By state · WI

National Parks in Wisconsin.

Wisconsin's NPS network at a glance — units, designations, visit totals, and what shapes the visiting season.

By Nicholas Major · Last updated

Wisconsin's NPS flagship is Apostle Islands National Lakeshore (21 islands on Lake Superior, ferry- or kayak-only to most), plus Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway (jointly with Minnesota), the Ice Age National Scenic Trail (1,200 miles across the state), the North Country National Scenic Trail, and Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail segments. Minneapolis-Saint Paul (MSP, Minnesota), Duluth (DLH, Minnesota), and Milwaukee (MKE) anchor different parts of the network. Apostle Islands' practical visiting window is mid-May through October — ferries operate seasonally, ice caves form in cold winters but require lake conditions that aren't reliable year to year (the official NPS Apostle Islands page tracks ice-cave accessibility). Saint Croix Riverway is a paddle-and-camp summer destination. The state's NPS footprint is heavily water-and-trail rather than mountain or desert.

Every NPS unit in Wisconsin.

Wisconsin's 4 NPS units: 2 National Scenic Trails · 1 National Lakeshore · 1 National Scenic Riverway. Combined 5-year-average annual visits: 1,116,027 (multi-state units count their full visits in every state they touch — see methodology). The most-visited unit is Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway at about 825K annual visits.

UnitDesignation5-yr avg visitsBusiest month
Saint Croix National Scenic Riverway National Scenic RiverwaySACN 825,051 July
Apostle Islands National Lakeshore National LakeshoreAPIS 261,558 July
Ice Age National Scenic Trail National Scenic TrailIATR 29,418 July
North Country National Scenic Trail National Scenic TrailNOCO — —

Methodology

Unit list and per-unit visit counts come from the official NPS Visitor Use Statistics Data Package, 2025. The "5-year average visits" column is the mean of 2021-2025 Recreation Visits. Multi-state NPS units (Yellowstone, Death Valley, Great Smoky Mountains and others) are listed under every state they touch; the per-unit visit count is the unit's total, not a per-state share. Independent site, not affiliated with the National Park Service.

Adjacent reading

Independence

Independent site. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the National Park Service. Data comes from the official NPS Visitor Use Statistics Data Package, 2025; editorial analysis is ours. The NPS Arrowhead and other NPS marks are not used.

Last updated · 2026-05-19