St. John's Marsh State Wildlife Area
Managed by State of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
165 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Vernier Street-Swan Creek Bridge · Photo: Notorious4life · CC BY-SA 3.0B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Ira Township
Ira Township has 353 acres of parks, 70 for every 1,000 residents
1.3 miles of mapped trail cross Ira Township, 0.1 per square mile of land. 33% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 3% of Ira Township’s land is conserved, about 370 acres.
Ahead of 45% of U.S. towns · #472 of 701 in Michigan. What drives it
Conserved land
3%
370 acres · of 17.0 sq mi of land
Trails
1.3 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
353 ac
70 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
33%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
1.2 mi
0.7 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
2 boat launches
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Ira Township have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Ira Township is ahead of 45% of U.S. towns, #472 of 701 in Michigan. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Ira Township’s overall grade.
Conserved land3% of the land · typical MI town 5% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (1 mi) · MI 0.3 · U.S. 0.4CPark land70 acres of park per 1,000 residents (353 acres) · MI 33 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home33% 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 45%
LessMore
Michigan towns of 2,500+ (701)Ahead of 33%
Water is 21% of Ira Township’s area (5 of 22 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 3%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C to B. 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.
Dr. James F. Gerritts Memorial Sanctuary
Managed by Thumb Land Conservancy
33 acres0.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
25 Mile Park
Managed by City of New Baltimore
30 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Ira Township Park
Park
13 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Dr. James F. Gerritts Memorial Sanctuary33 acres · 0.2 mi of trail · Thumb Land Conservancy
St. John's Marsh State Wildlife Area165 acres · State of Michigan Department of Natural Resources
25 Mile Park30 acres · City of New Baltimore
Ira Township Park13 acres
Fair Haven Boating Access Site7 acres · Michigan Department of Natural Resources
DirectionsWho protects it
370 conserved acres
3% of Ira Township’s land. Water is left out: Ira Township has 17.0 square miles of land and 4.6 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Ira Township’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State fish & wildlife161 ac
Town or city139 ac
Other state land35 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits34 ac
State natural resources1 ac
State Conservation Area · 161 acLocal Park · 139 acConservation Easement · 35 acPrivate Conservation · 34 acUnknown · 1 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 35 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| St. Johns Marsh State Wildlife Area State Conservation Area | State fish & wildlife | 161 | Open |
| Ira Township Park Local Park | Town or city | 94 | Open |
| 25 Mile Park Local Park | Town or city | 44 | Open |
| Gerrits Sanctuary Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 34 | Closed |
| Green Street Woods Park - Proposed Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
| Michigan Natural Resource Trust Fund Parcel Unknown | State natural resources | 1 | Open |
Things to do
2 places to go in Ira Township
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Boat launches in Ira Township
Fair Haven Boat LaunchIn Fair Haven Boating Access Site
DirectionsPlus 1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Trails & water
1 lakes & rivers
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.
0.7 mi
off-road bike paths
0.5 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
8Tennis
7Tracks
6Baseball
1Football
1Soccer
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Vernier Street-Swan Creek BridgeStructure · listed 2000
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Ira Township: 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) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 32 | 34 | 43 | 55 | 67 | 77 | 81 | 80 | 73 | 60 | 47 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 2.4 | 2.0 | 2.3 | 3.2 | 3.7 | 3.3 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 3.4 | 2.8 | 2.6 | 2.3 |
February is the driest month (2.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 3.7 inches fall in May, the wettest month. The climate in Ira Township →
Next door
Ira Township and its neighbors
Tap a town to see its outdoors.
Clay Township26 miNew Baltimore8.2 miCasco Township7.9 miCottrellville Township2.5 miChesterfield Township2.5 miIra Township1.3 mi
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ira Township | 3% | 0.1 | 70 | 33% | B− |
| New Baltimore | 18% | 1.8 | 33 | 99%+ | A+ |
| Clay Township | 100% | 0.7 | 2,132 | 65% | A |
| Cottrellville Township | 4% | 0.1 | 133 | 14% | B− |
| Casco Township | 1% | 0.2 | 9 | 6% | C− |
| Chesterfield Township | 6% | 0.1 | 16 | 51% | B− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Ira Township
Where can I hike in Ira Township?
The longest trail networks: Dr. James F. Gerritts Memorial Sanctuary, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Ira Township is conserved land?
3% 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 Ira Township’s trails?
St. John's Marsh State Wildlife Area and Dr. Gerritts Memorial Sanctuary don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Ira Township?
1.2 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.7 of off-road paths and 0.5 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Ira Township?
34,604 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Ira Township or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 354 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Ira Township have?
Ahead of 45% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #472 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 Ira 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 →