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Hayward, Wisconsin 2Photo: Downspec · CC BY-SA 4.0
A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Hayward

Hayward has 4,104 acres of parks, 1,065 for every 1,000 residents

12% of Hayward’s land is conserved, about 4,276 acres. The biggest trail networks: Sawyer County Forest (4.6 mi). 31 miles of mapped trail cross Hayward, 0.5 per square mile of land.

Ahead of 84% of U.S. towns · #84 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it

Conserved land
12%
4,276 acres · of 56.9 sq mi of land
Trails
31 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
4,104 ac
1,065 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
55%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
7.7 mi
0.1 mi lanes · 7.6 mi paths
Highest peak
1,394 ft
County Hill
Lakes & rivers
6
4 boat launches

What kind of outdoors town is Hayward?

Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.

Room to roam1,065 acres of park per 1,000 residents; the typical U.S. town has 13.Land that stays wild12% of the land is conserved; a typical Wisconsin town, 4%.
Outdoors grade

How much outdoors does Hayward have?

On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Hayward is ahead of 84% of U.S. towns, #84 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 Hayward’s overall grade.
Conserved land12% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (31 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land1,065 acres of park per 1,000 residents (4,104 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home55% of residents within a half mile of a park · WI 90% · U.S. 72%B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 84%
LessMore
Wisconsin towns of 2,500+ (362)Ahead of 77%

Water is 10% of Hayward’s area (6 of 63 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 11%.

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.

1234
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 Sawyer County Forest, with 4.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.

Sawyer County Forest

Managed by Sawyer County
2,345 acres4.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailhead

Kissick Swamp Wildlife Area

Managed by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
912 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet

Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway

Managed by National Park Service
168 acres
Dogs usually limited
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗

Town of Hayward Recreational Forest

Park
157 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 7 parks & preserves
Sawyer County Forest2,345 acres · 4.6 mi of trail · Sawyer County
Directions
Kissick Swamp Wildlife Area912 acres · Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway168 acres · National Park Service
Town of Hayward Recreational Forest157 acres
Sawyer County Fairgrounds40 acres · Sawyer County
Directions
Chippewa Flowage12 acres · Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Washburn County Forest3 acres
Who protects it

4,276 conserved acres

12% of Hayward’s land. Water is left out: Hayward has 56.9 square miles of land and 6.5 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Hayward’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.

County2,279 ac
State natural resources1,151 ac
Private owners715 ac
National Park Service183 ac
Other or Unknown Federal Land58 ac
Local Conservation Area · 2,279 acState Recreation Area · 966 acPrivate Conservation · 584 acPrivate Park · 131 acState Resource Management Area · 129 ac
Good to know

Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 55 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.

The biggest protected parcels
Parcel (PAD-US)Managed byAcresPublic access
Sawyer County Forest
Local Conservation Area
County2,279Open
Kissick Swamp Wildlife Area
State Recreation Area
State natural resources921Open
St. Croix National Scenic Riverway
Private Conservation
Private owners584Open
Hayward Nursery
State Resource Management Area
State natural resources129Restricted
Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway
Wild and Scenic River
National Park Service125Open
Hayward Golf And Tennis Club
Private Park
Private owners116Open
Statewide Spring Ponds
State Conservation Area
State natural resources45Open
Statewide Spring Ponds - Nw
State Recreation Area
State natural resources45Open
Roynona Creek Golf Course
Private Park
Private owners15Open
Chippewa Flowage
State Conservation Area
State natural resources10Restricted

2 smaller protected places aren’t shown.

Things to do

5 places to go in Hayward

Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.

Peaks in Hayward
County Hill1,394 ft elevation
Directions
Trails & water

14 named trails and 6 lakes & rivers

Named trails
Unpaved · 2.6 mi
Snowshoe Trail - White Pine Loop1.2 mi
The Berries Loop1.0 mi
Connector0.8 mi
Pig's Knuckle L:oop0.7 mi
Little Easy Loop0.6 mi
Snowshoe Trail - Darrell's Loop0.5 mi
Snowshoe Trail0.5 mi
The Pines Loop0.5 mi
Marsh Trail0.5 mi
Creek Loop0.4 mi
4 more trails
Four Cubs Loop
0.4 mi
The Edge Connector
0.1 mi
Hospital Walking Trail
0.1 mi
Corkscrew Loop
0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Indian School LakelakeLittle Round LakelakeOsprey LakelakePhipps LakepondRound LakelakeNamekagon River
Biking & sports

7.7 miles of bike routes

Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.

0.1 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
7.6 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
2Baseball

Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.

When to get out

The walking year in Hayward

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.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)9.010.311.813.514.915.715.414.112.510.89.48.7
High (°F)202639526675797668543825
Rain (in)0.91.01.62.94.04.44.34.13.93.31.91.4

January is the driest month (0.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 79 °F). 4.4 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Hayward →

Next door

Hayward and its neighbors

Tap a town to see its outdoors.

Lenroot83 miRound Lake54 miHayward31 miHunter17 miBass Lake3.1 miLittle Round Lake0.5 miChief Lake0.0 miReserve0.0 mi
TownConserved
of land		Trail mi
per sq mi		Park acres
per 1,000		Near a park
½ mile		Outdoors
Hayward12%0.51,06555%A−
Bass Lake5%0.126412%B−
Lenroot55%1.018,10769%A+
Round Lake59%0.53,39616%A−
Hunter— not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town
Little Round Lake— not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town
Chief Lake— not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town
Reserve— 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 Hayward

Where can I hike in Hayward?

The longest trail networks: Sawyer County Forest, 4.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.

How much of Hayward is conserved land?

12% 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 Hayward’s trails?

Sawyer County Forest and Kissick Swamp Wildlife Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.

Where can I bike in Hayward?

7.7 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.1 of painted or protected lanes and 7.6 of off-road paths.

Is there public land near Hayward?

150,419 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Hayward or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 4,231 of them inside the town line.

How much outdoors does Hayward have?

Ahead of 84% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #84 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 Hayward neighbors.

Town Square →
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 →