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Acme SignPhoto: Phoenix-Five · CC BY-SA 4.0
AOutdoors
Outdoors in Acme Township

Acme Township has 43 miles of mapped trails, 1.7 for every square mile of land

711 acres are parks and preserves, 159 per 1,000 residents. 13% of Acme Township’s land is conserved, about 2,046 acres. The biggest trail networks: Pere Marquette State Forest - Traverse City Unit (8.9 mi), Bartlett Park (2.9 mi), Petobego State Game Area (2.3 mi).

Ahead of 89% of U.S. towns · #87 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it

Conserved land
13%
2,046 acres · of 25.0 sq mi of land
Trails
43 mi
1.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
711 ac
159 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
51%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
11 mi
11 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
6 beaches · 2 boat launches

What kind of outdoors town is Acme Township?

Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.

A trail town1.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, more than 91% of U.S. towns.Room to roam159 acres of park per 1,000 residents; the typical U.S. town has 13.Land that stays wild13% of the land is conserved; a typical Michigan town, 5%.
Outdoors grade

How much outdoors does Acme Township have?

On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Acme Township is ahead of 89% of U.S. towns, #87 of 701 in Michigan. Trail miles hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.

A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Acme Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land13% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (43 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4APark land159 acres of park per 1,000 residents (711 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13AParks close to home51% of residents within a half mile of a park · MI 50% · U.S. 72%C+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 89%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 88%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A− to A. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.

PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →

The map

Conserved land, trails & bike routes

Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.

1234567
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk

Pick a walk

The longest trail network is Pere Marquette State Forest - Traverse City Unit, with 8.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.

Pere Marquette State Forest - Traverse City Unit

Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
845 acres8.9 mi of trail
Vasa (25k)
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet

Bartlett Park

Park
210 acres2.9 mi of trail
Vasa (5k/10k/25k)Headwaters
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto VASA Pathway Trailhead

Petobego State Game Area

Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
586 acres2.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet

Yuba Creek Natural Area

Managed by Acme Township
409 acres2.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot

Maple Bay Park and Natural Area

Managed by Grand Traverse County and Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy
410 acres1.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot

Sayler Park

Managed by Acme Township
17 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗

Deepwater Point Natural Area

Managed by Acme Township
14 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
All 14 parks & preserves
Pere Marquette State Forest - Traverse City Unit845 acres · 8.9 mi of trail · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Bartlett Park210 acres · 2.9 mi of trail
Directions
Petobego State Game Area586 acres · 2.3 mi of trail · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Yuba Creek Natural Area409 acres · 2.2 mi of trail · Acme Township
Directions
Maple Bay Park and Natural Area410 acres · 1.8 mi of trail · Grand Traverse County and Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy
Directions
Sayler Park17 acres · 0.6 mi of trail · Acme Township
Directions
Deepwater Point Natural Area14 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · Acme Township
Directions
Wintergreen Woods Nature Preserve20 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy
Directions
The Gorge Nature Sanctuary18 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy
Grand Traverse Bay Underwater Preserve40 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Directions
Petobego Natural Area131 acres · Whitewater Township
Bayside Park9 acres
Directions
Acme State Roadside Park2 acres · Michigan Department of Transportation
Directions
The Ridge Nature Preserve1 acres · Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy
Directions
Who protects it

2,046 conserved acres

13% of Acme Township’s land. Who manages Acme Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.

Private owners673 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits533 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)507 ac
State fish & wildlife469 ac
Other state land2 ac
Town or city2 ac
State Conservation Area · 756 acPrivate Park · 673 acAgricultural Easement · 351 acConservation Easement · 202 acUnknown Easement · 201 ac
Good to know

Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 620 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.

The biggest protected parcels
Parcel (PAD-US)Managed byAcresPublic access
Petobego State Game Area
State Conservation Area
State fish & wildlife469Open
Bear Golf Course (Grand Traverse Resort)
Private Park
Private owners415Restricted
Petobego State Game Area-MORRISON
State Conservation Area
Land trusts & nonprofits287Closed
High Pointe Golf Club
Private Park
Private owners258Restricted
Sayler Park
Local Park
Town or city2Open
Things to do

12 places to go in Acme Township

Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.

Boat launches in Acme Township
Bunker Hill Boat LaunchIn Grand Traverse Bay Underwater Preserve
Directions

Plus 1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.

Trails & water

4 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers

Named trails
Open to bikes · 3.1 miHorses · 1.1 miUnpaved · 17.7 mi
Vasa (25k)1.3 mi
Vasa (5k/10k/25k)0.8 mi
Headwaters0.6 mi
Falling Leaf Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Petobego PondAcme Creek
Biking & sports

11 miles of bike routes

Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.

11 mi
off-road bike paths
Vasa PathwayBike route
2.1 mi
Iceman08Bike route
1.3 mi
Courts & fields
45Equestrian
10Tennis
4Pickleball
4Basketball
1Beach volleyball
1Soccer
1Baseball

Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.

History along the way

1 place on the National Register

The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 2 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.

History →
John Pulcipher HouseBuilding · listed 2000
About it
When to get out

The best walking months in Acme Township: May to August

NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)9.210.411.813.414.815.615.314.012.410.99.58.8
High (°F)293140526575797871574534
Rain (in)2.01.31.72.83.02.82.73.03.43.92.62.1

February is the driest month (1.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 79 °F). 3.9 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Acme Township →

Next door

Acme Township and its neighbors

Tap a town to see its outdoors.

Whitewater Township145 miEast Bay Township143 miAcme Township43 mi
TownConserved
of land		Trail mi
per sq mi		Park acres
per 1,000		Near a park
½ mile		Outdoors
Acme Township13%1.715951%A
Whitewater Township1%3.08428%B+
East Bay Township5%3.621264%A

The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.

Questions about parks and trails in Acme Township

Where can I hike in Acme Township?

The longest trail networks: Pere Marquette State Forest - Traverse City Unit, 8.9 miles; Bartlett Park, 2.9 miles; Petobego State Game Area, 2.3 miles; Yuba Creek Natural Area, 2.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.

How much of Acme Township is conserved land?

13% of its land, against a typical 5% for a Michigan town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.

Are dogs allowed on Acme Township’s trails?

Pere Marquette State Forest - Traverse City Unit and Bartlett Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.

Where can I bike in Acme Township?

11 miles of bike routes are on the map: 11 of off-road paths. Named routes: Vasa Pathway and Iceman08.

Is there public land near Acme Township?

9,881 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Acme Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 711 of them inside the town line.

How much outdoors does Acme Township have?

Ahead of 89% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #87 of 701 in Michigan. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

Trail talk

Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Acme Township neighbors.

Town Square →
Share a tip
Sources

Where this page comes from

Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →