Photo: Royalbroil · CC BY-SA 3.0Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park in West Salem
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 128 acres are parks and preserves, 24 per 1,000 residents. 0.5 miles of mapped trail cross West Salem, 0.1 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 62% of U.S. towns · #229 of 362 in Wisconsin. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is West Salem?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does West Salem have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, West Salem is ahead of 62% of U.S. towns, #229 of 362 in Wisconsin. The share of residents near a park holds 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.
Pick a walk
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Lewis Point Park
Village Park
Veterans Park
All 7 parks & preserves
24 conserved acres
1% of West Salem’s land. Who manages West Salem’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 | 8 | Open |
| Village West Salem Ballfield & Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Pineview Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Veterans Memorial Park Local Park | County | 3 | Open |
| Greene Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Corral Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Jim Zanter Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
7 places to go in West Salem
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
6 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
1.1 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
3 places on the National Register, one a National Historic Landmark
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
The walking year in West Salem
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 | 15.4 | 15.2 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 8.9 |
| High (°F) | 25 | 31 | 44 | 58 | 70 | 79 | 83 | 80 | 73 | 59 | 44 | 31 |
| Rain (in) | 1.2 | 1.1 | 1.8 | 3.8 | 4.7 | 5.1 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 3.9 | 2.8 | 1.9 | 1.4 |
February is the driest month (1.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 5.1 inches fall in June, the wettest month. The climate in West Salem →
Questions about parks and trails in West Salem
How much of West Salem is conserved land?
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.
Are dogs allowed on West Salem’s trails?
Neshonoc South county park and Lewis Point Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in West Salem?
1.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.1 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near West Salem?
8,215 acres of parks and open public land lie inside West Salem or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 128 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does West Salem have?
Ahead of 62% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #229 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 West Salem 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 →