Portland State Game Area
Nature preserve
2,164 acres9.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Danby Township
Danby Township has 2,006 acres of parks, 674 for every 1,000 residents
10% of Danby Township’s land is conserved, about 2,154 acres. The biggest trail networks: Portland State Game Area (9.2 mi). 25% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 73% of U.S. towns · #254 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
10%
2,154 acres · of 35.1 sq mi of land
Trails
17 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
2,006 ac
674 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
25%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
5
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Danby Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Danby Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Danby Township is ahead of 73% of U.S. towns, #254 of 701 in Michigan. 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 Danby Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land10% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (17 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4BPark land674 acres of park per 1,000 residents (2,006 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home25% 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 73%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 64%
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 Portland State Game Area, with 9.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
2,154 conserved acres
10% of Danby Township’s land. Who manages Danby Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife1,997 ac
Private owners157 ac
State Conservation Area · 1,997 acPrivate Park · 157 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portland State Game Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 1,997 | Open |
| Willow Wood Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 157 | Restricted |
Things to do
1 places to go in Danby Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Boat launches in Danby Township
Erdman Road EndIn Portland State Game Area
DirectionsTrails & water
5 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
When to get out
The best walking months in Danby 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) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 31 | 33 | 44 | 57 | 69 | 79 | 83 | 80 | 73 | 61 | 47 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 2.3 | 1.8 | 2.2 | 3.4 | 4.0 | 3.7 | 3.3 | 3.6 | 2.9 | 3.5 | 2.7 | 2.1 |
February is the driest month (1.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 4.0 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Danby Township →
Next door
Danby Township and its neighbors
Danby Township has the most mapped trails of the 5 towns around it. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Danby Township | 10% | 0.5 | 674 | 25% | B+ |
| Portland | 9% | 1.6 | 46 | 97% | A |
| Portland Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Eagle Township | 1% | 0.4 | 80 | 13% | C+ |
| Roxand Township | under 1% | under 0.1 | 3 | 30% | D |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Danby Township
Where can I hike in Danby Township?
The longest trail networks: Portland State Game Area, 9.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Danby Township is conserved land?
10% 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 Danby Township’s trails?
Portland State Game Area doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Danby Township?
5,802 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Danby Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 2,006 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Danby Township have?
Ahead of 73% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #254 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 Danby 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 →