Burnett County Forest
Nature preserve
20,708 acres53.1 mi of trail
Snomobile/ATV TrailSnowmobile/ATV TrailSalty Steer Spur
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Tony Webster from Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States · CC BY-SA 2.0–Not graded
Outdoors in Swiss
Few parks or trails are on the map in Swiss
The biggest trail networks: Burnett County Forest (53.1 mi). 13% of Swiss’ land is conserved, about 4,911 acres. 129 acres are parks and preserves, 168 per 1,000 residents.
Conserved land
13%
4,911 acres · of 57.5 sq mi of land
Trails
58 mi
1.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
129 ac
168 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
34%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.3 mi
1.3 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
25
1 boat launch
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 Burnett County Forest, with 53.1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway
Managed by National Park Service
1,396 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dogs usually limited
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Governor Knowles State Forest
Nature preserve
756 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Lake 26 Park
Park
26 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 7 parks & preserves
Burnett County Forest20,708 acres · 53.1 mi of trail
DirectionsSaint Croix National Scenic Riverway1,396 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · National Park Service
DirectionsGovernor Knowles State Forest756 acres
DirectionsLake 26 Park26 acres
Saint Croix State Park15 acres · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsSt. Croix State Forest6 acres · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Ralph Larrabee Park1 acres
Who protects it
4,911 conserved acres
13% of Swiss’ land. Water is left out: Swiss has 57.5 square miles of land and 3.3 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Swiss’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources2,674 ac
National Park Service2,278 ac
Other or Unknown Federal Land702 ac
County56 ac
State Conservation Area · 1,959 acWild and Scenic River · 1,527 acConservation Easement · 1,453 acState Resource Management Area · 733 acState Park · 26 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 664 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Danbury Wildlife Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 1,901 | Restricted |
| Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway Wild and Scenic River | National Park Service | 1,527 | Open |
| Governor Knowles State Forest State Resource Management Area | State natural resources | 733 | Open |
| Private Land State Conservation Area | County | 56 | Open |
| Gandy Dancer State Trail State Park | State natural resources | 26 | Open |
| St Croix River Public Access State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 13 | Open |
| St. Croix National Scenic Riverway State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 1 | Open |
Things to do
2 places to go in Swiss
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Swiss
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Boat launches in Swiss
Thayer's Landing
DirectionsTrails & water
4 named trails and 25 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 0.8 miUnpaved · 31.5 mi
Snomobile/ATV Trail20.8 mi
Snowmobile/ATV Trail8.7 mi
Salty Steer Spur1.0 mi
Gandy Dancer State Trail0.8 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Bass LakeBerg LakeBriggs LakeBurlingame LakeCranberry LakeDeer LakelakeEagle LakelakeFawn LakeFenton LakeFloyd LakeGull LakelakeJohnson LakelakeLittle Round LakelakeLong LakelakeMinerva LakereservoirMud LakeMyrick LakelakeRobie LakeRound LakelakeSchaaf LakeStaples LakelakeStone LakelakeTabor LakeTwentysix LakelakeYellow River
Biking & sports
1.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.3 mi
off-road bike paths
Gandy Dancer State TrailBike route
0.8 miCourts & fields
1Baseball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The walking year in Swiss
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 | 27 | 39 | 53 | 67 | 76 | 80 | 78 | 70 | 56 | 39 | 26 |
| Rain (in) | 0.8 | 0.8 | 1.4 | 2.7 | 3.6 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 3.9 | 3.6 | 3.1 | 1.6 | 1.2 |
January is the driest month (0.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 80 °F). 4.3 inches fall in July, the wettest month. The climate in Swiss →
Next door
Swiss and its neighbors
Swiss has the second most mapped trails of the 8 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Blaine67 miSwiss58 miUnion43 miWebb Lake31 miOgema Township21 miJackson11 miDanbury1.1 miOakland1.0 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swiss | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Danbury | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Blaine | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Oakland | 4% | under 0.1 | 116 | 28% | B− |
| Webb Lake | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Union | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Jackson | — 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 Swiss
Where can I hike in Swiss?
The longest trail networks: Burnett County Forest, 53.1 miles; Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
Are dogs allowed on Swiss’ trails?
Burnett County Forest 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 Swiss?
1.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.3 of off-road paths. Named routes: Gandy Dancer State Trail.
Is there public land near Swiss?
57,363 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Swiss or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,237 of them inside the town line.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Swiss 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 →