Crow Wing County offers many opportunities for residents and visitors to enjoy the outdoors, including more than 100 acres of parks, more than 1,000 miles of trails and more than 100,000 acres of public land.
Among the more than 100 acres of parks is the newly updated Paul M. Thiede Fire Tower Park, located on County Road 11 in Pequot Lakes. This park was first opened to the public last summer and includes a historic fire tower more than 100 feet tall, built in 1935, that is open for climbing.
The park also has a picnic shelter, vaulted toilet and an abundance of walking trails with many interpretive signs along the way.
Other county parks include Big Island on the Whitefish Chain of Lakes, Milford Mine Memorial Park just a few miles north of Crosby, and South Long Lake Community Park at the south end of South Long Lake.
In addition to parks, the 1,000-plus miles of trail opportunities are diverse and include nonmotorized uses, such as hiking, horse riding and mountain biking, as well as motorized uses, such as ATV riding, off-highway motorcycle riding and snowmobiling.
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The trails are monitored and maintained by both county Land Services staff and trail user groups.
Maps of all county trails are available in the Land Services building. A full list of all Crow Wing County parks, trails and recreational opportunities can be viewed on the county website at http://crowwing.us/289/Recreation .
