Anderson's Flats Boating Access Site
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
7 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
C+Outdoors
Outdoors in Garfield Township
Garfield Township has 177 acres of parks, 70 for every 1,000 residents
13% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 2% of Garfield Township’s land is conserved, about 353 acres. 3.9 miles of mapped trail cross Garfield Township, 0.1 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 37% of U.S. towns · #544 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
2%
353 acres · of 32.2 sq mi of land
Trails
3.9 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
177 ac
70 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
13%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
6
2 beaches · 1 boat launch
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Garfield Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Garfield Township is ahead of 37% of U.S. towns, #544 of 701 in Michigan. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
C+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Garfield Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land2% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%C+Trails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (4 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4CPark land70 acres of park per 1,000 residents (177 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home13% 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 37%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 22%
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.
Who protects it
353 conserved acres
2% of Garfield Township’s land. Who manages Garfield Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city168 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits95 ac
Private owners75 ac
USDA easements (NRCS)11 ac
Other state land3 ac
Local Recreation Area · 168 acConservation Easement · 109 acPrivate Park · 75 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Camp Henry Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 168 | Open |
| Village Green Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 75 | Restricted |
Things to do
3 places to go in Garfield Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Garfield Township
2 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Garfield Township
Anderson Flats Boat Launch
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail and 6 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 2.6 mi
Wetland Trail0.3 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
1Beach volleyball
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Garfield Township: June 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 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 30 | 33 | 44 | 57 | 69 | 79 | 82 | 80 | 73 | 60 | 46 | 35 |
| Rain (in) | 2.4 | 1.9 | 2.3 | 3.7 | 3.8 | 3.6 | 3.2 | 3.3 | 3.1 | 4.0 | 3.1 | 2.5 |
February is the driest month (1.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 4.0 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Garfield Township →
Next door
Garfield Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Brooks Township27 miSherman Township14 miSheridan Township5.4 miGarfield Township3.9 miAshland Township3.8 miNewaygo1.3 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garfield Township | 2% | 0.1 | 70 | 13% | C+ |
| Newaygo | 7% | 0.3 | 61 | 77% | A− |
| Ashland Township | 2% | 0.1 | 18 | 3% | C |
| Brooks Township | 25% | 0.9 | 222 | 48% | A |
| Sheridan Township | 2% | 0.2 | 71 | 23% | C+ |
| Sherman Township | 24% | 0.4 | 188 | 5% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Garfield Township
How much of Garfield Township is conserved land?
2% 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 Garfield Township’s trails?
Anderson's Flats Boating Access Site doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Garfield Township?
45,644 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Garfield Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 177 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Garfield Township have?
Ahead of 37% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #544 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 Garfield 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 →