Photo: self · CC BY-SA 2.5Oshkosh has 61 acres of parks, 25 for every 1,000 residents
5.1 miles of mapped trail cross Oshkosh, 0.6 per square mile of land. 34% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 44% of U.S. towns. What drives it
How much outdoors does Oshkosh have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Oshkosh is ahead of 44% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.
Water is more than half of Oshkosh’s area (51 of 60 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read under 1%.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Pick a walk
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Island Park
20 conserved acres
1% of Oshkosh’s land. Water is left out: Oshkosh has 9.2 square miles of land and 50.5 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Oshkosh’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asylum Bay Rough Fish Station State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 19 | Open |
5 places to go in Oshkosh
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
2 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
2 boat launches without a name on the map.
1 named trail and 2 lakes & rivers
3.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
September is the best month for walking in Oshkosh
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 | 14.7 | 15.5 | 15.2 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 8.9 |
| High (°F) | 26 | 30 | 42 | 55 | 68 | 78 | 82 | 80 | 72 | 59 | 44 | 31 |
| Rain (in) | 1.3 | 1.1 | 1.8 | 3.1 | 3.9 | 4.7 | 3.8 | 3.5 | 3.2 | 2.9 | 2.0 | 1.5 |
February is the driest month (1.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.7 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Oshkosh →
Oshkosh and its neighbors
Oshkosh has the second most mapped trails of the 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oshkosh | 1% | 0.6 | 25 | 34% | C+ |
| Vinland | 1% | 0.2 | 5 | 15% | C− |
| Black Wolf | under 1% | 0.1 | 5 | 11% | D |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Oshkosh
How much of Oshkosh is conserved land?
1% 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 Oshkosh’s trails?
Sunnyview Exposition Center and Island Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Oshkosh?
3.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.2 of painted or protected lanes and 2.8 of off-road paths. Named routes: South Wiouwash State Recreation Trail.
Is there public land near Oshkosh?
9,234 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Oshkosh or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 61 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Oshkosh have?
Ahead of 44% 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 Oshkosh neighbors.
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 →