Quanicassee State Wildlife Area
Managed by Michigan Department of Natural Resources
3,981 acres2.4 mi of trail
Joseph M Soehnel Nature Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
A−Outdoors
Outdoors in Hampton Township
Hampton Township has 1,032 acres of parks, 107 for every 1,000 residents
14% of Hampton Township’s land is conserved, about 2,553 acres. The biggest trail networks: Quanicassee State Wildlife Area (2.4 mi), Finn Road Park (0.5 mi). 53% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns · #192 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
14%
2,553 acres · of 27.5 sq mi of land
Trails
14 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,032 ac
107 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
53%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.2 mi
1.2 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Hampton Township?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Hampton Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Hampton Township is ahead of 80% of U.S. towns, #192 of 701 in Michigan. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Hampton Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land14% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%A−Trails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (14 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4BPark land107 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,032 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13AParks close to home53% 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 80%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 73%
Water is 48% of Hampton Township’s area (25 of 53 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 8%.
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 Quanicassee State Wildlife Area, with 2.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Finn Road Park
Managed by Hampton Charter Township
22 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Jones Road Park
Managed by Hampton Township
36 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Ridge Road Park
Managed by Hampton Township
5 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
All 5 parks & preserves
Quanicassee State Wildlife Area3,981 acres · 2.4 mi of trail · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsFinn Road Park22 acres · 0.5 mi of trail · Hampton Charter Township
DirectionsJones Road Park36 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Hampton Township
Ridge Road Park5 acres · Hampton Township
Bay County Fairground4 acres
Who protects it
2,553 conserved acres
14% of Hampton Township’s land. Water is left out: Hampton Township has 27.5 square miles of land and 25.1 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Hampton Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife2,367 ac
Private owners131 ac
Town or city43 ac
Other state land19 ac
County3 ac
State Conservation Area · 2,367 acPrivate Park · 130 acLocal Park · 43 acConservation Easement · 19 acLocal Recreation Area · 3 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 10 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quanicassee State Wildlife Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 2,367 | Open |
| Bay Country Club Private Park | Private owners | 130 | Restricted |
| Jones Park Local Park | Town or city | 38 | Open |
| Ridge Road Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
| Bay Fairgrounds Local Recreation Area | County | 3 | Restricted |
| Utility Corridor Private Other or Unknown | Private owners | 1 | Open |
Things to do
7 places to go in Hampton Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Hampton Township
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Hampton Township
Finn Road Boat LaunchIn Finn Road Park
DirectionsPlus 2 boat launches without a name on the map.
Picnic areas in Hampton Township
1 picnic area without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
1 named trail
Named trails
Unpaved · 4.2 mi
Joseph M Soehnel Nature Trail1.4 mi
Biking & sports
1.2 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.2 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
3Baseball
2Tennis
1Beach volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Hampton Township: July and 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 | 8.9 |
| High (°F) | 30 | 32 | 42 | 54 | 67 | 77 | 81 | 79 | 72 | 59 | 46 | 35 |
| Rain (in) | 1.9 | 1.6 | 1.8 | 3.2 | 3.6 | 3.4 | 3.1 | 3.5 | 2.8 | 3.0 | 2.3 | 1.9 |
February is the driest month (1.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 3.6 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Hampton Township →
Next door
Hampton Township and its neighbors
Hampton Township has the most mapped trails of the 7 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Hampton Township14 miBay City10 miBangor Township5.5 miWisner Township4.8 miPortsmouth Township3.4 miMerritt Township1.4 miEssexville0.6 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hampton Township | 14% | 0.5 | 107 | 53% | A− |
| Bay City | 4% | 1.0 | 10 | 96% | B+ |
| Merritt Township | 4% | under 0.1 | 136 | 9% | C+ |
| Portsmouth Township | 5% | 0.2 | 25 | 11% | C+ |
| Essexville | 6% | 0.5 | 1 | 63% | C+ |
| Wisner Township | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Bangor Township | 11% | 0.4 | 60 | 46% | B+ |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Hampton Township
Where can I hike in Hampton Township?
The longest trail networks: Quanicassee State Wildlife Area, 2.4 miles; Finn Road Park, 0.5 miles; Jones Road Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Hampton Township is conserved land?
14% 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 Hampton Township’s trails?
Quanicassee State Wildlife Area and Finn Road Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Hampton Township?
1.2 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.2 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Hampton Township?
13,439 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Hampton Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,032 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Hampton Township have?
Ahead of 80% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #192 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 Hampton 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 →