Grant County Fairgrounds
Park
50 acres0.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Downspec · CC BY-SA 4.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Lancaster
Lancaster has 120 acres of parks, 30 for every 1,000 residents
3.4 miles of mapped trail cross Lancaster, 1.1 per square mile of land. 94% of residents live within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Grant County Fairgrounds (0.9 mi).
Ahead of 88% of U.S. towns · #68 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it
Conserved land
6%
116 acres · of 3.0 sq mi of land
Trails
3.4 mi
1.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
120 ac
30 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
94%
of residents within ½ mile
What kind of outdoors town is Lancaster?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Lancaster have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Lancaster is ahead of 88% of U.S. towns, #68 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 Lancaster’s overall grade.
Conserved land6% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%B+Trails1.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (3 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land30 acres of park per 1,000 residents (120 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home94% of residents within a half mile of a park · WI 90% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 88%
LessMore
Wisconsin towns of 2,500+ (362)Ahead of 81%
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 Grant County Fairgrounds, with 0.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
All 7 parks & preserves
Grant County Fairgrounds50 acres · 0.9 mi of trail
DirectionsMemorial Park25 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsSchreiner Park24 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsBaus Park9 acres
DirectionsSchacht Soccer Field4 acres
Ryland Park3 acres
Courthouse Square2 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
116 conserved acres
6% of Lancaster’s land. Who manages Lancaster’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Private owners59 ac
Town or city57 ac
Private Park · 59 acLocal Park · 53 acLocal Recreation Area · 4 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 59 | Open |
| Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 28 | Open |
| Schreiner Park Local Park | Town or city | 16 | Open |
| Baus Park Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Schacht Soccer Field Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Ryland Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
Things to do
5 places to go in Lancaster
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Lancaster
Municipal Swimming PoolIn Memorial Park
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Lancaster
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
6Tennis
3Baseball
1Soccer
1Basketball
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →6 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Grant County CourthouseBuilding · listed 1978
About itLancaster Municipal BuildingBuilding · listed 1983
About itL. J. Arthur HouseBuilding · listed 1985
About itLancaster Post OfficeBuilding · listed 2000
About itCourthouse Square Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2006
About itPatrick and Margaret Kinney HouseBuilding · listed 2008
About itWhen to get out
The walking year in Lancaster
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 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 26 | 31 | 44 | 58 | 69 | 78 | 82 | 80 | 73 | 60 | 44 | 31 |
| Rain (in) | 1.3 | 1.3 | 2.1 | 3.8 | 4.5 | 5.6 | 5.0 | 4.1 | 4.1 | 2.9 | 2.2 | 1.6 |
January is the driest month (1.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 5.6 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Lancaster →
Next door
Lancaster and its neighbors
Lancaster has the most mapped trails of the 2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lancaster | 6% | 1.1 | 30 | 94% | A |
| North Lancaster | — 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 Lancaster
Where can I hike in Lancaster?
The longest trail networks: Grant County Fairgrounds, 0.9 miles; Memorial Park, 0.3 miles; Schreiner Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Lancaster is conserved land?
6% 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 Lancaster’s trails?
Grant County Fairgrounds and Memorial Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Lancaster?
217 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Lancaster or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 120 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Lancaster have?
Ahead of 88% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #68 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 Lancaster 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 →