Veteran's Park
Managed by Imlay City
3 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: Notorious4life at English Wikipedia · Public domainB+Outdoors
Outdoors in Imlay City
Imlay City has 44 acres of parks, 12 for every 1,000 residents
90% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 1.6 miles of mapped trail cross Imlay City, 0.7 per square mile of land. 5% of Imlay City’s land is conserved, about 74 acres.
Ahead of 71% of U.S. towns · #278 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
74 acres · of 2.5 sq mi of land
Trails
1.6 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
44 ac
12 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
90%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.2 mi
1.0 mi lanes
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Imlay City?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Imlay City have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Imlay City is ahead of 71% of U.S. towns, #278 of 701 in Michigan. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; the share of residents near a park ranks highest, park acres per resident lowest.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Imlay City’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (2 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land12 acres of park per 1,000 residents (44 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home90% 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 71%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 60%
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 Veteran's Park, with 0.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Lion's Park
Managed by Imlay City
9 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Polly Ann Trail Head Park
Managed by Imlay City
1 acres0.1 mi of trail
Polly Ann Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
All 6 parks & preserves
Veteran's Park3 acres · 0.3 mi of trail · Imlay City
DirectionsLion's Park9 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Imlay City
DirectionsPolly Ann Trail Head Park1 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Imlay City
DirectionsOld School Park1 acres · Imlay City
Lamb Steele Park1 acres · Imlay City
DirectionsRotary Park1 acres · Imlay City
Who protects it
74 conserved acres
5% of Imlay City’s land. Who manages Imlay City’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city40 ac
County34 ac
Local Park · 40 acLocal Recreation Area · 34 ac
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Michigan Fair Association Local Recreation Area | County | 34 | Restricted |
| City of Imlay City Park Local Park | Town or city | 25 | Open |
| Lions Park Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Veteran'S Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Lamb Steele Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Rotary Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Old School Park Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
2 places to go in Imlay City
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Imlay City
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 0.8 miUnpaved · 0.5 mi
Polly Ann Trail0.8 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
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.
1.0 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
0.2 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
14Tennis
5Baseball
3Soccer
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The best walking months in Imlay City: 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 | 15.1 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 10.9 | 9.6 | 9.0 |
| High (°F) | 30 | 33 | 43 | 57 | 69 | 78 | 82 | 80 | 74 | 60 | 46 | 35 |
| Rain (in) | 2.1 | 1.8 | 2.1 | 3.1 | 3.5 | 3.3 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 2.9 | 2.9 | 2.5 | 2.1 |
February is the driest month (1.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 3.5 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Imlay City →
Questions about parks and trails in Imlay City
Where can I hike in Imlay City?
The longest trail networks: Veteran's Park, 0.3 miles; Lion's Park, 0.2 miles; Polly Ann Trail Head Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Imlay City 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 Imlay City’s trails?
Veteran's Park and Lion's Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Imlay City?
1.2 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.0 of painted or protected lanes and 0.2 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Imlay City?
6,566 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Imlay City or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 44 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Imlay City have?
Ahead of 71% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #278 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 Imlay 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 →