
January is the driest month (1.5 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 5.6 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Dunkirk →
Next door
Dunkirk and its neighbors
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dunkirk | 1% | under 0.1 | 8 | 53% | C− |
| Stoughton | 6% | 1.0 | 31 | 99%+ | A |
| Porter | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Pleasant Springs | 4% | 0.2 | 198 | 51% | B |
| Albion | 2% | 0.3 | 153 | 20% | B− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Dunkirk
Where can I hike in Dunkirk?
The longest trail networks: Danky-Schleshorn Prairie, 0.7 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Dunkirk is conserved land?
1% 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 Dunkirk’s trails?
Danky-Schleshorn Prairie and Helen Johnson Trail don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Dunkirk?
0.5 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.2 of painted or protected lanes and 0.3 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Dunkirk?
11,472 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Dunkirk or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 12 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Dunkirk have?
Ahead of 23% 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 Dunkirk 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 →