Ensley Park
Managed by Village of Howard City
4 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
COutdoors
Outdoors in Howard City
Howard City has 8 acres of parks, 4.6 for every 1,000 residents
79% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 0.2 miles of mapped trail cross Howard City, 0.1 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 25% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
under 1%
5 acres · of 2.4 sq mi of land
Trails
0.2 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
8 ac
4.6 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
79%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
2.4 mi
2.4 mi paths
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Howard City have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Howard City is ahead of 25% of U.S. towns. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.
C
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Howard City’s overall grade.
Conserved landunder 1% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%C−Trails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (0 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4CPark land4.6 acres of park per 1,000 residents (8 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13CParks close to home79% of residents within a half mile of a park · MI 50% · U.S. 72%B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 25%
LessMore
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C. 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.
Herbert J. Peck Park
Managed by Village of Howard City
2 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Minnie Farmer Park
Managed by Village of Howard City
1 acres
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Who protects it
5 conserved acres
under 1% of Howard City’s land. Who manages Howard City’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city5 ac
Local Park · 5 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Park Local Park | Town or city | 5 | Open |
Things to do
3 places to go in Howard City
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Howard City
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Biking & sports
2.4 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.4 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
4Tennis
3Basketball
3Baseball
2Beach volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Howard City: 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) | 9.3 | 10.4 | 11.8 | 13.4 | 14.7 | 15.4 | 15.1 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 30 | 33 | 43 | 57 | 69 | 78 | 82 | 80 | 73 | 60 | 46 | 35 |
| Rain (in) | 2.4 | 1.9 | 2.4 | 3.8 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 3.2 | 3.5 | 3.0 | 3.7 | 3.0 | 2.4 |
February is the driest month (1.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 3.8 inches fall in April, the wettest month. The climate in Howard City →
Questions about parks and trails in Howard City
How much of Howard City is conserved land?
under 1% 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 Howard City’s trails?
Ensley Park and Herbert J. Peck Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Howard City?
2.4 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.4 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Howard City?
11,915 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Howard City or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 8 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Howard City have?
Ahead of 25% 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 Howard City 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 →