Big Foot Beach State Park
Managed by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
254 acres7.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Main Street Historic District · Photo: Teemu08 · CC BY-SA 3.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Lake Geneva
10% of Lake Geneva’s land is conserved, and virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 13 miles of mapped trail cross Lake Geneva, 1.9 per square mile of land. 682 acres are parks and preserves, 80 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 97% of U.S. towns · #8 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it
Conserved land
10%
424 acres · of 7.0 sq mi of land
Trails
13 mi
1.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
682 ac
80 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
7.3 mi
0.3 mi lanes · 7.0 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
4
3 beaches
What kind of outdoors town is Lake Geneva?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Land that stays wild10% of the land is conserved; a typical Wisconsin town, 4%.A trail town1.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 93% of U.S. towns.Parks close to homeVirtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park.History along the way8 places on the National Register.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Lake Geneva have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Lake Geneva is ahead of 97% of U.S. towns, #8 of 362 in Wisconsin. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, conserved land lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Lake Geneva’s overall grade.
Conserved land10% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.9 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (13 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4APark land80 acres of park per 1,000 residents (682 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · WI 90% · U.S. 72%A
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 97%
LessMore
Wisconsin towns of 2,500+ (362)Ahead of 98%
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 Big Foot Beach State Park, with 7.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Hillmoor
Managed by City of Lake Geneva
188 acres1.4 mi of trail
Orange Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Four Seasons Nature Preserve
Managed by City of Lake Geneva
64 acres0.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Harald A Fritz Veterans Park
Park
37 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 10 parks & preserves
Big Foot Beach State Park254 acres · 7.3 mi of trail · Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsHillmoor188 acres · 1.4 mi of trail · City of Lake Geneva
DirectionsFour Seasons Nature Preserve64 acres · 0.9 mi of trail · City of Lake Geneva
DirectionsHarald A Fritz Veterans Park37 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsElm Park4 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsSamuel Donian Wetland Preserve6 acres · City of Lake Geneva
DirectionsMaple Park4 acres
DirectionsSeminary Park4 acres
DirectionsBloomfield Wildlife Area2 acres
Flatiron Park2 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
424 conserved acres
10% of Lake Geneva’s land. Who manages Lake Geneva’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources258 ac
Town or city164 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits3 ac
County1 ac
State Park · 256 acLocal Park · 85 acLocal Conservation Area · 72 acLocal Other or Unknown · 7 acConservation Easement · 3 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Big Foot Beach State Park State Park | State natural resources | 256 | Open |
| Four Seasons Nature Preserve Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 67 | Open |
| Veterans Park Local Park | Town or city | 35 | Open |
| Dunn Field Local Park | Town or city | 14 | Open |
| Fermano Park Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Samuel Donian Wetland Preserve Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Home Depot Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Cobb Park Local Other or Unknown | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Price Fremont Woods Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Rushwood Park Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
18 places to go in Lake Geneva
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Lake Geneva
Riviera BeachFee
DirectionsPlus 2 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in Lake Geneva
9 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Dog parks in Lake Geneva
2 dog parks without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Lake Geneva
1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Picnic areas in Lake Geneva
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Lake Geneva
RV Camping @ Big Foot Beach State ParkIn Big Foot Beach State Park
DirectionsTent Camping @ Big Foot Beach State ParkIn Big Foot Beach State Park
DirectionsTrails & water
3 named trails and 4 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 9.7 mi
Lake Geneva Shore Path1.1 mi
Geneva Lake Shore Path0.7 mi
Orange Trail0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
7.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.3 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
7.0 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
23Tennis
13Baseball
9Basketball
3Beach volleyball
2Pickleball
2Football
1Skate park
1Softball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →8 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
YounglandsBuilding · listed 1979
About itT. C. Smith HouseBuilding · listed 1982
About itRedwood CottageBuilding · listed 1984
About itMetropolitan BlockBuilding · listed 1990
About itHorticultural HallBuilding · listed 1999
About itMain Street Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2002
About itMaple Park Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2005
About itOak Hill CemeterySite · listed 2021
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Lake Geneva: July and September
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) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 29 | 33 | 45 | 57 | 69 | 79 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 61 | 46 | 34 |
| Rain (in) | 1.7 | 1.7 | 2.2 | 3.7 | 4.3 | 4.9 | 3.7 | 3.9 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 2.4 | 2.0 |
February is the driest month (1.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.9 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Lake Geneva →
Next door
Lake Geneva 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Geneva | 10% | 1.9 | 80 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Linn | 1% | 0.8 | 64 | 12% | B− |
| Geneva | 1% | 1.0 | 17 | 46% | B− |
| Lyons | 3% | 0.4 | 72 | 46% | B |
| Bloomfield | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Bloomfield | 7% | 0.1 | 5 | 43% | C |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Lake Geneva
Where can I hike in Lake Geneva?
The longest trail networks: Big Foot Beach State Park, 7.3 miles; Hillmoor, 1.4 miles; Four Seasons Nature Preserve, 0.9 miles; Harald A Fritz Veterans Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Lake Geneva 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 Lake Geneva’s trails?
Big Foot Beach State Park and Hillmoor don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Lake Geneva?
7.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.3 of painted or protected lanes and 7.0 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Lake Geneva?
6,788 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Lake Geneva or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 682 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Lake Geneva have?
Ahead of 97% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #8 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 Lake Geneva 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 →