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Backus Minnesota Map

Explore Backus, Minnesota, with this interactive street and satellite map.

This page also offers TOPO MAPS — the official USGS topographic sheets — plus USGS aerial imagery, a labelled USNG grid overlay, a distance and bearing tool, and a GPS grid-reference readout. See How to Use This Map below.

Interactive Map of Backus, Minnesota

How to Use This Backus, Minnesota Map

This interactive map shows the street layout and satellite imagery for Backus, Minnesota. Use the Map and Satellite buttons above to switch between street map and aerial imagery views. Use the + and − buttons to zoom in or out, or scroll your mouse wheel while holding the Control key to zoom. On a touchscreen, use a two-finger pinch gesture. Drag the map to pan to any area of Minnesota or beyond.

Click ⛶ Fullscreen to expand the map to fill your screen. To return to the normal page view, press the Escape key, click the ✕ Exit Fullscreen button that appears above the map, or on a mobile device tap the back button (Android) or the close icon (iOS).

TOPO MAPS — NEW. Click the green 🔍 Search Maps button below the map to open a second map with a Base map row offering three choices. OSM is the standard OpenStreetMap street map. Topo shows the official USGS topographic maps from The National Map — contours, hydrography, land cover and shaded relief, the same mapping used for hiking, hunting and back-country navigation in the Adirondacks, the Catskills and the Finger Lakes. Imagery shows USGS aerial photography, mostly 1-metre NAIP. The search box finds any US town, county or landmark by name, so you are not limited to Backus.

Reading the map like a paper quad. Click Grid to overlay the U.S. National Grid (USNG), labelled along the edges exactly as a printed topographic sheet is — at normal zoom the squares are one kilometre across, so you can read a six-figure grid reference by eye and judge distance directly off the map. Click Measure, then tap two points, to get the distance between them together with the grid bearing in degrees and mils, the true bearing, and the magnetic bearing to set on a compass.

Click 📍 My position to take a single GPS reading from your device. It marks where you are and reports your position as a USNG grid reference as well as plain latitude and longitude — USNG being the format FEMA and US search and rescue teams work from — with a Copy position button so you can paste it straight into a text message. It takes one reading and stops, rather than tracking continuously, to conserve your battery. Note that map tiles need cell coverage, but a GPS reading does not — your coordinates stay correct even where the map itself cannot load.

City	Backus
State	Minnesota (MN)
County	Cass County
Country	United States of America
Timezone	Central Time (America/Chicago)

Latitude	46.820237
Longitude	-94.516388
Population	263
Density	163.8 /km²
Incorporated	Yes
ZIP Code	56435
Area Code	320
County Seat	Walker
School District	Pine River-Backus Public School District

🌦 Goto Backus Weather Page: Backus, Minnesota — Weather Warnings, Forecast, Radar, Satellite & Current Conditions

About Backus, Minnesota

Backus is a locality in Cass County, Minnesota, United States. It is a small community with a population of 263. The population density is 163.8 people per km². Backus is located at 46.8202°N, 94.5164°W. It observes the Central Time (America/Chicago) timezone. Backus is an incorporated locality. ZIP code: 56435.

Backus occupies a quiet expanse of the North Woods where the horizon is defined by the persistent, dark verticality of pine and spruce. It lies 35.3 miles north-northwest of Brainerd, MN (from Brainerd, MN: bearing 335°T), and is situated 20.0 miles northwest of Breezy Point. The land here remains shaped by ancient glacial movements, creating a terrain of subtle depressions and rising ground that holds the deep, clear waters of Pine Mountain Lake. Only a mile away, the South Fork Pine River moves with a slow, deliberate gravity, carving its path through the loam and tangled roots of the surrounding woodland. In the late autumn, the light turns thin and pale, casting long shadows across the fields that stretch toward the distant silhouette of Maple Hill, while the air carries the sharp, clean scent of cooling earth and dormant timber.

Life in Backus evolved from the heavy labor of the timber era, when the rhythm of the saw and the axe dictated the survival of those who first cleared these stands of pine. While the economy has shifted away from the intensive logging camps of the past, the legacy of that industry remains in the sturdy, unadorned architecture that defines the local landscape. Residents often seek the solitude of the Deerfield Trail or the quiet reaches of the Miscellaneous SRMA, maintaining a connection to the woods that persists through the long, quiet winters. Though the bustle of modern commerce feels distant, the local character remains grounded in a pragmatic self-reliance, with the nearby Badoura State Forest serving as a constant reminder of the wilder, unyielding geography that encircles the life of Backus.

Nearby Outdoor Places

Miscellaneous (State Resource Management Area) — 0.2 mi, 091° E
Foot Hills State Forest (State Resource Management Area) — 1.4 mi, 227° SW
Pine Mountain State Aquatic Management Area (Cass) (State Conservation Area) — 1.5 mi, 215° SW
Horseshoe Lake State Aquatic Management Area (Cass) (State Conservation Area) — 2.9 mi, 035° NE
Lucette Statue (Paul Bunyan's Sweetheart) (Public Artwork) — 7.7 mi, 358° N
Historic caboose (Attraction) — 8.9 mi, 143° SE
Chippewa National Forest (National Forest) — 11.0 mi, 359° N · 660k acres
North Country National Scenic Trail (National Trail) — 14.3 mi, 356° N · 286 acres
Driftwood Gift Shop and Museum (Museum) — 14.9 mi, 131° SE
Paul Bunyan Historical Museum (Museum) — 16.2 mi, 321° NW
Leech Lake (Recreation Area) — 16.7 mi, 351° N
Sugar Point Battle (Monument) — 17.6 mi, 025° NE
Walker Bay Lighthouse (Attraction) — 19.7 mi, 352° N
Unknown Watershed Withdrawal (National Conservation Area) — 21.0 mi, 354° N · 520 acres
Long Lake Theater & Event Center (Theatre) — 23.4 mi, 273° W
Veterans Memorial (Monument) — 26.3 mi, 284° W
CTC Center (Theatre) — 34.1 mi, 176° S
WonderTrek Children's Museum (Museum) — 35.4 mi, 153° SE
Observation deck (Viewpoint) — 35.5 mi, 162° S
Itasca State Park (State Park) — 37.0 mi, 307° NW
Ox Cart Crossing (Historic Ruins) — 38.0 mi, 167° S
Captain Black's Cabin (Historic Ruins) — 41.2 mi, 232° SW
Beerbower Veterans Monument (Monument) — 44.8 mi, 074° E
Cultural Center (Museum) — 45.8 mi, 243° SW
Finn Creek Museum (Museum) — 46.2 mi, 237° SW
Tamarac National Wildlife Refuge (National Wildlife Refuge) — 49.4 mi, 282° W · 86k acres
Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge (National Wildlife Refuge) — 55.0 mi, 111° E · 36k acres
Pine Grove Zoo (Zoo / Wildlife Park) — 58.5 mi, 174° S
Odyssey Cinemas Washington Square 7 (Cinema) — 62.9 mi, 270° W
Superior National Forest (National Forest) — 76.0 mi, 091° E · 2.1M acres

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