Mackinac State Forest - Atlanta Unit
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
8,017 acres50.8 mi of trail
Black Lake ORV Trail NorthBlack Lake ORV Route
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trail sign
Spectacle Reef Light Station · Public domainAOutdoors
Outdoors in Benton Township
Benton Township has 9,649 acres of parks, 3,044 for every 1,000 residents
30% of Benton Township’s land is conserved, about 11,291 acres. 99 miles of mapped trail cross Benton Township, 1.7 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Mackinac State Forest - Atlanta Unit (50.8 mi), Cheboygan State Park (7.8 mi).
Ahead of 91% of U.S. towns · #65 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
30%
11,291 acres · of 58.7 sq mi of land
Trails
99 mi
1.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
9,649 ac
3,044 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
30%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
4.3 mi
4.3 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
4
1 beach · 7 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Benton Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Benton Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Benton Township is ahead of 91% of U.S. towns, #65 of 701 in Michigan. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Benton Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land30% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (99 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4APark land3,044 acres of park per 1,000 residents (9,649 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home30% 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 91%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 91%
Water is 6% of Benton Township’s area (4 of 62 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 28%.
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.
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 Mackinac State Forest - Atlanta Unit, with 50.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Cheboygan State Park
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
1,303 acres7.8 mi of trail
Yellow TrailGreen TrailBlue TrailBlack Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Reeds Alverno Nature Preserve
Nature preserve
159 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Benton Township Park
Managed by Benton Township
39 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 7 parks & preserves
Mackinac State Forest - Atlanta Unit8,017 acres · 50.8 mi of trail · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsCheboygan State Park1,303 acres · 7.8 mi of trail · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsReeds Alverno Nature Preserve159 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
Benton Township Park39 acres · Benton Township
DirectionsCharles and Alice LaHaie Nature Preserve39 acres · Little Traverse Conservancy
DirectionsDonnie Doan and Dee Engwis Families Nature Preserve3 acres · Little Traverse Conservancy
Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary1 acres · National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration;State of Michigan
Who protects it
11,291 conserved acres
30% of Benton Township’s land. Water is left out: Benton Township has 58.7 square miles of land and 3.7 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Benton Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources8,145 ac
State parks1,263 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits1,134 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)753 ac
Private owners2 ac
Other state land1 ac
State Conservation Area · 8,145 acState Park · 1,263 acPrivate Conservation · 1,134 acConservation Easement · 754 acPrivate Park · 2 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 746 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta State Forest Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 7,913 | Open |
| Cheboygan State Park State Park | State parks | 1,263 | Open |
| Grass Bay Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 937 | Restricted |
| Natural Area Duck Lake-Mud Lake State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 232 | Open |
| Reeds Alverno Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 160 | Open |
| Charles and Alice LaHaie Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 37 | Open |
| Grand Rack Hunt Club Private Park | Private owners | 2 | Open |
Things to do
11 places to go in Benton Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Benton Township
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Benton Township
1 playground without a name on the map.
Boat launches in Benton Township
Plus 4 boat launches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Scenic views in Benton Township
Scenic Lookout
DirectionsCampgrounds in Benton Township
Cheboygan State Park Modern CampgroundIn Cheboygan State Park
DirectionsTrails & water
9 named trails and 4 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 3.2 miUnpaved · 47.1 mi
Black Lake ORV Trail North13.7 mi
Black Lake ORV Route2.5 mi
Yellow Trail1.7 mi
Green Trail1.6 mi
Blue Trail1.4 mi
Black Trail0.8 mi
Red Trail0.7 mi
Bonnie Court0.1 mi
Sandown Court0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
4.3 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
4.3 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
3Basketball
3Pickleball
2Beach volleyball
1Tennis
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Benton 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 | 13.5 | 14.9 | 15.7 | 15.4 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.8 | 9.4 | 8.7 |
| High (°F) | 26 | 28 | 38 | 51 | 64 | 74 | 79 | 77 | 69 | 56 | 43 | 32 |
| Rain (in) | 1.8 | 1.3 | 1.7 | 2.7 | 2.9 | 2.9 | 3.1 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 3.8 | 2.5 | 2.2 |
February is the driest month (1.3 in) and July the warmest (highs of 79 °F). 3.8 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Benton Township →
Next door
Benton Township and its neighbors
Benton Township has the most mapped trails of the 6 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Benton Township99 miGrant Township98 miBearinger Township93 miInverness Township22 miAloha Township20 miCheboygan4.1 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benton Township | 30% | 1.7 | 3,044 | 30% | A |
| Inverness Township | 1% | 0.6 | 143 | 20% | B− |
| Cheboygan | 7% | 0.6 | 60 | 92% | A |
| Grant Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Aloha Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Bearinger 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 Benton Township
Where can I hike in Benton Township?
The longest trail networks: Mackinac State Forest - Atlanta Unit, 50.8 miles; Cheboygan State Park, 7.8 miles; Reeds Alverno Nature Preserve, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Benton Township is conserved land?
30% 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 Benton Township’s trails?
Mackinac State Forest - Atlanta Unit and Cheboygan State Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Benton Township?
4.3 miles of bike routes are on the map: 4.3 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Benton Township?
44,913 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Benton Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 9,649 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Benton Township have?
Ahead of 91% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #65 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 Benton 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 →