Duncan Bay Nature Preserve
Nature preserve
137 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Bobak Ha'Eri · CC BY 3.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Cheboygan
Cheboygan has 291 acres of parks, 60 for every 1,000 residents
92% of residents live within a half mile of a park. The biggest trail networks: Duncan Bay Nature Preserve (0.6 mi), Major City Park (0.5 mi). 4.1 miles of mapped trail cross Cheboygan, 0.6 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 86% of U.S. towns · #127 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
294 acres · of 6.9 sq mi of land
Trails
4.1 mi
0.6 per sq mi of land
Park land
291 ac
60 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
92%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
3.6 mi
3.6 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
3 beaches · 7 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Cheboygan?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Cheboygan have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Cheboygan is ahead of 86% of U.S. towns, #127 of 701 in Michigan. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; park acres per resident rank highest, conserved land lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Cheboygan’s overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.6 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (4 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land60 acres of park per 1,000 residents (291 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home92% of residents within a half mile of a park · MI 50% · U.S. 72%A−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 86%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 82%
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 Duncan Bay Nature Preserve, with 0.6 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Joseph Doyle Recreation Area
Park
146 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Soccer Field ParkingWebsite ↗
Adolph and Margaret Gauthier Nature Preserve
Managed by Little Traverse Conservancy
39 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 16 parks & preserves
Duncan Bay Nature Preserve137 acres · 0.6 mi of trail
DirectionsMajor City Park45 acres · 0.5 mi of trail
DirectionsJoseph Doyle Recreation Area146 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsAdolph and Margaret Gauthier Nature Preserve39 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Little Traverse Conservancy
Gordon Turner Park13 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsCheboygan Dam Public Water Access Site9 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsDonnie Doan and Dee Engwis Families Nature Preserve23 acres · Little Traverse Conservancy
Soccer Fields9 acres · Cheboygan County
DirectionsGarfield Road Boating Access Site6 acres · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsCheboygan Trailhead (NCST/NEST)6 acres · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsPaully Nature Preserve5 acres · Little Traverse Conservancy
Captain Gordon Hall Soccer Fields4 acres
DirectionsKiwanis Park2 acres · City of Cheboygan
DirectionsWashington Park1 acres · City of Cheboygan
DirectionsVeterans Memorial Park1 acres · Cheboygan County
James Felix Merchant Neighborhood Park1 acres
Who protects it
294 conserved acres
7% of Cheboygan’s land. Who manages Cheboygan’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits207 ac
Town or city47 ac
County30 ac
Other state land7 ac
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service3 ac
Private Conservation · 207 acLocal Park · 48 acLocal Recreation Area · 30 acConservation Easement · 7 acFederal Other or Unknown · 3 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 8 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duncan Bay Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 135 | Closed |
| Gauthier Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 45 | Open |
| Cheboygan Fairgrounds Local Recreation Area | County | 30 | Restricted |
| Major City Park Local Park | Town or city | 27 | Open |
| Donnie Doan and Dee Engwis Families Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 22 | Open |
| Cheboygan Lock & Dam Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Joseph F. Doyle Recreation Area Local Park | Town or city | 6 | Open |
| Turner Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Paully Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 5 | Open |
| Alpena Fish And Wildlife Conservation Office Federal Other or Unknown | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 3 | Restricted |
3 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
25 places to go in Cheboygan
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Cheboygan
3 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in Cheboygan
13 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Boat launches in Cheboygan
7 boat launches without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Cheboygan
1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Picnic areas in Cheboygan
1 picnic area without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 2.3 mi
Harbor View Court0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
3.6 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
3.6 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
10Baseball
7Tennis
7Soccer
4Basketball
2Football
2Beach volleyball
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). The map also marks 2 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
When to get out
The best walking months in Cheboygan: 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 | 37 | 49 | 62 | 72 | 77 | 76 | 69 | 55 | 43 | 33 |
| Rain (in) | 1.8 | 1.2 | 1.7 | 2.7 | 2.9 | 2.9 | 3.0 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 4.0 | 2.5 | 2.2 |
February is the driest month (1.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 77 °F). 4.0 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Cheboygan →
Next door
Cheboygan and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cheboygan | 7% | 0.6 | 60 | 92% | A |
| Benton Township | 30% | 1.7 | 3,044 | 30% | A |
| Inverness Township | 1% | 0.6 | 143 | 20% | B− |
| Beaugrand Township | 4% | 0.2 | 487 | 4% | B− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Cheboygan
Where can I hike in Cheboygan?
The longest trail networks: Duncan Bay Nature Preserve, 0.6 miles; Major City Park, 0.5 miles; Joseph Doyle Recreation Area, 0.4 miles; Adolph and Margaret Gauthier Nature Preserve, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Cheboygan is conserved land?
7% 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 Cheboygan’s trails?
Duncan Bay Nature Preserve and Major City Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Cheboygan?
3.6 miles of bike routes are on the map: 3.6 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Cheboygan?
29,331 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Cheboygan or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 291 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Cheboygan have?
Ahead of 86% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #127 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 Cheboygan 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 →