William Mitchell State Park
Park
163 acres2.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
BOutdoors
Outdoors in Clam Lake Township
Clam Lake Township has 1,377 acres of parks, 556 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: William Mitchell State Park (2.2 mi), Waldeck Island Nature Preserve (0.6 mi). 9% of Clam Lake Township’s land is conserved, about 1,669 acres. 24% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 64% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
9%
1,669 acres · of 29.3 sq mi of land
Trails
6.7 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,377 ac
556 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
24%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
6.5 mi
0.3 mi lanes · 5.5 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
4
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Clam Lake Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Clam Lake Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Clam Lake Township is ahead of 64% of U.S. towns. 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 Clam Lake Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land9% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (7 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land556 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,377 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home24% 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 64%
LessMore
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 William Mitchell State Park, with 2.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Waldeck Island Nature Preserve
Nature preserve
13 acres0.6 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Pere Marquette State Forest - Cadillac Unit
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
98 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Kenwood Heritage Park
Park
2 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
1,669 conserved acres
9% of Clam Lake Township’s land. Who manages Clam Lake Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources1,369 ac
Private owners191 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits109 ac
State Park · 1,341 acPrivate Park · 191 acOther Easement · 109 acState Conservation Area · 27 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 109 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| White Pine Trail State Park State Park | State natural resources | 1,179 | Open |
| McGuire's Resort Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 180 | Restricted |
| Mitchell State Park State Park | State natural resources | 163 | Open |
| Cadillac State Forest Area State Conservation Area | State natural resources | 27 | Open |
| Eldorado Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 11 | Restricted |
Things to do
3 places to go in Clam Lake Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Clam Lake Township
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Boat launches in Clam Lake Township
1 boat launch without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Clam Lake Township
Hansen Memorial Wildlife Viewing Platform
DirectionsTrails & water
4 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
6.5 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.3 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
5.5 mi
off-road bike paths
0.7 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
2Baseball
1Lacrosse
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Clam Lake Township: May 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) | 9.2 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.5 | 15.2 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.9 |
| High (°F) | 27 | 30 | 40 | 53 | 67 | 76 | 80 | 78 | 70 | 56 | 42 | 32 |
| Rain (in) | 2.2 | 1.7 | 2.1 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.3 | 3.4 | 3.1 | 3.8 | 2.7 | 2.2 |
February is the driest month (1.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 80 °F). 3.8 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Clam Lake Township →
Next door
Clam Lake Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Haring Township87 miCherry Grove Township29 miRichland Township9.4 miCadillac8.0 miClam Lake Township6.7 miSherman Township3.4 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clam Lake Township | 9% | 0.2 | 556 | 24% | B |
| Cadillac | 13% | 1.0 | 67 | 94% | A |
| Sherman Township | 3% | 0.1 | 442 | 16% | B− |
| Richland Township | 3% | 0.3 | 413 | 23% | B |
| Cherry Grove Township | 41% | 0.9 | 267 | 12% | A− |
| Haring Township | 25% | 2.7 | 1,460 | 61% | A+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Clam Lake Township
Where can I hike in Clam Lake Township?
The longest trail networks: William Mitchell State Park, 2.2 miles; Waldeck Island Nature Preserve, 0.6 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Clam Lake Township is conserved land?
9% 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 Clam Lake Township’s trails?
William Mitchell State Park and Waldeck Island Nature Preserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Clam Lake Township?
6.5 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.3 of painted or protected lanes, 5.5 of off-road paths and 0.7 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Clam Lake Township?
71,962 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Clam Lake Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,377 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Clam Lake Township have?
Ahead of 64% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Clam Lake 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 →