Lightning Bend Park
Park
99 acres8.1 mi of trail
Lightning Bend Loop
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: kennethaw88 · CC BY 4.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Belding
Belding has 11 miles of mapped trails, 2.2 for every square mile of land
12% of Belding’s land is conserved, about 363 acres. The biggest trail networks: Lightning Bend Park (8.1 mi). 90% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 94% of U.S. towns · #42 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
12%
363 acres · of 4.7 sq mi of land
Trails
11 mi
2.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
194 ac
32 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
90%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
3.0 mi
3.0 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
2 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Belding?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Belding have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Belding is ahead of 94% of U.S. towns, #42 of 701 in Michigan. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Belding’s overall grade.
Conserved land12% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%A−Trails2.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (11 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4APark land32 acres of park per 1,000 residents (194 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home90% of residents within a half mile of a park · MI 50% · U.S. 72%B+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 94%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 94%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be 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 Lightning Bend Park, with 8.1 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Central Riverside Park
Managed by City of Belding
15 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Flat River State Game Area
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
28 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
All 6 parks & preserves
Lightning Bend Park99 acres · 8.1 mi of trail
DirectionsCentral Riverside Park15 acres · 0.4 mi of trail · City of Belding
DirectionsDemorest Field31 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsFlat River State Game Area28 acres · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsEast Riverside Park4 acres · City of Belding
DirectionsWater Street Park4 acres · City of Belding
DirectionsWho protects it
363 conserved acres
12% of Belding’s land. Who manages Belding’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Private owners178 ac
Town or city157 ac
State fish & wildlife28 ac
Private Park · 178 acLocal Recreation Area · 123 acLocal Park · 35 acState Conservation Area · 28 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Candlestone Inn Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 178 | Restricted |
| Lightning Bend Park Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 91 | Open |
| Demorest Field Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 31 | Open |
| Flat River State Game Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 28 | Open |
| Central Riverside Park Local Park | Town or city | 16 | Open |
| Playground Local Park | Town or city | 7 | Open |
| Armstrong Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Water Street Park Local Park | Town or city | 4 | Open |
| East Riverside Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
Things to do
11 places to go in Belding
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Belding
9 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Belding
City of Belding Boat Launch
DirectionsRiverside Park Boat LaunchIn East Riverside Park
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Lightning Bend Loop4.5 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
3.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
3.0 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
8Baseball
4Soccer
2Tennis
2Basketball
2Football
2Tracks
2Softball
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →3 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The best walking months in Belding: July to 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 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.4 | 15.1 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 30 | 33 | 44 | 57 | 69 | 79 | 82 | 80 | 73 | 60 | 46 | 35 |
| Rain (in) | 2.4 | 1.9 | 2.3 | 3.6 | 3.8 | 3.7 | 3.2 | 3.5 | 3.1 | 3.7 | 2.9 | 2.3 |
February is the driest month (1.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 3.8 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Belding →
Questions about parks and trails in Belding
Where can I hike in Belding?
The longest trail networks: Lightning Bend Park, 8.1 miles; Central Riverside Park, 0.4 miles; Demorest Field, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Belding is conserved land?
12% 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 Belding’s trails?
Lightning Bend Park and Central Riverside Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Belding?
3.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 3.0 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Belding?
17,045 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Belding or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 194 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Belding have?
Ahead of 94% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #42 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 Belding 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 →