Mackinaw State Forest - Gaylord Unit
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
1,577 acres3 mi of trail
North Branch ORV RoutePolar Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
C+Outdoors
Outdoors in Bagley Township
Bagley Township has 22 miles of mapped trails, 0.8 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Mackinaw State Forest - Gaylord Unit (3 mi). 18% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 57 acres are parks and preserves, 9.6 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 44% of U.S. towns · #486 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
556 acres · of 27.7 sq mi of land
Trails
22 mi
0.8 per sq mi of land
Park land
57 ac
9.6 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
18%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
5.2 mi
5.2 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
22
2 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Bagley Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Bagley Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Bagley Township is ahead of 44% of U.S. towns, #486 of 701 in Michigan. Trail miles hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
C+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Bagley Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.8 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (22 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land9.6 acres of park per 1,000 residents (57 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13C+Parks close to home18% 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 44%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 31%
Water is 9% of Bagley Township’s area (3 of 30 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 3%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B. 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.
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 Mackinaw State Forest - Gaylord Unit, with 3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Otsego Lake County Park
Managed by Otsego County
29 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Hutchins Park
Park
18 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Dixon Lake Public Access
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
5 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
All 6 parks & preserves
Mackinaw State Forest - Gaylord Unit1,577 acres · 3 mi of trail · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Otsego Lake County Park29 acres · Otsego County
DirectionsHutchins Park18 acres
Dixon Lake Public Access5 acres · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsAspen Park2 acres
Energy Outlet2 acres
Who protects it
556 conserved acres
3% of Bagley Township’s land. Water is left out: Bagley Township has 27.7 square miles of land and 2.6 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Bagley Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Private owners324 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits198 ac
County31 ac
Town or city3 ac
Private Park · 324 acConservation Easement · 179 acLocal Park · 34 acLocal Recreation Area · 19 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 179 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marsh Ridge Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 154 | Restricted |
| The Natural at Beaver Creek Resort Private Park | Private owners | 128 | Restricted |
| Michawye Golf Club Private Park | Private owners | 42 | Restricted |
| Otsego Lake County Park Local Park | County | 26 | Open |
| Hutchinson Park Local Recreation Area | Land trusts & nonprofits | 19 | Open |
| Unknown Park Local Park | County | 5 | Open |
| Aspen Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
Things to do
3 places to go in Bagley Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Bagley Township
Mt. Michaywé Ski Hill
DirectionsBoat launches in Bagley Township
Dixon Lake Boat Launch
DirectionsOtsego Lake County Park Boat Launch
DirectionsTrails & water
10 named trails and 22 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Polar Trail1.9 mi
North Branch ORV Route1.1 mi
South River Trail0.7 mi
North River Trail0.7 mi
Nordic Trail0.6 mi
Brink Trail0.6 mi
Buffalo Trail0.4 mi
West Ridge Trail0.4 mi
Maple Ridge Trail0.1 mi
Artic Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Apache LakelakeBob LakepondChain-O-LakesCoot LakelakeDixon LakelakeFowler LakelakeGoose LakeHorseshoe LakelakeKassuba LakelakeKnowlton LakelakeLong LakelakeLoon LakelakeMallard LakeMcCoy LakelakeO'Rourke LakelakeOtsego LakelakeOttowa LakelakePerch LakeslakeRound LakelakeSeminole LakelakeWard LakelakeNorth Branch Au Sable River
Biking & sports
5.2 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
5.2 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
7Baseball
5Tennis
3Pickleball
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Bagley 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.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.1 | 10.3 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.8 | 15.6 | 15.3 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.8 |
| High (°F) | 25 | 28 | 39 | 52 | 66 | 75 | 79 | 77 | 69 | 55 | 41 | 31 |
| Rain (in) | 2.0 | 1.5 | 1.8 | 3.0 | 3.1 | 3.3 | 3.1 | 3.3 | 3.5 | 3.7 | 2.7 | 2.2 |
February is the driest month (1.5 in) and July the warmest (highs of 79 °F). 3.7 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Bagley Township →
Next door
Bagley Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Hayes Township203 miChester Township100 miOtsego Lake Township54 miBagley Township22 miLivingston Township19 miGaylord7.8 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bagley Township | 3% | 0.8 | 10 | 18% | C+ |
| Gaylord | 11% | 1.5 | 53 | 96% | A+ |
| Otsego Lake Township | 1% | 1.7 | 50 | 16% | B |
| Chester Township | 1% | 1.5 | 1 | 11% | C |
| Hayes Township | 1% | 2.9 | 3 | 14% | C |
| Livingston Township | under 1% | 0.5 | under 1 | 9% | D |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Bagley Township
Where can I hike in Bagley Township?
The longest trail networks: Mackinaw State Forest - Gaylord Unit, 3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Bagley Township is conserved land?
3% 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 Bagley Township’s trails?
Mackinaw State Forest - Gaylord Unit and Otsego Lake County Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Bagley Township?
5.2 miles of bike routes are on the map: 5.2 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Bagley Township?
14,490 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Bagley Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 57 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Bagley Township have?
Ahead of 44% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #486 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 Bagley Township neighbors.
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 →