Bay City State Park
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
867 acres4.4 mi of trail
Tobico Marsh Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Tobico Marsh ParkingWebsite ↗
Photo: Ken Lund from Reno, Nevada, USA · CC BY-SA 2.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Bangor Township
Bangor Township has 834 acres of parks, 60 for every 1,000 residents
11% of Bangor Township’s land is conserved, about 1,003 acres. The biggest trail networks: Bay City State Park (4.4 mi). 46% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 72% of U.S. towns · #272 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
11%
1,003 acres · of 14.1 sq mi of land
Trails
5.5 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
834 ac
60 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
46%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
5.3 mi
5.3 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Bangor Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Bangor Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Bangor Township is ahead of 72% of U.S. towns, #272 of 701 in Michigan. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Bangor Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land11% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4BPark land60 acres of park per 1,000 residents (834 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home46% 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 72%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 61%
Water is 36% of Bangor Township’s area (8 of 22 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 7%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B 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.
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 Bay City State Park, with 4.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Bayside Park
Managed by Bangor Charter Township
27 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Patterson Road Park
Managed by Bangor Township
11 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Independence Boat Launch Park
Managed by Bangor Township
7 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 5 parks & preserves
Bay City State Park867 acres · 4.4 mi of trail · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsBayside Park27 acres · Bangor Charter Township
Patterson Road Park11 acres · Bangor Township
Independence Boat Launch Park7 acres · Bangor Township
DirectionsSaginaw River Mouth Boating Access Site5 acres · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsWho protects it
1,003 conserved acres
11% of Bangor Township’s land. Water is left out: Bangor Township has 14.1 square miles of land and 8.0 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Bangor Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources773 ac
Town or city124 ac
Private owners106 ac
Other state land21 ac
County12 ac
State Recreation Area · 773 acLocal Park · 124 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 106 acConservation Easement · 17 acLocal Resource Management Area · 12 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 10 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bay City Recreation Area State Recreation Area | State natural resources | 773 | Open |
| Utility Corridor Private Other or Unknown | Private owners | 106 | Open |
| Township of Bangor Park Local Park | Town or city | 91 | Open |
| Land Local Park | Town or city | 33 | Open |
| Local Forest Local Resource Management Area | County | 12 | Open |
| State Forest State Conservation Area | Other state land | 5 | Open |
Things to do
3 places to go in Bangor Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Bangor Township
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Boat launches in Bangor Township
Saginaw River Mouth Boat Launch
DirectionsCampgrounds in Bangor Township
Bay City State Park CampgroundsFee · In Bay City State Park
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 1.5 miUnpaved · 2.0 mi
Tobico Marsh Trail1.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
5.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
5.3 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
2Beach volleyball
1Baseball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →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.
Saginaw River Light StationBuilding · listed 1984
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Bangor Township: July and September
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) | 9.3 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.4 | 15.1 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 8.9 |
| High (°F) | 30 | 32 | 42 | 54 | 67 | 77 | 81 | 79 | 72 | 59 | 46 | 35 |
| Rain (in) | 1.9 | 1.6 | 1.8 | 3.2 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 3.6 | 2.7 | 3.0 | 2.3 | 1.9 |
February is the driest month (1.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 3.6 inches fall in August, the wettest month. The climate in Bangor Township →
Next door
Bangor Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Hampton Township14 miBay City10 miBangor Township5.5 miKawkawlin Township4.1 miMonitor Township1.4 miEssexville0.6 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bangor Township | 11% | 0.4 | 60 | 46% | B+ |
| Bay City | 4% | 1.0 | 10 | 96% | B+ |
| Kawkawlin Township | 9% | 0.1 | 404 | 43% | B |
| Essexville | 6% | 0.5 | 1 | 63% | C+ |
| Monitor Township | 1% | under 0.1 | 5 | 30% | D |
| Hampton Township | 14% | 0.5 | 107 | 53% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Bangor Township
Where can I hike in Bangor Township?
The longest trail networks: Bay City State Park, 4.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Bangor Township is conserved land?
11% 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 Bangor Township’s trails?
Bay City State Park and Bayside Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Bangor Township?
5.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 5.3 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Bangor Township?
13,237 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Bangor Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 834 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Bangor Township have?
Ahead of 72% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #272 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 Bangor 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 →