Aspen Park
Park
118 acres5.3 mi of trail
Aspen Single Track
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Aspen Park Parking Lot
Frank A. and Rae E. Harris Kramer House · Photo: Andrew Jameson · CC BY-SA 3.0A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Gaylord
Gaylord has 7.8 miles of mapped trails, 1.5 for every square mile of land
96% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 229 acres are parks and preserves, 53 per 1,000 residents. 11% of Gaylord’s land is conserved, about 382 acres.
Ahead of 95% of U.S. towns · #21 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
11%
382 acres · of 5.2 sq mi of land
Trails
7.8 mi
1.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
229 ac
53 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
96%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
7.0 mi
7.0 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Gaylord?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Gaylord have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Gaylord is ahead of 95% of U.S. towns, #21 of 701 in Michigan. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, conserved land lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Gaylord’s overall grade.
Conserved land11% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (8 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4APark land53 acres of park per 1,000 residents (229 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home96% 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 95%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 97%
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 Aspen Park, with 5.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Patrick Mankowski Elk Park
Park
47 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto Aspen Park Parking LotWebsite ↗
Pontresina Park & Community Dog Park
Managed by County of Otsego
9 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Mackinaw State Forest - Gaylord Unit
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
1 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 8 parks & preserves
Aspen Park118 acres · 5.3 mi of trail
DirectionsPatrick Mankowski Elk Park47 acres
DirectionsPontresina Park & Community Dog Park9 acres · County of Otsego
DirectionsMackinaw State Forest - Gaylord Unit1 acres · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Hutchins Park1 acres
George Doumas Park1 acres · City of Gaylord
DirectionsGaylord Gateway Trailhead1 acres
DirectionsFreel Park1 acres · City of Gaylord
DirectionsWho protects it
382 conserved acres
11% of Gaylord’s land. Who manages Gaylord’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city191 ac
Private owners146 ac
County44 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits1 ac
Local Park · 184 acPrivate Park · 146 acLocal Recreation Area · 52 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hidden Valley Golf Resort Private Park | Private owners | 146 | Restricted |
| Aspen Park Local Park | Town or city | 100 | Open |
| Elk Park Local Park | Town or city | 69 | Open |
| Otsego Fairgrounds Local Recreation Area | County | 34 | Restricted |
| Fairview Sport Fields Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 17 | Open |
| Otsego County Dog Park Local Park | County | 10 | Open |
| Doumas Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
| Freel Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Ramp Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Hutchinson Park Local Recreation Area | Land trusts & nonprofits | 1 | Open |
Things to do
7 places to go in Gaylord
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Gaylord
4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Scenic views in Gaylord
Elk viewing area
DirectionsPicnic areas in Gaylord
2 picnic areas without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 named trail
Named trails
Open to bikes · 5.2 miUnpaved · 0.9 mi
Aspen Single Track5.2 mi
Biking & sports
7.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
7.0 mi
off-road bike paths
Single TrackBike route
5.2 miOther TrailsBike route
1.2 miCourts & fields
9Soccer
6Tennis
4Basketball
4Baseball
3Pickleball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The best walking months in Gaylord: 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 | 13.4 | 14.8 | 15.6 | 15.3 | 14.1 | 12.5 | 10.9 | 9.5 | 8.8 |
| High (°F) | 25 | 28 | 38 | 52 | 66 | 75 | 78 | 77 | 69 | 55 | 41 | 30 |
| Rain (in) | 2.1 | 1.6 | 1.8 | 3.0 | 3.1 | 3.3 | 3.1 | 3.3 | 3.7 | 3.8 | 2.8 | 2.4 |
February is the driest month (1.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 78 °F). 3.8 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Gaylord →
Next door
Gaylord 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gaylord | 11% | 1.5 | 53 | 96% | A+ |
| Bagley Township | 3% | 0.8 | 10 | 18% | C+ |
| Livingston Township | under 1% | 0.5 | under 1 | 9% | D |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Gaylord
Where can I hike in Gaylord?
The longest trail networks: Aspen Park, 5.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Gaylord is conserved land?
11% 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 Gaylord’s trails?
Aspen Park and Patrick Mankowski Elk Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Gaylord?
7.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 7.0 of off-road paths. Named routes: Single Track and Other Trails.
Is there public land near Gaylord?
7,843 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Gaylord or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 229 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Gaylord have?
Ahead of 95% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #21 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 Gaylord 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 →