Eau Claire County Forest
Nature preserve
2,678 acres1.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Lincoln
Lincoln has 2,837 acres of parks, 2,410 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Eau Claire County Forest (1.1 mi). 8% of Lincoln’s land is conserved, about 2,972 acres. 1.3 miles of mapped trail cross Lincoln.
Ahead of 53% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
8%
2,972 acres · of 57.9 sq mi of land
Trails
1.3 mi
0.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
2,837 ac
2,410 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
25%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,109 ft
Moldenhauer Hill
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Lincoln?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Lincoln have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Lincoln is ahead of 53% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Lincoln’s overall grade.
Conserved land8% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.0 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (1 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4C−Park land2,410 acres of park per 1,000 residents (2,837 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home25% 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 53%
LessMore
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B+. 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 Eau Claire County Forest, with 1.1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Beaver Creek Reserve
Nature preserve
205 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Harstad County Park
Managed by Eau Claire County
44 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
2,972 conserved acres
8% of Lincoln’s land. Who manages Lincoln’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County2,812 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)150 ac
State natural resources9 ac
Local Conservation Area · 2,812 acConservation Easement · 150 acRecreation or Education Easement · 9 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 160 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eau Claire County Forest Local Conservation Area | County | 2,812 | Open |
Things to do
1 places to go in Lincoln
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Peaks in Lincoln
Moldenhauer Hill1,109 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
2 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
When to get out
The walking year in Lincoln
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) | 9.2 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.8 | 15.6 | 15.2 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.8 |
| High (°F) | 23 | 29 | 41 | 56 | 68 | 77 | 81 | 79 | 71 | 58 | 41 | 28 |
| Rain (in) | 1.1 | 1.2 | 1.9 | 3.2 | 4.2 | 4.9 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 3.7 | 2.8 | 1.9 | 1.4 |
January is the driest month (1.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.9 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Lincoln →
Next door
Lincoln 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln | 8% | under 0.1 | 2,410 | 25% | B− |
| Washington | 1% | 0.2 | 38 | 44% | C+ |
| Ludington | 7% | under 0.1 | 2,416 | 21% | B− |
| Seymour | 11% | 0.7 | 676 | 47% | A− |
| Bridge Creek | 39% | 0.4 | 10,653 | 25% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Lincoln
Where can I hike in Lincoln?
The longest trail networks: Eau Claire County Forest, 1.1 miles; Beaver Creek Reserve, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Lincoln is conserved land?
8% 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 Lincoln’s trails?
Eau Claire County Forest and Beaver Creek Reserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Lincoln?
44,196 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Lincoln or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,837 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Lincoln have?
Ahead of 53% 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 Lincoln 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 →