1
University of Wisconsin Arboretum - Grady Tract
Nature preserve
150 acres3.6 mi of trail
X6-X8Z5-Z6X6-X5X6-V1X5-X3
Dog rules not recorded
DirectionsTo the parking lot
Outdoors · Fitchburg
Fitchburg, WI parks, trails & bike paths
About 8.3% of Fitchburg is conserved land, roughly 1,878 acres. There are about 19 miles of mapped trails, and the biggest networks are in University of Wisconsin Arboretum - Grady Tract (3.6 mi), Nevin Springs Fishery and Wildlife Area (2.7 mi), and McGaw Park (1.2 mi).
Conserved land, trails, parks and bike routes in Fitchburg, measured from OpenStreetMap and USGS data.
At a glance
Fitchburg outdoors
Conserved land
8.3%
1,878 of 22,544 acres
Trails
19 mi
0.5 mi per sq mi · 11 on conserved land
Parks & preserves
58
58 conserved acres per 1,000 residents
Bike routes
115.5 mi
50.7 mi lanes · 58.9 mi off-road paths
Conserved land is a share of the whole town area. Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number or a place below to zoom in© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Parks & preserves with trails
Ranked by mapped trail miles. Directions go to the nearest marked trailhead or public parking.
2
Nevin Springs Fishery and Wildlife Area
Managed by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
349 acres2.7 mi of trail
Fish Hatchery Path
Dog rules not recorded
DirectionsTo the parking lot
3
McGaw Park
Park
77 acres1.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
DirectionsTo the parking lot
4
Harlan Hills Prairie
Managed by City of Fitchburg
18 acres1.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
DirectionsTo the parking lot
5
Capital Springs State Recreation Area
Managed by Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
871 acres0.9 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
DirectionsTo the parking lot
6
Quarry Ridge Recreation Area
Managed by City of Fitchburg
65 acres0.8 mi of trail
Hiking Trail
Dog rules not recorded
DirectionsTo the parking lot
7
Jenni & Kyle Preserve
Managed by Dane County
154 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
DirectionsTo Syene Trailhead
8
McKee Farms Park
Park
57 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
All 58 parks & preserves
Showing 1–10 of 58 parks & preserves
University of Wisconsin Arboretum - Grady Tract150 acres · 3.6 mi of trail
Nevin Springs Fishery and Wildlife Area349 acres · 2.7 mi of trail · Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
McGaw Park77 acres · 1.2 mi of trail
Harlan Hills Prairie18 acres · 1.2 mi of trail · City of Fitchburg
Capital Springs State Recreation Area871 acres · 0.9 mi of trail · Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Quarry Ridge Recreation Area65 acres · 0.8 mi of trail · City of Fitchburg
Jenni & Kyle Preserve154 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · Dane County
McKee Farms Park57 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
Dawley Conservancy Park140 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
New Fountains Commons6 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
Who protects the land
1,878 conserved acres
Who manages it, from PAD-US. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn't always mean open to visitors. 190 acres are conservation easements, which are usually private land. Public access isn't recorded for 1 of 96 parcels. The places listed above are parks and preserves people visit.
Biking & sports
Bike routes, courts & fields
- Painted or protected bike lanes50.7 mi
- Off-road bike paths58.9 mi
- Shoulders & shared lanes5.9 mi
Courts & fields
- Basketball34
- Tennis25
- Soccer18
- Baseball16
- Pickleball12
- Beach volleyball9
- Lacrosse4
Counts include school and college facilities, which aren't always open to the public.
Nearby
Fitchburg and its neighbors
Towns whose outdoors data has been built so far.
| Town | Conserved | Trails | Parks & preserves |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fitchburg | 8.3% | 18.8 mi | 58 |
| Madison | 9.6% | 153.8 mi | 261 |
| Dunn | 27.3% | 4.1 mi | 15 |
| Verona | 4.7% | 22.1 mi | 10 |
| Blooming Grove | 20.7% | 8.5 mi | 8 |
Trail talk
Conditions & tips from neighbors
No recent posts about Fitchburg's trails yet. Muddy, icy, a bridge out, where to park: a quick post helps the next person.
Sources: trails, parks, preserves, courts and bike lanes © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), map data as of 2026-09-28. Conserved land: USGS Gap Analysis Project, Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US). Measured against the Census town boundary.
How we measure
"Trails" are OpenStreetMap paths, bridleways, public tracks and unpaved footways, plus footways inside a park or preserve or on a named trail route. Sidewalks are left out. Areas are counted on a 20.6-meter grid, so overlapping parcels count once. "Conserved" includes conservation easements, which protect land from development but are usually private property. Trailheads are the nearest marked trailhead, public parking lot or information board within about 150 meters of a preserve. Dog rules come from OpenStreetMap when someone has tagged them; otherwise we show what's typical for the land manager, or say the rules aren't recorded.