Whether you are looking for walking, hiking, snowshoeing or skiing, there are lots of options for exploring this winter about 1.5 hours or less from the Fox Valley!
Trail Profiles can be found in these articles:
- Worth the Drive Hiking Trails about One Hour from Appleton – includes Appleton, Waupaca, Steven Point, Shiocton, Brillion, Sheboygan, Two Rivers, Chilton, and Maribel
- Green Bay Area Trails – includes De Pere, Green Bay, New Franklin, Luxemburg, Howard and Suamico
- Fox Valley Area Trails – includes Appleton, Grand Chute, Hortonville, Greenville, Neenah, Menasha, Fox Crossing, Little Chute, Kimberly, Kaukauna, and Sherwood
- Oshkosh Area Trails – includes Oshkosh, Omro, Waukau, and Rosendale
52 Hike Challenge
The perfect option for people new to the 52 Hike Challenge. Signing up for this FREE package gets you access to the challenge resources page and challenge guide download. The resources page includes hiking logs.
www.52hikechallenge.com/pages/kids-series
Wisconsin State Parks & Explorers Program
Discover Nature and Earn FREE Patches through the Wisconsin Explorers Program
15 Wisconsin State Parks Organized by Distance from Appleton (Less than 2 hours from Appleton)
- High Cliff State Park, Sherwood
- Trails for all skill levels from 0.4 to 3.4 miles. Snowshoeing allowed on all trails except those designated for cross-country skiing.
- Lost Dauphin State Park, De Pere
- Small park with rolling hiking trails. No admission sticker required for entrance.
- Heritage Hill State Park, Allouez
- Walkthrough this outdoor museum including structures from Wisconsin as far back as 1762. Individual admission fees for entrance.
- Hartman Creek State Park, Waupaca
- 10 miles of varied trails in the park, from flat and 1 mile long to 4.87 miles of hiking trail. Snowshoeing allowed on 3.5 miles of trails snowshoeing and off-trail hiking allowed anywhere other than the 6 miles of groomed cross-country trails.
- Copper Culture State Park, Oconto
- Walking throughout the park and along the Octono River available. No admission sticker required.
- Point Beach State Forest, Two Rivers
- 17 miles of hiking trails from a half mile to 7 miles long. 6 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline available to explore.
- Kettle Moraine State Forest – Pike Lake Unit, Hartford
- Endless miles of hiking trails to explore!
- Potawatomi State Park, Sturgeon Bay
- Three designated trails for winter hiking and snowshoeing from 0.5 to 1 mile.
- Kohler-Andrae State Park, Sheboygan
- Hiking and snowshoeing trails from 1 – 2.5 miles, boardwalk and shoreline for exploring.
- Peninsula State Park, Fish Creek
- Six miles of designated hiking and snowshoeing trails. Bonus! Sledding and tubing available on the number 17 fairway at the golf course.
- Harrington Beach State Park, Belgium
- Hiking trails and shoreline to explore. Designated groomed cross-country trails not open for hiking or snowshoeing.
- Roche-A-Cri State Park, Friendship
- Winter hiking and snowshoeing on more than 6 miles of trails. Main entrance closed in winter, use the parking lot on the north side of Czech Avenue, west of Hwy 13.
- Buckhorn State Park, Necedah
- Snowshoes available, avoid trails groomed for cross country skiing.
- Mirror Lake State Park, Baraboo
- Over 19 miles of hiking trails, snowshoeing and hiking allowed off trails designated for cross-country skiing.
- Devil’s Lake State Park, Baraboo
- 29 miles of trails are open but not maintained through the winter. The Steinke Basin Loop trail is periodically packed for easier hiking. Snowshoeing allowed anywhere in the park, avoid bluffs.
Winter Hiking
- 1000 Islands Environmental Center, Kaukauna
- Apple Creek Trail / Thrivent Trail, Appleton
- Baird Creek, Green Bay
- Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary, Green Bay
- Bubolz Nature Preserve, Grand Chute
- Brillion Nature Center, Brillion
- Bruce B. Purdy Nature Preserve (Apple Creek YMCA), Appleton
- Cave Point County Park, 5360 Schauer Rd, Sturgeon Bay
- Casaloma Conservancy, Grand Chute
- CE Trail, Kimberly
- Devil’s Lake State Park, Baraboo
- Fonferek Glen, Green Bay
- Fox Cities Trestle Trail, Neenah / Menasha / Fox Crossing
- Fox River Trail, Green Bay / De Pere
- Fox Valley Technical College, Grand Chute
- Green Bay Botanical Garden, Green Bay
- Heckrodt Nature Preserve, Menasha
- Hartman Creek State Park, Waupaca
- Heritage Parkway Trail, Little Chute
- High Cliff State Park, Sherwood
- Hydroelectric Heritage Trailway, Appleton
- Horicon Marsh, Horicon
- Iola Winter Sports Club, Iola* – groomed cross country ski trails
- Ken Euers Nature Area, Green Bay
- Kohler-Andrae State Park*
- Ledgeview Nature Center, Chilton
- Lion’s Den Gorge Nature Preserve, Grafton – bring your sled!
- L.H. Barkhausen Waterfowl Preserve, Suamico
- Maribel Caves County Park, Maribel
- Mascoutin Valley State Park Trail, Rosendale
- Meadowbrook Trail, Howard
- Memorial Park, Appleton
- Menominee Shoreline Trail to Menominee Park, Oshkosh
- Mountain Bay State Trail, Howard
- Mosquito Hill Nature Center, New London
- Navarino Nature Center, Shiocton
- Newberry Trail, Appleton
- North Island Trail, Appleton
- Old Stone Bridge Trail, Grand Chute
- Osprey Point, De Pere
- Pamperin Park, Green Bay
- Peninsula State Park, Fish Creek*
- Plamann Park, Appleton
- Point Beach State Park*
- Prairie Hill Park, Grand Chute
- Reid Golf Course, Appleton
- Riverview Gardens, Appleton
- Schmeeckle Reserve, Stevens Point
- Sheldon Nature Trail, Oshkosh
- Stevens Point Sculpture Park and the Green Circle, Steven Point
- Terrell’s Island, Omro
- UW-Green Bay Arboretum Trail, Green Bay
- Waukau Creek Nature Preserve, Waukau
- Whitefish Dunes State Park*
- Wiouwash State Trail
* may have an entrance fee or suggested donation
