Photo: Wineinger at English Wikipedia · Public domainSparta has 148 acres of parks, 46 for every 1,000 residents
28% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 4.5 miles of mapped trail cross Sparta, 0.1 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 32% of U.S. towns · #329 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it
How much outdoors does Sparta have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Sparta is ahead of 32% of U.S. towns, #329 of 362 in Wisconsin. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.
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.
140 conserved acres
under 1% of Sparta’s land. Who manages Sparta’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| La Crosse River State Trail State Park | State natural resources | 62 | Open |
| Elroy-Sparta State Trail State Park | State natural resources | 52 | Open |
| La Crosse Area Comprehensive Fishery Area State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 26 | Open |
1 places to go in Sparta
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
1 named trail and 2 lakes & rivers
4.6 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
The walking year in Sparta
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) | 24 | 30 | 42 | 57 | 69 | 78 | 82 | 80 | 72 | 58 | 42 | 29 |
| Rain (in) | 1.2 | 1.1 | 1.8 | 3.6 | 4.5 | 5.2 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 3.8 | 2.8 | 1.9 | 1.4 |
February is the driest month (1.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 5.2 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Sparta →
Sparta 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sparta | under 1% | 0.1 | 46 | 28% | C |
| Rockland | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Angelo | 2% | 1.1 | 175 | 36% | B+ |
| Little Falls | 5% | 0.1 | 1,222 | 40% | B |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Sparta
How much of Sparta is conserved land?
under 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.
Where can I bike in Sparta?
4.6 miles of bike routes are on the map: 4.6 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Sparta?
12,047 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Sparta or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 148 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Sparta have?
Ahead of 32% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #329 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 Sparta 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 →