Bayfield County Forest
Managed by Bayfield County
5,949 acres13.9 mi of trail
Old Highway 2Tri County Corridor Multi-Use Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: User:Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Iron River
Iron River has 6,301 acres of parks, 4,869 for every 1,000 residents
32% of Iron River’s land is conserved, about 6,542 acres. 40 miles of mapped trail cross Iron River, 1.2 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Bayfield County Forest (13.9 mi), Tri-County Recreation Corridor (3.6 mi).
Ahead of 98% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
32%
6,542 acres · of 32.1 sq mi of land
Trails
40 mi
1.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
6,301 ac
4,869 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
89%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
3.5 mi
3.5 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
35
What kind of outdoors town is Iron River?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Iron River have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Iron River is ahead of 98% of U.S. towns. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; park acres per resident rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Iron River’s overall grade.
Conserved land32% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (40 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4APark land4,869 acres of park per 1,000 residents (6,301 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home89% 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 98%
LessMore
Water is 10% of Iron River’s area (3 of 36 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 29%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A 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 Bayfield County Forest, with 13.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Tri-County Recreation Corridor
Park
112 acres3.6 mi of trail
Tri County Corridor Multi-Use TrailTri County Corridor
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Inch Lake State Natural Area
Nature preserve
116 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Bayfield County Fairgrounds
Park
107 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Bayfield County Forest5,949 acres · 13.9 mi of trail · Bayfield County
DirectionsTri-County Recreation Corridor112 acres · 3.6 mi of trail
DirectionsInch Lake State Natural Area116 acres
Bayfield County Fairgrounds107 acres
Moon Lake Park64 acres · Town of Iron River
Who protects it
6,542 conserved acres
32% of Iron River’s land. Water is left out: Iron River has 32.1 square miles of land and 3.4 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Iron River’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County5,898 ac
U.S. Forest Service647 ac
State natural resources115 ac
Local Conservation Area · 5,783 acNational Forest · 647 acState Conservation Area · 231 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bayfield County Forest Local Conservation Area | County | 5,783 | Open |
| Chequamegon National Forest National Forest | U.S. Forest Service | 647 | Open |
| Natural Area State Conservation Area | County | 115 | Restricted |
| Inch Lake State Natural Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 115 | Restricted |
Things to do
2 places to go in Iron River
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Campgrounds in Iron River
Twin Lakes Recreation AreaFee · USFS
DirectionsPlus 1 campground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
3 named trails and 35 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 6.3 miUnpaved · 6.3 mi
Tri County Corridor Multi-Use Trail5.9 mi
Old Highway 22.6 mi
Tri County Corridor0.5 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Angus LakelakeBass LakelakeBismarck LakelakeBuskey BaylakeCat LakelakeCrooked LakelakeDuck LakelakeFire LakelakeFive Island LakelakeHalf Moon LakelakeHart LakelakeHicks LakelakeHobbs LakelakeIron River Flowage 8.37reservoirIsland LakelakeJohnson LakelakeLake MillicentlakeLong LakelakeLoon LakelakeLost LakelakeMcCarry LakelakeMoon LakelakeMullenhoff LakelakeNestle LakelakePerch LakelakePeterson LakelakePike LakelakePine LakelakeRoger LakelakeSpider LakelakeSteckbaur LakelakeTopside LakeTwin Bear LakelakeWentzel LakeIron River
Biking & sports
3.5 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
3.5 mi
off-road bike paths
Tri County CorridorBike route
6.3 miWhen to get out
September is the best month for walking in Iron River
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) | 9.0 | 10.2 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 15.0 | 15.8 | 15.5 | 14.2 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.3 | 8.6 |
| High (°F) | 21 | 26 | 38 | 51 | 65 | 74 | 79 | 77 | 68 | 53 | 38 | 25 |
| Rain (in) | 1.1 | 1.0 | 1.5 | 2.6 | 3.5 | 4.0 | 4.2 | 3.8 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 2.0 | 1.6 |
February is the driest month (1.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 79 °F). 4.2 inches fall in July, the wettest month. The climate in Iron River →
Next door
Iron River 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Iron River | 32% | 1.2 | 4,869 | 89% | A+ |
| Hughes | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Tripp | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Delta | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Keystone | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Pilsen | — 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 Iron River
Where can I hike in Iron River?
The longest trail networks: Bayfield County Forest, 13.9 miles; Tri-County Recreation Corridor, 3.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Iron River is conserved land?
32% 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 Iron River’s trails?
Bayfield County Forest and Tri-County Recreation Corridor don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Iron River?
3.5 miles of bike routes are on the map: 3.5 of off-road paths. Named routes: Tri County Corridor.
Is there public land near Iron River?
198,065 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Iron River or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 6,972 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Iron River have?
Ahead of 98% 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 Iron River 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 →