Au Sable State Forest - Gladwin Unit
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
499 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
BOutdoors
Outdoors in Hamilton Township
Hamilton Township has 1,078 acres of parks, 599 for every 1,000 residents
15% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 5% of Hamilton Township’s land is conserved, about 1,243 acres. 15 miles of mapped trail cross Hamilton Township, 0.4 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 64% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
1,243 acres · of 35.9 sq mi of land
Trails
15 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,078 ac
599 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
15%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
15
What kind of outdoors town is Hamilton Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Hamilton Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Hamilton Township is ahead of 64% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Hamilton Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (15 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4BPark land599 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,078 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13A+Parks close to home15% 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 64%
LessMore
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ 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
Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
1,243 conserved acres
5% of Hamilton Township’s land. Who manages Hamilton Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Private owners1,207 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits65 ac
Other state land7 ac
Private Park · 1,173 acConservation Easement · 44 acPrivate Recreation or Education · 34 acPrivate Conservation · 27 acState Conservation Area · 1 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 8 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Birch Hills Sportsmans Club Private Park | Private owners | 1,008 | Open |
| Devils Knob Golf Course Private Park | Private owners | 127 | Restricted |
| Camp Wha-Who Hunting Club Private Park | Private owners | 38 | Open |
| Wah-Bee-Gan Resort Private Recreation or Education | Private owners | 34 | Open |
| Trout Unlimited Forest Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 27 | Open |
| State Forest State Conservation Area | Other state land | 1 | Open |
Trails & water
15 lakes & rivers
When to get out
The best walking months in Hamilton Township: July 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) | 9.2 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.5 | 15.2 | 14.0 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 8.9 |
| High (°F) | 28 | 31 | 42 | 55 | 68 | 78 | 82 | 79 | 72 | 58 | 44 | 33 |
| Rain (in) | 2.0 | 1.6 | 2.0 | 3.5 | 3.6 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 3.2 | 2.8 | 3.2 | 2.3 | 2.0 |
February is the driest month (1.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 3.6 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Hamilton Township →
Next door
Hamilton Township and its neighbors
Hamilton Township has the second most mapped trails of the 5 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Franklin Township37 miHamilton Township15 miHayes Township11 miSage Township9.7 miArthur Township8.8 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hamilton Township | 5% | 0.4 | 599 | 15% | B |
| Sage Township | 4% | 0.3 | 354 | 42% | B |
| Arthur Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Hayes Township | 3% | 0.4 | 109 | 40% | B |
| Franklin Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Hamilton Township
How much of Hamilton Township is conserved land?
5% 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 Hamilton Township’s trails?
Au Sable State Forest - Gladwin Unit doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Hamilton Township?
24,404 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Hamilton Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,078 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Hamilton Township have?
Ahead of 64% 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 Hamilton 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 →