Hoffman Hills State Recreation Area
Nature preserve
71 acres0.9 mi of trail
Star WarsSkylineSpring Run
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
BOutdoors
Outdoors in Elk Mound
Elk Mound has 2,283 acres of parks, 1,251 for every 1,000 residents
11% of Elk Mound’s land is conserved, about 2,398 acres. The biggest trail networks: Hoffman Hills State Recreation Area (0.9 mi). 17% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 63% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
11%
2,398 acres · of 33.7 sq mi of land
Trails
5.9 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
2,283 ac
1,251 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
17%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,148 ft
Panther Hill
What kind of outdoors town is Elk Mound?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Elk Mound have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Elk Mound is ahead of 63% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Elk Mound’s overall grade.
Conserved land11% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land1,251 acres of park per 1,000 residents (2,283 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home17% 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 63%
LessMore
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ 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 Hoffman Hills State Recreation Area, with 0.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Muddy Creek Wildlife Area
Nature preserve
2,234 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Muddy Creek Sedge Meadow State Natural Area
Nature preserve
34 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
2,398 conserved acres
11% of Elk Mound’s land. Who manages Elk Mound’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources2,412 ac
Private owners60 ac
County41 ac
State Recreation Area · 2,312 acState Park · 75 acState Conservation Area · 61 acRecreation or Education Easement · 56 acConservation Easement · 7 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 9 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Muddy Creek Wildlife Area State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 2,185 | Open |
| Hoffman Hills Recreation Area State Park | State natural resources | 75 | Open |
| Elk Creek Fishery Area State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 68 | Open |
| Scattered Wildlife State Conservation Area | County | 41 | Restricted |
| Scattered Wildlife - Wd State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 41 | Open |
| Statewide Wildlife Habitat State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 20 | Restricted |
| Statewide Wildlife Habitat - Wd State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 20 | Open |
Things to do
2 places to go in Elk Mound
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Peaks in Elk Mound
Panther Hill1,148 ft elevation
DirectionsCampgrounds in Elk Mound
Hoffman's Hills
DirectionsTrails & water
3 named trails
Named trails
Unpaved · 1.0 mi
Star Wars0.5 mi
Skyline0.2 mi
Spring Run0.1 mi
When to get out
The walking year in Elk Mound
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) | 9.1 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.8 | 15.6 | 15.3 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.8 |
| High (°F) | 23 | 28 | 41 | 56 | 68 | 78 | 82 | 79 | 71 | 58 | 41 | 28 |
| Rain (in) | 1.0 | 1.1 | 1.9 | 3.1 | 4.1 | 4.9 | 3.8 | 4.2 | 3.6 | 2.8 | 1.9 | 1.4 |
January is the driest month (1.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.9 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Elk Mound →
Next door
Elk Mound 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elk Mound | 11% | 0.2 | 1,251 | 17% | B |
| Wheaton | 1% | under 0.1 | 73 | 28% | C |
| Red Cedar | 7% | 1.0 | 310 | 45% | A− |
| Spring Brook | 3% | 0.1 | 648 | 20% | B− |
| Colfax | — 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 Elk Mound
Where can I hike in Elk Mound?
The longest trail networks: Hoffman Hills State Recreation Area, 0.9 miles; Muddy Creek Wildlife Area, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Elk Mound is conserved land?
11% 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 Elk Mound’s trails?
Hoffman Hills State Recreation Area and Muddy Creek Wildlife Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Elk Mound?
10,388 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Elk Mound or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,283 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Elk Mound have?
Ahead of 63% 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 Elk Mound 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 →