Aldo Leopold Foundation
Nature preserve
630 acres1.7 mi of trail
Prairie Vista LoopSavanna Loop
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trail signWebsite ↗
BOutdoors
Outdoors in Fairfield
Fairfield has 1,446 acres of parks, 1,242 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Aldo Leopold Foundation (1.7 mi). 8% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 7% of Fairfield’s land is conserved, about 1,583 acres.
Ahead of 55% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
1,583 acres · of 33.4 sq mi of land
Trails
4.6 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,446 ac
1,242 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
8%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Fairfield?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Fairfield have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Fairfield is ahead of 55% 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 Fairfield’s overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (5 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land1,242 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,446 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home8% of residents within a half mile of a park · WI 90% · U.S. 72%D
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 55%
LessMore
Water is 6% of Fairfield’s area (2 of 36 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 7%.
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 Aldo Leopold Foundation, with 1.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Pine Island State Wildlife Area
Managed by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
1,415 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Lower Narrows State Natural Area
Managed by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
78 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Yellow Thunder Park
Managed by Sauk County
1 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
1,583 conserved acres
7% of Fairfield’s land. Water is left out: Fairfield has 33.4 square miles of land and 2.2 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Fairfield’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources1,882 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits66 ac
County1 ac
State Recreation Area · 1,437 acState Conservation Area · 368 acConservation Easement · 105 acState Park · 39 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 105 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pine Island Wildlife Area State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 1,398 | Open |
| Pine Island Wildlife Area 3 State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 189 | Open |
| Pine Island Wildlife Area 2 State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 98 | Open |
| Lower Narrows State Natural Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 40 | Restricted |
| Statewide Natural Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 40 | Open |
| Ice Age Trail - Sd State Park | State natural resources | 39 | Open |
| Ice Age Trail 56 State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 39 | Open |
| Natural Area State Conservation Area | County | 1 | Restricted |
Things to do
3 places to go in Fairfield
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Scenic views in Fairfield
1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Picnic areas in Fairfield
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Fairfield
Steel Oak CampgroundFee
DirectionsTrails & water
5 named trails and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 3.6 mi
Prairie Vista Loop0.8 mi
Savanna Loop0.4 mi
Stedman Landscape Loop0.3 mi
Prairie Loop0.3 mi
Wetland Loop0.3 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register, one a National Historic Landmark
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 3 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
September is the best month for walking in Fairfield
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 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 27 | 32 | 44 | 57 | 70 | 79 | 83 | 81 | 73 | 60 | 45 | 33 |
| Rain (in) | 1.3 | 1.3 | 2.2 | 3.8 | 4.2 | 5.2 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 3.6 | 2.8 | 2.1 | 1.7 |
January is the driest month (1.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 5.2 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Fairfield →
Next door
Fairfield 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fairfield | 7% | 0.1 | 1,242 | 8% | B |
| Lewiston | 5% | 0.1 | 271 | 12% | B− |
| Newport | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Delton | 14% | 0.8 | 928 | 19% | A− |
| Baraboo | 20% | 0.3 | 2,249 | 49% | A− |
| Caledonia | 18% | under 0.1 | 2,634 | 16% | B |
| Greenfield | — 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 Fairfield
Where can I hike in Fairfield?
The longest trail networks: Aldo Leopold Foundation, 1.7 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Fairfield is conserved land?
7% 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 Fairfield’s trails?
Aldo Leopold Foundation and Pine Island State Wildlife Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Fairfield?
33,812 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Fairfield or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,446 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Fairfield have?
Ahead of 55% 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 Fairfield 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 →