Crahen Valley Park
Park
203 acres5.9 mi of trail
Crahen Valley Township Park Trails
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Grand Rapids Township
Grand Rapids Township has 23 miles of mapped trails, 1.5 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Crahen Valley Park (5.9 mi), Knapp Valley Forest Park (2.8 mi), Provin Trails Park (2.8 mi). 576 acres are parks and preserves, 30 per 1,000 residents. 7% of Grand Rapids Township’s land is conserved, about 706 acres.
Ahead of 78% of U.S. towns · #217 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
7%
706 acres · of 15.3 sq mi of land
Trails
23 mi
1.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
576 ac
30 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
50%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
6.1 mi
1.3 mi lanes · 4.7 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
12
1 beach
What kind of outdoors town is Grand Rapids Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Grand Rapids Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Grand Rapids Township is ahead of 78% of U.S. towns, #217 of 701 in Michigan. Trail miles hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Grand Rapids Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land7% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%B+Trails1.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (23 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4APark land30 acres of park per 1,000 residents (576 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home50% 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 78%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 69%
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 Crahen Valley Park, with 5.9 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Knapp Valley Forest Park
Park
89 acres2.8 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Grand Rapids Township Park
Park
56 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 7 parks & preserves
Crahen Valley Park203 acres · 5.9 mi of trail
DirectionsKnapp Valley Forest Park89 acres · 2.8 mi of trail
DirectionsProvin Trails Park45 acres · 2.8 mi of trail
DirectionsGrand Rapids Township Park56 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
DirectionsJohn H. Bonnell Park26 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
Forest Hills Park12 acres
DirectionsCascade Community Association Park2 acres · Cascade Community Association
Who protects it
706 conserved acres
7% of Grand Rapids Township’s land. Who manages Grand Rapids Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Private owners416 ac
Town or city140 ac
County136 ac
Other state land14 ac
Private Park · 416 acLocal Park · 165 acLocal Conservation Area · 112 acConservation Easement · 14 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 14 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cascade Hills Country Club Private Park | Private owners | 236 | Restricted |
| Grand Rapids Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 180 | Restricted |
| Frederik Meijer Gardens Local Conservation Area | Town or city | 112 | Open |
| Knapp Valley Forest Park Local Park | County | 93 | Open |
| Provins Trails Park Local Park | County | 43 | Open |
| Graceland Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 17 | Open |
| Forest Hill Park Local Park | Town or city | 11 | Open |
Things to do
20 places to go in Grand Rapids Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Grand Rapids Township
1 beach without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Playgrounds in Grand Rapids Township
Kooiman Park
DirectionsPlus 11 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Grand Rapids Township
1 dog park without a name on the map.
Scenic views in Grand Rapids Township
Viewing Hill
DirectionsPlus 5 scenic views without a name on the map.
Trails & water
6 named trails and 12 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Horses · 0.6 miUnpaved · 10.2 mi
Crahen Valley Township Park Trails3.1 mi
Robinette's Hayride Trail0.6 mi
Frey Boardwalk0.3 mi
Reeds Lake Trail0.2 mi
Woodland Boardwalk0.1 mi
Major Watson0.1 mi
Biking & sports
6.1 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.3 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
4.7 mi
off-road bike paths
0.1 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
41Tennis
11Pickleball
10Soccer
9Baseball
8Basketball
2Beach volleyball
2Football
1Tracks
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Grand Rapids 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 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.7 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 31 | 34 | 44 | 58 | 69 | 79 | 83 | 81 | 74 | 61 | 47 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 2.5 | 2.0 | 2.4 | 3.8 | 3.9 | 3.6 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 3.2 | 3.9 | 3.0 | 2.5 |
February is the driest month (2.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 83 °F). 3.9 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Grand Rapids Township →
Next door
Grand Rapids Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Forest Hills45 miGrand Rapids43 miPlainfield Township32 miAda Township31 miGrand Rapids Township23 miKentwood17 miNorthview9.1 miEast Grand Rapids5.5 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Rapids Township | 7% | 1.5 | 30 | 50% | A− |
| Grand Rapids | 6% | 1.0 | 10 | 89% | A− |
| East Grand Rapids | 8% | 1.9 | 13 | 84% | A− |
| Ada Township | 10% | 0.9 | 129 | 32% | A− |
| Forest Hills | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Plainfield Township | 14% | 0.9 | 80 | 78% | A |
| Northview | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Kentwood | 4% | 0.8 | 8 | 90% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Grand Rapids Township
Where can I hike in Grand Rapids Township?
The longest trail networks: Crahen Valley Park, 5.9 miles; Knapp Valley Forest Park, 2.8 miles; Provin Trails Park, 2.8 miles; Grand Rapids Township Park, 0.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Grand Rapids Township is conserved land?
7% 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 Grand Rapids Township’s trails?
Crahen Valley Park and Knapp Valley Forest Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Grand Rapids Township?
6.1 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.3 of painted or protected lanes, 4.7 of off-road paths and 0.1 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Grand Rapids Township?
16,688 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Grand Rapids Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 576 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Grand Rapids Township have?
Ahead of 78% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #217 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 Grand Rapids 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 →