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A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Minocqua

25% of Minocqua’s land is conserved: 23,780 acres

646 acres are parks and preserves, 127 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: Willow Flowage Scenic Waters Area (8.2 mi), Squirrel River Pines State Natural Area (3 mi). 44% of residents live within a half mile of a park.

Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns · #110 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it

Conserved land
25%
23,780 acres · of 149.3 sq mi of land
Trails
62 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
646 ac
127 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
44%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
6.1 mi
1.3 mi lanes · 4.8 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
59
2 beaches · 13 boat launches

What kind of outdoors town is Minocqua?

Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.

Land that stays wild25% of the land is conserved; a typical Wisconsin town, 4%.Room to roam127 acres of park per 1,000 residents; the typical U.S. town has 13.History along the way4 places on the National Register.
Outdoors grade

How much outdoors does Minocqua have?

On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Minocqua is ahead of 80% of U.S. towns, #110 of 362 in Wisconsin. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.

A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Minocqua’s overall grade.
Conserved land25% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%ATrails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (62 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4BPark land127 acres of park per 1,000 residents (646 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13AParks close to home44% 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 80%
LessMore
Wisconsin towns of 2,500+ (362)Ahead of 70%

Water is 11% of Minocqua’s area (19 of 168 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 22%.

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.

1234
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 Flowage Scenic Waters Area, with 8.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.

Willow Flowage Scenic Waters Area

Managed by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
6,216 acres8.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗

Squirrel River Pines State Natural Area

Nature preserve
1,274 acres3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet

Tomahawk River Pines State Natural Area

Nature preserve
539 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet

Torpy Park

Managed by Town of Minocqua
5 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 19 parks & preserves
Willow Flowage Scenic Waters Area6,216 acres · 8.2 mi of trail · Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Directions
Squirrel River Pines State Natural Area1,274 acres · 3 mi of trail
Tomahawk River Pines State Natural Area539 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
Torpy Park5 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Town of Minocqua
Directions
Minocqua Park Complex25 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Directions
Northern Highland American Legion State Forest263 acres · Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Directions
Patterson Hemlocks State Natural Area190 acres
Lakeland Conservancy177 acres
Finnerud Pine Forest State Natural Area136 acres
Bearskin State Trail Park81 acres · Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Directions
Mercer Lake Springs Fishery Area72 acres
Kemp Natural Resources Station34 acres · University of Wisconsin-Madison
Oneida County Memorial Forest15 acres · Oneida County Forestry Department
Long Island10 acres
Spud Island1 acres
Eagle Island1 acres
Bearskin Trailhead Park1 acres
Directions
Dorwin Park1 acres
Directions
Cedar Park1 acres · Town of Minocqua
Who protects it

23,780 conserved acres

25% of Minocqua’s land. Water is left out: Minocqua has 149.3 square miles of land and 18.9 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Minocqua’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.

State natural resources30,605 ac
Private owners12,453 ac
County1,909 ac
U.S. Forest Service8 ac
State Conservation Area · 11,031 acState Resource Management Area · 8,708 acForest Stewardship Easement · 8,359 acUnknown Easement · 5,660 acState Recreation Area · 5,553 ac
Good to know

Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 3,673 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.

The biggest protected parcels
Parcel (PAD-US)Managed byAcresPublic access
Willow Flowage Scenic Waters Area
State Recreation Area
State natural resources15,668Open
Forest Legacy Program
State Resource Management Area
Private owners8,359Open
Natural Area
State Conservation Area
County1,907Restricted
Squirrel River Pines State Natural Area
State Conservation Area
State natural resources1,363Restricted
Timber Ridger Golf Course
Private Park
Private owners354Open
Upper Tomahawk River Pines State Natural Area
State Conservation Area
State natural resources350Restricted
Scattered Forest Lands
State Resource Management Area
State natural resources312Open
Scattered Forest Land - Nw
State Recreation Area
State natural resources309Open
Minocqua Country Club
Private Park
Private owners244Open
Patterson Hemlocks State Natural Area
State Conservation Area
State natural resources193Restricted

5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.

Things to do

32 places to go in Minocqua

Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.

Campgrounds in Minocqua
Cedar Falls CampgroundFee · Wisconsin Valley Improvement Company
Directions
Patricia Lake Campground
Directions

Plus 6 campgrounds without a name on the map.

Trails & water

55 lakes & rivers

Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Amber LakelakeBaker LakelakeBaycat LakelakeBear LakelakeBerry LakelakeBlue LakelakeBobcat LakelakeBolger LakelakeBooth LakelakeBootjack LakeBuckskin LakelakeBullhead LakelakeCedar FallsClawson LakelakeClear LakelakeCurtis LakelakeDiamond LakelakeFranklin LakelakeFuller LakelakeGreat Bass LakeHavener LakelakeHill LakelakeInkpot LakelakeKawaguesaga LakelakeLake JunnieLake MarielakeLake SixteenLittle Stone LakepondLost LakelakeMalby LakelakeMarion LakelakeMcNutt LakelakeMercer LakelakeMeyer LakelakeMinocqua LakelakeMinocqua Reservoir 89reservoirMusky PondpondMy LakepondPapkee LakelakePatricia LakelakePier LakelakePine LakelakeSchlecht LakelakeScotchman LakelakeShishebogama LakelakeSkunk LakelakeSmith LakelakeSquirrel LakelakeStone LakelakeSunday LakelakeMinocqua ThoroughfareSquirrel RiverTomahawk LakeTomahawk RiverWillow River
Biking & sports

6.1 miles of bike routes

Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.

1.3 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
4.8 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
15Tennis
8Baseball
3Football
2Soccer
2Beach volleyball

Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.

History along the way

4 places on the National Register

The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).

History →
Boesel, Ella M., BoathouseBuilding · listed 1997
About it
Orth, Phillip, BoathouseBuilding · listed 2005
About it
Walter, Luther and Anna, BoathouseBuilding · listed 2005
About it
Texaco Service StationBuilding · listed 2023
About it
When to get out

August is the best month for walking in Minocqua

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.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)9.010.311.813.514.915.715.414.112.510.89.48.7
High (°F)212638516574777567533826
Rain (in)1.31.11.72.93.64.54.13.53.73.52.01.6

February is the driest month (1.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 77 °F). 4.5 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Minocqua →

Next door

Minocqua and its neighbors

Minocqua has the second most mapped trails of the 8 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.

Fifield126 miMinocqua62 miLac du Flambeau37 miWoodruff37 miEmery26 miLittle Rice17 miLynne8.1 miHazelhurst7.7 mi
TownConserved
of land		Trail mi
per sq mi		Park acres
per 1,000		Near a park
½ mile		Outdoors
Minocqua25%0.412744%A−
Woodruff73%1.315258%A
Lac du Flambeau11%0.41114%B−
Hazelhurst3%0.224236%B
Little Rice— not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town
Lynne— not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town
Emery— not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town
Fifield— 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 Minocqua

Where can I hike in Minocqua?

The longest trail networks: Willow Flowage Scenic Waters Area, 8.2 miles; Squirrel River Pines State Natural Area, 3 miles; Tomahawk River Pines State Natural Area, 0.4 miles; Torpy Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.

How much of Minocqua is conserved land?

25% 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 Minocqua’s trails?

Willow Flowage Scenic Waters Area and Squirrel River Pines State Natural Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.

Where can I bike in Minocqua?

6.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.3 of painted or protected lanes and 4.8 of off-road paths.

Is there public land near Minocqua?

248,350 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Minocqua or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 9,143 of them inside the town line.

How much outdoors does Minocqua have?

Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #110 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 Minocqua neighbors.

Town Square →
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 →