Manistee National Forest-White Cloud Unit
Managed by United States Forest Service
199 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
COutdoors
Outdoors in Elbridge Township
Elbridge Township has 18 miles of mapped trails, 0.5 for every square mile of land
3% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 1% of Elbridge Township’s land is conserved, about 287 acres. 16 acres are parks and preserves, 16 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 34% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
1%
287 acres · of 36.1 sq mi of land
Trails
18 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
16 ac
16 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
3%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
4
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Elbridge Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Elbridge Township is ahead of 34% of U.S. towns. Trail miles hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
C
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Elbridge Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land1% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%CTrails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (18 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4BPark land16 acres of park per 1,000 residents (16 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13BParks close to home3% of residents within a half mile of a park · MI 50% · U.S. 72%D
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 34%
LessMore
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to B−. 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
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Gales Pond County Park
Managed by Oceana County
15 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Manistee National Forest - Baldwin Ranger District
Managed by United States Forest Service
2 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
287 conserved acres
1% of Elbridge Township’s land. Who manages Elbridge Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
U.S. Forest Service201 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits83 ac
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service3 ac
Other state land1 ac
National Forest · 201 acUnknown Easement · 83 acConservation Easement · 3 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 86 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manistee National Forest National Forest | U.S. Forest Service | 201 | Open |
Trails & water
4 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
When to get out
The best walking months in Elbridge 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) | 9.3 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.4 | 15.1 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 8.9 |
| High (°F) | 30 | 32 | 43 | 56 | 68 | 77 | 81 | 79 | 72 | 59 | 45 | 34 |
| Rain (in) | 2.3 | 1.8 | 2.1 | 3.5 | 3.6 | 3.5 | 3.1 | 3.3 | 3.2 | 4.0 | 3.1 | 2.4 |
February is the driest month (1.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.0 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Elbridge Township →
Next door
Elbridge Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Crystal Township45 miFerry Township24 miElbridge Township18 miLeavitt Township13 miHart Township6.2 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elbridge Township | 1% | 0.5 | 16 | 3% | C |
| Crystal Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Hart Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Leavitt Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Ferry Township | 10% | 0.7 | 123 | 16% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Elbridge Township
How much of Elbridge Township is conserved land?
1% 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 Elbridge Township’s trails?
Manistee National Forest-White Cloud Unit and Gales Pond County Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Elbridge Township?
61,630 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Elbridge Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 219 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Elbridge Township have?
Ahead of 34% 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 Elbridge 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 →