LaRiviere Park
Park
261 acres1.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: AviationTraveler · CC BY 4.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Prairie du Chien
99% of residents live within a half mile of a park in Prairie du Chien
599 acres are parks and preserves, 109 per 1,000 residents. The biggest trail networks: LaRiviere Park (1.9 mi), St. Feriole Island Park (0.6 mi). 3.5 miles of mapped trail cross Prairie du Chien, 0.6 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 86% of U.S. towns · #76 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
121 acres · of 5.9 sq mi of land
Trails
3.5 mi
0.6 per sq mi of land
Park land
599 ac
109 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
5.6 mi
5.6 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
1 beach
What kind of outdoors town is Prairie du Chien?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Prairie du Chien have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Prairie du Chien is ahead of 86% of U.S. towns, #76 of 362 in Wisconsin. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; park acres per resident rank highest, conserved land lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Prairie du Chien’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.6 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (4 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land109 acres of park per 1,000 residents (599 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13AParks close to home99% 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 86%
LessMore
Wisconsin towns of 2,500+ (362)Ahead of 79%
Water is 10% of Prairie du Chien’s area (1 of 7 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 3%.
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 LaRiviere Park, with 1.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
St. Feriole Island Park
Park
160 acres0.6 mi of trail
Walking Biking Path
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge
Managed by United States Fish and Wildlife Service
51 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Villa Louis
Managed by Wisconsin Historical Society
29 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
All 14 parks & preserves
LaRiviere Park261 acres · 1.9 mi of trail
St. Feriole Island Park160 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsUpper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge51 acres · United States Fish and Wildlife Service
Villa Louis29 acres · Wisconsin Historical Society
DirectionsWashington Street Park11 acres
DirectionsLawler Park7 acres
DirectionsLochner Park6 acres
Cecil Smith Athletic Field5 acres
Native Prairie Meadow3 acres
DirectionsBroadway Street Park2 acres
Villa Louis Duck Pond1 acres
DirectionsO'Brien Park1 acres
Blackhawk Junction Park1 acres
DirectionsMichigan and Park Street Park1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
121 conserved acres
3% of Prairie du Chien’s land. Water is left out: Prairie du Chien has 5.9 square miles of land and 0.6 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Prairie du Chien’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service102 ac
Town or city70 ac
National Wildlife Refuge · 102 acLocal Park · 66 acUnknown Easement · 4 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 4 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 14 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife And Fish Refuge National Wildlife Refuge | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 102 | Restricted |
| St Feriole Island Park Local Park | Town or city | 28 | Open |
| Washington Street Park Local Park | Town or city | 9 | Open |
| Lawler Park Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Fort Fun & Wacouta Aquatic Park Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Lochner Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Cecil Smith Athletic Field Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Unknown Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Lucky Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Blackhawk Junction Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
2 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
15 places to go in Prairie du Chien
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Prairie du Chien
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Public pools in Prairie du Chien
Charles Waquota Aquatic Pool
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Prairie du Chien
Fort Fun Playground
DirectionsSt. Feriole Island Play AreaIn St. Feriole Island Park
DirectionsSt. Feriole Island Riverfront PlaygroundIn Lawler Park
DirectionsPlus 6 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Prairie du Chien
1 dog park without a name on the map.
Fishing spots in Prairie du Chien
2 fishing spots without a name on the map.
Community gardens in Prairie du Chien
St. Feriole Island Gardens
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 0.6 mi
Walking Biking Path0.4 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
5.6 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
5.6 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
7Baseball
4Tennis
2Soccer
2Pickleball
1Skate park
1Volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →17 places on the National Register, 5 of them National Historic Landmarks
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 5 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Rolette HouseBuilding · listed 1972
About itStrange Powers HouseBuilding · listed 1979
About itCrawford County CourthouseBuilding · listed 1982
About itOld Rock SchoolBuilding · listed 1983
About itW.H.C. Folsom HouseBuilding · listed 1984
About itPrairie Du Chien Post OfficeBuilding · listed 2000
About itPrairie du Chien City HallBuilding · listed 2002
About it5 more on the History page.
When to get out
The walking year in Prairie du Chien
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) | 9.3 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.1 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 27 | 32 | 45 | 59 | 71 | 80 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 61 | 45 | 32 |
| Rain (in) | 1.2 | 1.2 | 2.0 | 3.8 | 4.6 | 5.8 | 4.5 | 4.1 | 4.0 | 2.7 | 2.1 | 1.5 |
February is the driest month (1.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 5.8 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Prairie du Chien →
Next door
Prairie du Chien and its neighbors
Prairie du Chien 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prairie du Chien | 3% | 0.6 | 109 | 99% | A |
| Bridgeport | 11% | 0.1 | 4 | 45% | C+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Prairie du Chien
Where can I hike in Prairie du Chien?
The longest trail networks: LaRiviere Park, 1.9 miles; St. Feriole Island Park, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Prairie du Chien is conserved land?
3% 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 Prairie du Chien’s trails?
LaRiviere Park and St. Feriole Island Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Prairie du Chien?
5.6 miles of bike routes are on the map: 5.6 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Prairie du Chien?
19,835 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Prairie du Chien or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 599 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Prairie du Chien have?
Ahead of 86% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #76 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 Prairie du Chien 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 →