Northern Highland American Legion State Forest
Managed by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
9,159 acres9.9 mi of trail
Shannon Lake TrailShannon Lake Trail bypass
Dogs on leash
Directionsto the trailheadWebsite ↗
B+Outdoors
Outdoors in St. Germain
St. Germain has 858 acres of parks, 415 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Northern Highland American Legion State Forest (9.9 mi). 5% of St. Germain’s land is conserved, about 1,148 acres. 35% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 66% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
1,148 acres · of 33.8 sq mi of land
Trails
11 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
858 ac
415 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
35%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
7.9 mi
0.1 mi lanes · 7.8 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
20
1 beach · 2 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is St. Germain?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does St. Germain have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, St. Germain is ahead of 66% 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. Germain’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (11 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land415 acres of park per 1,000 residents (858 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13AParks close to home35% 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 66%
LessMore
Water is 16% of St. Germain’s area (6 of 40 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 4%.
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 Northern Highland American Legion State Forest, with 9.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Vilas County Forest
Managed by Vilas County Forestry
115 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Who protects it
1,148 conserved acres
5% of St. Germain’s land. Water is left out: St. Germain has 33.8 square miles of land and 6.4 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages St. Germain’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources1,257 ac
Town or city191 ac
Private owners12 ac
County1 ac
State Resource Management Area · 926 acLocal Recreation Area · 191 acState Conservation Area · 181 acState Recreation Area · 151 acPrivate Park · 12 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scattered Forest Lands State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 745 | Open |
| St. Germain Municipal Golf Club Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 191 | Open |
| American Legion State Forest State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 178 | Open |
| New Wood Wildlife Area 1 State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 178 | Open |
| Scattered Forest Land - Nw State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 120 | Open |
| Statewide Public Access State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 17 | Open |
| Statewide Public Access - Nw State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 12 | Open |
| 19th Hole Par 3 Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 12 | Open |
| State Owned Islands State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 3 | Open |
| State Owned Islands - Nw State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 3 | Open |
3 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
4 places to go in St. Germain
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in St. Germain
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Boat launches in St. Germain
2 boat launches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Picnic areas in St. Germain
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Trails & water
2 named trails and 20 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 2.4 miUnpaved · 2.5 mi
Shannon Lake Trail2.3 mi
Shannon Lake Trail bypass0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Alma LakelakeBeaver LakelakeBig Saint Germain LakelakeDeadman LakelakeFawn LakelakeFound LakelakeHiawatha LakelakeKasomo LakelakeKuehn LakeLake ContentlakeLittle Bass LakelakeLittle Cloud LakelakeLittle Mamie LakelakeLittle Saint Germain LakelakeLost LakelakeMoon LakelakeMud LakepondShannon LakelakeStella LakelakeSaint Germain River
Biking & sports
7.9 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.1 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
7.8 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
4Tennis
2Baseball
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).
Peacock InnBuilding · listed 2017
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in St. Germain: May and August
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) | 9.0 | 10.3 | 11.8 | 13.5 | 14.9 | 15.7 | 15.4 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.4 | 8.7 |
| High (°F) | 21 | 26 | 38 | 51 | 65 | 74 | 77 | 75 | 67 | 53 | 38 | 26 |
| Rain (in) | 1.3 | 1.1 | 1.7 | 2.8 | 3.6 | 4.4 | 4.1 | 3.5 | 3.7 | 3.5 | 2.0 | 1.7 |
February is the driest month (1.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 77 °F). 4.4 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in St. Germain →
Next door
St. Germain 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Germain | 5% | 0.3 | 415 | 35% | B+ |
| Newbold | 44% | 0.2 | 1,239 | 50% | A− |
| Cloverland | 40% | 0.9 | 6,842 | 68% | A+ |
| Arbor Vitae | 1% | 0.7 | 40 | 11% | C+ |
| Plum Lake | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Sayner | — 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. Germain
Where can I hike in St. Germain?
The longest trail networks: Northern Highland American Legion State Forest, 9.9 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of St. Germain is conserved land?
5% 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. Germain’s trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Northern Highland American Legion State Forest (on leash). For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in St. Germain?
7.9 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.1 of painted or protected lanes and 7.8 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near St. Germain?
186,605 acres of parks and open public land lie inside St. Germain or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 9,775 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does St. Germain have?
Ahead of 66% 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. Germain 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 →