Swan Park
Park
79 acres1.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Wernerradio · CC BY-SA 4.0A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Waupaca
Waupaca has 283 acres of parks, 45 for every 1,000 residents
91% of residents live within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Swan Park (1.2 mi), Nels Rasmussen Park (0.5 mi). 4.3 miles of mapped trail cross Waupaca, 0.5 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 81% of U.S. towns · #100 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
252 acres · of 7.9 sq mi of land
Trails
4.3 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
283 ac
45 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
91%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
2.5 mi
2.5 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
3
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Waupaca?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Waupaca have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Waupaca is ahead of 81% of U.S. towns, #100 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 Waupaca’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical WI town 4% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (4 mi) · WI 0.4 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land45 acres of park per 1,000 residents (283 acres) · WI 31 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home91% 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 81%
LessMore
Wisconsin towns of 2,500+ (362)Ahead of 73%
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 Swan Park, with 1.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Brainerd Bridge Park
Park
24 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
South Park
Park
20 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 9 parks & preserves
Swan Park79 acres · 1.2 mi of trail
Nels Rasmussen Park11 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
DirectionsBrainerd Bridge Park24 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
South Park20 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
Kiwanis Park12 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsGrand Slam Mini Golf1 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsRiverview Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsJim Boyer Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Bowersox Park1 acres
Who protects it
252 conserved acres
5% of Waupaca’s land. Who manages Waupaca’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city238 ac
State natural resources14 ac
Local Park · 238 acState Recreation Area · 13 acRecreation or Education Easement · 1 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 1 acre is a conservation easement, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Swan Park Local Park | Town or city | 140 | Open |
| Rivers Edge Oz Park Local Park | Town or city | 21 | Open |
| Brainards Bridge Park Local Park | Town or city | 19 | Open |
| Shambeau Park Local Park | Town or city | 17 | Open |
| South Park Local Park | Town or city | 17 | Open |
| Waupaca River Fishery Area State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 13 | Open |
| Riverside Park Local Park | Town or city | 11 | Open |
| Washington Park Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Lakemen Field Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| Rasmussen Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
3 places to go in Waupaca
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Waupaca
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Waupaca
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 3 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Story Walk0.4 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
2.5 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.5 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
7Baseball
6Tennis
3Basketball
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →14 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Crescent Roller MillsBuilding · listed 1978
About itDanes HallBuilding · listed 1980
About itBrowne Law OfficeBuilding · listed 1980
About itShearer-Cristy HouseBuilding · listed 1983
About itHansen, Jens, Wagon and Carriage ShopBuilding · listed 1994
About itWaupaca Free Public LibraryBuilding · listed 1996
About itWaupaca Post OfficeBuilding · listed 2000
About itMain Street Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2002
About itLake Street Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2002
About itHenry and Elizabeth Delong HouseBuilding · listed 2002
About itMatt and Lena Jensen HouseBuilding · listed 2002
About itMumbrue-Penney HouseBuilding · listed 2002
About it2 more on the History page.
When to get out
The walking year in Waupaca
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 | 14.8 | 15.5 | 15.2 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.9 |
| High (°F) | 25 | 30 | 41 | 56 | 68 | 78 | 82 | 79 | 72 | 58 | 43 | 30 |
| Rain (in) | 1.2 | 1.0 | 1.9 | 3.2 | 3.8 | 4.4 | 3.5 | 3.7 | 3.4 | 2.6 | 1.9 | 1.6 |
February is the driest month (1.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.4 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in Waupaca →
Next door
Waupaca and its neighbors
Waupaca has the second most mapped trails of the 4 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Waupaca | 5% | 0.5 | 45 | 91% | A− |
| Farmington | 2% | 0.3 | 95 | 44% | B− |
| King | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Chain O' Lakes | — 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 Waupaca
Where can I hike in Waupaca?
The longest trail networks: Swan Park, 1.2 miles; Nels Rasmussen Park, 0.5 miles; Brainerd Bridge Park, 0.4 miles; South Park, 0.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Waupaca 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 Waupaca’s trails?
Swan Park and Nels Rasmussen Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Waupaca?
2.5 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.5 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Waupaca?
8,115 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Waupaca or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 283 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Waupaca have?
Ahead of 81% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #100 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 Waupaca 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 →