A five-block walking path follows the Otter Tail River through the heart of downtown, connecting several parks along a shaded corridor of cottonwoods and willows. The river itself is wide and slow through town, and fishing is permitted from the riverbank. In summer the path is popular with walkers, joggers, and cyclists.
The river originates in a chain of lakes to the north and drains south and east into the Red River Valley. Within Otter Tail County, it passes through a landscape of lakes, glacial hills, and agricultural land typical of the Minnesota lake country. The city has 22 parks covering over 550 acres — an unusual ratio for a town of this size — and the river corridor connects several of them.