Willow River State Park
Managed by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
1,296 acres8.3 mi of trail
Pioneer TrailKnapweed TrailTrout Brook TrailOak Ridge Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: 123dieinafire · CC BY 3.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Hudson
Hudson has 1,399 acres of parks, 160 for every 1,000 residents
10% of Hudson’s land is conserved, about 1,542 acres. The biggest trail networks: Willow River State Park (8.3 mi). 46% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 74% of U.S. towns · #146 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it
Conserved land
10%
1,542 acres · of 24.4 sq mi of land
Trails
8.9 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,399 ac
160 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
46%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
8.3 mi
7.4 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
1 beach · 1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Hudson?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Hudson have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Hudson is ahead of 74% of U.S. towns, #146 of 362 in Wisconsin. 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 Hudson’s overall grade.
Conserved land10% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (9 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4BPark land160 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,399 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13AParks close to home46% 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 74%
LessMore
Wisconsin towns of 2,500+ (362)Ahead of 60%
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.
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 Willow River State Park, with 8.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Clapp Waterfowl Production Area
Managed by United States Fish and Wildlife Service
222 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Eckert-Richards Blufflands
Managed by Saint Croix County
48 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Willow River State Park1,296 acres · 8.3 mi of trail · Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsClapp Waterfowl Production Area222 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · United States Fish and Wildlife Service
DirectionsPrairie Park13 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsEckert-Richards Blufflands48 acres · Saint Croix County
Cedar Hills Park10 acres · Town of Hudson
DirectionsWho protects it
1,542 conserved acres
10% of Hudson’s land. Who manages Hudson’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources1,268 ac
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service450 ac
Town or city49 ac
State Park · 1,268 acResource Management Area · 450 acLocal Recreation Area · 40 acLocal Park · 9 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Willow River State Park State Park | State natural resources | 1,268 | Open |
| St. Croix County Waterfowl Production Area Resource Management Area | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 450 | Restricted |
| Hudson Soccer Association Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 40 | Open |
| Cedar Hills Park Local Park | Town or city | 9 | Open |
Things to do
7 places to go in Hudson
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Hudson
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Public pools in Hudson
1 public pool without a name on the map.
Playgrounds in Hudson
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Hudson
1 boat launch without a name on the map.
Trails & water
10 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.3 miUnpaved · 6.3 mi
Pioneer Trail1.1 mi
Knapweed Trail1.0 mi
Trout Brook Trail0.9 mi
Oak Ridge Trail0.9 mi
WhiteTail Trail0.8 mi
Southern Traverse0.7 mi
Nelson Farm Trail0.6 mi
Brown Trout0.5 mi
Willow Falls Trail0.2 mi
Smallmouth0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
8.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
7.4 mi
off-road bike paths
0.8 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
13Soccer
4Baseball
2Softball
1Beach volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The walking year in Hudson
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 | 10.3 | 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 | 80 | 72 | 58 | 41 | 28 |
| Rain (in) | 0.9 | 0.8 | 1.6 | 2.9 | 4.2 | 5.2 | 4.1 | 4.5 | 3.4 | 2.8 | 1.7 | 1.2 |
February is the driest month (0.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 5.2 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Hudson →
Next door
Hudson and its neighbors
Hudson has the second most mapped trails of the 6 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hudson | 10% | 0.4 | 160 | 46% | B+ |
| North Hudson | 6% | under 0.1 | 25 | 99%+ | B |
| Troy | 3% | 0.2 | 16 | 32% | C+ |
| Warren | 7% | 0.1 | 547 | 23% | B |
| St. Joseph | 9% | 0.3 | 482 | 43% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Hudson
Where can I hike in Hudson?
The longest trail networks: Willow River State Park, 8.3 miles; Clapp Waterfowl Production Area, 0.4 miles; Prairie Park, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Hudson is conserved land?
10% 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 Hudson’s trails?
Willow River State Park and Clapp Waterfowl Production Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Hudson?
8.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 7.4 of off-road paths and 0.8 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Hudson?
21,059 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Hudson or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,399 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Hudson have?
Ahead of 74% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #146 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 Hudson 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 →