Grand Rapids has 43 miles of mapped trails, 1.0 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Richmond Park (3.8 mi), Ken-O-Sha Park (3.7 mi), The Highlands (2.5 mi). 89% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 6% of Grand Rapids’ land is conserved, about 1,843 acres.
Ahead of 75% of U.S. towns · #241 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
6%
1,843 acres · of 44.8 sq mi of land
Trails
43 mi
1.0 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,976 ac
10.0 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
89%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
96 mi
66 mi lanes · 16 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
18
1 beach · 2 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Grand Rapids?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Grand Rapids is ahead of 75% of U.S. towns, #241 of 701 in Michigan. Trail miles hold the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Grand Rapids’ overall grade.
Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Grand Rapids ranks #236 on Outdoors.
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.
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
66 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
16 mi
off-road bike paths
14 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
90Tennis
72Baseball
63Basketball
39Soccer
22Pickleball
8Football
7Beach volleyball
3Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
47 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 10 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
The best walking months in Grand Rapids: 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
45
58
70
79
83
81
74
61
47
37
Rain (in)
2.5
2.0
2.3
3.8
3.8
3.6
3.3
3.4
3.2
3.9
3.0
2.4
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 →
Next door
Grand Rapids and its neighbors
Grand Rapids has the most mapped trails of the 6 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Grand Rapids
Where can I hike in Grand Rapids?
The longest trail networks: Richmond Park, 3.8 miles; Ken-O-Sha Park, 3.7 miles; The Highlands, 2.5 miles; Millennium Park, 2.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Grand Rapids is conserved land?
6% 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’ trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at The Highlands (on leash) and Blandford Nature Center (on leash). For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Grand Rapids?
96 miles of bike routes are on the map: 66 of painted or protected lanes, 16 of off-road paths and 14 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Grand Rapids?
18,608 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Grand Rapids or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,976 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Grand Rapids have?
Ahead of 75% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #241 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 neighbors.
Medical Arts Building · Photo: Andrew Jameson · CC BY-SA 3.0