Au Sable State Forest - Gladwin Unit
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
9,716 acres10.9 mi of trail
Midland to Mackinaw Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
–Not graded
Outdoors in Bentley Township
Few parks or trails are on the map in Bentley Township
The biggest trail networks: Au Sable State Forest - Gladwin Unit (10.9 mi). 56 acres are parks and preserves, 59 per 1,000 residents. 14 miles of mapped trail cross Bentley Township, 0.4 per square mile of land.
Conserved land
under 1%
72 acres · of 34.6 sq mi of land
Trails
14 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
56 ac
59 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
5%
of residents within ½ mile
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 Au Sable State Forest - Gladwin Unit, with 10.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Robert H. Briggs and Herald W. Cox Memorial Nature Sanctuary
Managed by Michigan Nature Association
40 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Bentley Township Park
Park
14 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
72 conserved acres
under 1% of Bentley Township’s land. Who manages Bentley Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits40 ac
Private owners21 ac
Town or city11 ac
Private Conservation · 40 acPrivate Other or Unknown · 21 acLocal Park · 11 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Briggs & Cox Memorial Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 40 | Open |
| Utility Corridor Private Other or Unknown | Private owners | 21 | Open |
| Bently Township Park Local Park | Town or city | 11 | Open |
Things to do
1 places to go in Bentley Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Bentley Township
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
1 named trail
Named trails
Unpaved · 7.7 mi
Midland to Mackinaw Trail7.6 mi
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
2Baseball
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Bentley 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) | 9.2 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.4 | 15.1 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 8.9 |
| High (°F) | 29 | 32 | 42 | 56 | 69 | 78 | 82 | 80 | 73 | 59 | 46 | 34 |
| Rain (in) | 1.9 | 1.6 | 1.8 | 3.3 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 3.4 | 2.6 | 2.9 | 2.3 | 1.9 |
February is the driest month (1.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 3.5 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Bentley Township →
Next door
Bentley Township and its neighbors
Bentley Township has the second most mapped trails of the 5 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Grim Township141 miBentley Township14 miMills Township8.2 miBillings Township2.2 miMount Forest Township1.5 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bentley Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Billings Township | 2% | 0.1 | 102 | 14% | C+ |
| Mills Township | 11% | 0.2 | 1,475 | 13% | B |
| Mount Forest Township | 1% | under 0.1 | 29 | 4% | C− |
| Grim Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Bentley Township
Where can I hike in Bentley Township?
The longest trail networks: Au Sable State Forest - Gladwin Unit, 10.9 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
Are dogs allowed on Bentley Township’s trails?
Au Sable State Forest - Gladwin Unit and Robert H. Briggs and Herald W. Cox Memorial Nature Sanctuary don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Bentley Township?
10,443 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Bentley Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 56 of them inside the town line.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Bentley 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 →