Interstate Park
Managed by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
654 acres4.7 mi of trail
Skyline TrailLake of the Dalles TrailEagle Peak TrailSilverbrook Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Lamar Community Center · Photo: McGhiever · CC BY-SA 3.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in St. Croix Falls
St. Croix Falls has 773 acres of parks, 816 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Interstate Park (4.7 mi), Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway (1.5 mi). 7% of St. Croix Falls’ land is conserved, about 1,228 acres. 41% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 70% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
1,228 acres · of 29.0 sq mi of land
Trails
8.8 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
773 ac
816 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
41%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
6.7 mi
6.7 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
6
3 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is St. Croix Falls?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does St. Croix Falls have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, St. Croix Falls is ahead of 70% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of St. Croix Falls’ overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (9 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land816 acres of park per 1,000 residents (773 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home41% 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 70%
LessMore
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.
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 Interstate Park, with 4.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway
Managed by National Park Service
234 acres1.5 mi of trail
Ice Age Trail
Dogs usually limited
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Deer Lake Conservancy
Nature preserve
231 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 6 parks & preserves
Interstate Park654 acres · 4.7 mi of trail · Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsSaint Croix National Scenic Riverway234 acres · 1.5 mi of trail · National Park Service
DirectionsDeer Lake Conservancy231 acres
Wert Family Preserve11 acres
DirectionsWayside Park7 acres
DirectionsLions Park2 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
1,228 conserved acres
7% of St. Croix Falls’ land. Who manages St. Croix Falls’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources760 ac
National Park Service458 ac
Other or Unknown Federal Land254 ac
Private owners8 ac
Town or city1 ac
State Park · 710 acConservation Easement · 540 acWild and Scenic River · 205 acState Conservation Area · 17 acPrivate Park · 8 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 288 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Interstate Park-Iansr State Park | State natural resources | 661 | Open |
| Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway Wild and Scenic River | National Park Service | 205 | Open |
| Gandy Dancer State Trail State Park | State natural resources | 49 | Open |
| St. Croix National Scenic Riverway Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 18 | Open |
| St. Croix Valley Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 8 | Open |
Things to do
9 places to go in St. Croix Falls
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Boat launches in St. Croix Falls
3 boat launches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Scenic views in St. Croix Falls
Miracle at Big Rock
DirectionsPlus 1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in St. Croix Falls
Eagle PeakIn Interstate Park
DirectionsPicnic areas in St. Croix Falls
River Bottoms Picnic AreaIn Interstate Park
DirectionsCampgrounds in St. Croix Falls
Pines Group CampFee · In Interstate Park · Interstate State Park
DirectionsSouth CampgroundIn Interstate Park
DirectionsTrails & water
9 named trails and 6 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 6.2 mi
Ice Age Trail1.6 mi
Skyline Trail1.4 mi
Lake of the Dalles Trail1.1 mi
Eagle Peak Trail0.6 mi
Silverbrook Trail0.4 mi
River Bluff Trail0.3 mi
Ravine Trail0.3 mi
Echo Canyon Trail0.2 mi
Skyline Nature Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
6.7 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
6.7 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
1Baseball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Lamar Community CenterBuilding · listed 1982
About itWhen to get out
The walking year in St. Croix Falls
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) | 9.1 | 10.3 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 14.9 | 15.7 | 15.3 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.4 | 8.7 |
| High (°F) | 22 | 27 | 40 | 55 | 67 | 77 | 80 | 78 | 70 | 56 | 40 | 27 |
| Rain (in) | 0.8 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 2.8 | 4.1 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.2 | 3.5 | 3.1 | 1.7 | 1.2 |
January is the driest month (0.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 80 °F). 4.5 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in St. Croix Falls →
Next door
St. Croix Falls and its neighbors
St. Croix Falls has the most mapped trails of the 5 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Croix Falls | 7% | 0.3 | 816 | 41% | B+ |
| Balsam Lake | under 1% | 0.1 | 5 | 22% | D |
| Eureka | 5% | under 0.1 | 1 | 1% | D |
| Osceola | — 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 St. Croix Falls
Where can I hike in St. Croix Falls?
The longest trail networks: Interstate Park, 4.7 miles; Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway, 1.5 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of St. Croix Falls is conserved land?
7% 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 St. Croix Falls’ trails?
Interstate Park and Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in St. Croix Falls?
6.7 miles of bike routes are on the map: 6.7 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near St. Croix Falls?
16,679 acres of parks and open public land lie inside St. Croix Falls or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 980 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does St. Croix Falls have?
Ahead of 70% 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 St. Croix Falls 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 →